Windows UI redesign — Viewer workspace/Browse epic: four focused jobs #112

Coordination epic — work through the small jobs

This issue groups related work; it is not one implementation job or one all-at-once design approval. Review and complete the linked leaf issues separately. Their questions, narrow scopes and prerequisites govern execution. The older phase-wide material below is reference context.

Screen context

This is a UI proposal, not an implemented screenshot. Implement only the boundary of the leaf job under discussion, not every contextual element visible in the picture.

Coordination status: awaiting job-level discussion. Keep this epic open until its linked jobs have actual implementation/verification evidence. The first discussion is #117, typography only. No automatic next-job work or release.

Visual walkthrough and discussion

The proposed Viewer keeps the image in the middle, Browse on the left, optional Info on the right, and commands/status in stable rows. Local selection controls do not push the main image around.

Schematic only: these diagrams explain structure and behavior, not exact pixel geometry, font rendering, or an implemented Windows screenshot.

flowchart TD
  subgraph WINDOW["Proposed Viewer structure"]
    CMD["Top: File · Open · Browse · Fit · 100% · Scaling · Compare · Info"]
    subgraph WORK["Workspace"]
      direction LR
      NAV["Browse<br/>Parent and path<br/>List / Gallery<br/>Wrapped folder names<br/>Selected-file actions"]
      IMAGE["Main image<br/>Existing Fit / manual zoom rules<br/>No selection tint or drawer animation"]
      INFO["Optional Info<br/>One side panel at a time in narrower windows"]
      NAV --- IMAGE --- INFO
    end
    STATUS["Bottom: actual format · scale · position"]
    CMD --> WORK --> STATUS
  end

flowchart TD
  SELECT["Selected eligible files"] --> COUNT{"How many?"}
  COUNT -- "1" --> SINGLE["Single-file commands"]
  COUNT -- "2–4" --> COMPARE["Compare selected + Move to Recycle Bin"]
  COUNT -- "5 or more" --> RECYCLE["Move to Recycle Bin; explain comparison limit"]
  FOLDER["Folder or [..]"] --> NAVIGATE["Navigate; never include in file batch deletion"]

Historical phase-level discussion prompts (reference)

• Are the command order and parent/path controls easy to discover?

• Is the proposed folder-card size and multiline wrapping readable enough, especially for Korean names?

• Can you distinguish the currently open file, selected files, and keyboard focus without relying on blue alone?

Reference status: use the focused leaf-job questions above for approval. This phase-wide material is not one implementation job.

Parent and dependencies

Parent: #110. Depends on #111. Complete and verify prerequisites before this stage.

Goal

Provide a content-first Viewer with discoverable navigation and selection commands, preserving all existing drawer behavior.

Implementation scope

• Create a measured one-row command area and read-only status area using Phase 1 roles: Open, Browse, Fit, 100%, Scaling, Compare, Info; retain File/View/Tools access and move lower-priority commands to More when needed.
• File-association startup remains image-first with side panels closed. Keep native title bar and fullscreen/Escape behavior.
• Browse defaults to 280 DIP (240–440), honors saved widths, and includes visible parent navigation, breadcrumb/path, List/Gallery controls, and thumbnail sizing.
• Preserve D:\00\_temp → D:\00 → D:\ → drive list, with [..] at every real folder/drive root and [C:\]/[D:\] at the top. Retain UNC-root policy; failed traversal preserves the old view.
• Keep typographic folder cards. Left/top-align 13/18 captions; use the available card height for wrapping before final-line ellipsis. Initial height 116 DIP/padding 8 is a default, not a fixed two/five-line limit.
• Default thumbnail captions to two lines; preserve Gallery eligibility and full List access, bounded caches, visible-first loading, and unavailable-preview states.
• Distinguish current file, multi-selection checks, and keyboard focus. Preserve single-click selection, double-click/Enter opening, Ctrl/Shift anchors, and folder exclusion from file batch deletion.
• Keep selection actions inside Browse without resizing the main canvas. Show Compare only for 2–4 eligible files; >4 gets a limit explanation. Expose only applicable context commands and accurate Move to Recycle Bin behavior.

Acceptance criteria

• Commands remain accessible at 640×480/960×600/1440×900 DIP and text enlargement without label shrinking or automatic second command rows.
• Long Korean, English, unbroken, and mixed-script folder names show the beginning and wrap before ellipsis; full names remain accessible.
• Drive/UNC traversal, inaccessible drives, List/Gallery filtering, external directory changes, and path-based selection work correctly.
• 1/2/4/5/many selections produce the correct commands and counts; file clipboard and image capture actions are not conflated.
• E toggles atomically, ignores held repeat, never advances file/frame, refits Fit once, keeps small images at 100%, and preserves manual zoom/pan anchors.
• New selection and focus styling does not tint/crop the main image or trigger excess decode/paint work.

Execution and completion rules

Windows MFC Viewer/Comparator only; follow the parent specification and existing AGENTS.md. Start a focused branch from current origin/master and keep unrelated changes intact. Reuse existing command IDs and rendering/data paths. Run relevant automated/manual checks plus local CoreRegressionTests and both Windows Release builds for changes affecting shared or release-sensitive code. Record the branch/PR, verification evidence, remaining limitations, and any regression fixes. A mockup or build alone is not completion. Do not tag/publish a release in this implementation step.