Epic: Dashboard layout rework (workspaces, fewer richer cards, stable placement) #194

Problem

The dashboard is one scrolling, multi-column view with 20 cards on it. Everything competes for the same screen, so commanders either scroll past most of it or never find the card they need. There is no everyday way to choose which cards are shown (hide/collapse/width/order exist in the saved layout, but the reorder controls appear to be limited to developer mode; to be verified), and the multi-column placement itself is unstable (#180).

Principles

1. The UI never rearranges itself. A card stays where the commander put it. Context may suggest (a badge) but never moves or switches anything on its own unless the commander opts in.
2. Relevance by choice, not by guesswork. The commander decides what is on which page; defaults are sensible but editable.
3. Fewer, richer cards beat many thin ones. Related information shares a card, with sections.
4. Glanceable first. A collapsed card still says something useful in one line.
5. Keep what already works: per-card visibility, width, collapse and order are persisted; the in-game overlay and Twitch card are separate surfaces and are not part of this rework.

Proposed shape

• Workspaces: named pages (e.g. Flight & Trade, Exploration & Exobiology, Colonisation, Engineering & Missions, Stream) selected from a tab strip or side rail; each card is assigned to one or more.
• Consolidated cards: roughly 20 down to 10-12 (Ship + Cargo + Materials; Engineering + Engineers + Materials; Market + Trade + Route; ...).
• Compact mode: one-line summaries, secondary cards collapsed by default, a proper show/hide picker.
• Non-moving hints: a badge on a workspace tab when something relevant happens (docked at a construction depot, a mission completes); optional, off-by-default auto-switch.
• Pop-out windows for second monitors, generalising the Galnet and War Board windows.

Out of scope

Auto-ordering cards by context, a full docking/tiling framework, theming changes beyond using the existing design tokens (Theme.axaml; no hardcoded colours), and any change to what the cards compute.

Suggested order

Stable placement (#180) first, because every other piece builds on it; then the workspace model and picker; then card consolidation and compact mode; hints and pop-outs last.

Checklist

• Dashboard cards swap columns on their own (masonry placement follows live card heights) #180 Dashboard cards swap columns on their own (stable placement; do this first)
• Layout: workspace model (pages) with per-workspace card assignment, order, width and collapse #195 Layout: workspace model (pages) with per-workspace card assignment, order, width and collapse
• Workspace UI: tab strip or side rail, create/rename/delete/reorder, and a card picker #196 Workspace UI: tab strip or side rail, create/rename/delete/reorder, and a card picker
• Consolidate related cards into fewer, richer cards (audit and merge map) #197 Consolidate related cards into fewer, richer cards (audit and merge map)
• Compact mode: one-line collapsed summaries, density setting, collapsed-by-default for secondary cards #198 Compact mode: one-line collapsed summaries, density setting, collapsed-by-default for secondary cards
• Contextual hints that never move anything: workspace badges, with an opt-in auto-switch #199 Contextual hints that never move anything: workspace badges, with an opt-in auto-switch
• Pop-out cards: detach any card into its own window (second monitor), remembering position #200 Pop-out cards: detach any card into its own window (second monitor), remembering position
• Layout defaults, migration and reset: first-run workspaces and what existing users see #201 Layout defaults, migration and reset: first-run workspaces and what existing users see

🤖 Generated with Claude Code