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UI Cluttered #1

Description

Description

The current interface feels overly cluttered and visually dense, which makes the app harder to use than expected for a writing-focused editor. Too many controls, panels, and actions are visible at once, causing the document area to compete with surrounding UI instead of being the clear focal point.

Current behavior

When using the editor, a large number of controls are shown simultaneously across the top toolbar, command sections, side navigation, and inspector panel. Enabling both the icon bar and command bar makes the layout especially crowded. As a result, the writing canvas feels compressed and the interface looks more like an admin panel than a document editor.

Expected behavior

The editor should be the primary visual focus. Common actions should remain easy to access, but secondary tools should be better grouped, collapsible, or hidden until needed. The overall layout should feel simpler, cleaner, and more writing-centered.

Observed issues

  • Too many visible controls at the same time
  • Toolbar area becomes crowded, especially with multiple bars enabled
  • Navigation and inspector panels take up significant horizontal space
  • Weak visual hierarchy between primary and secondary actions
  • Document canvas does not stand out as the main area of focus

Impact

This affects usability and first impressions. The interface can feel overwhelming, distracting, and unnecessarily complex, especially for new users or anyone trying to focus on writing.

Suggested improvements

  • Reduce the number of always-visible toolbar actions
  • Group related controls into dropdowns or overflow menus
  • Make side panels collapsible or hidden by default
  • Improve spacing and section hierarchy in the toolbar
  • Give more screen space and visual emphasis to the document canvas

Steps to reproduce

  1. Open the editor
  2. Enable the available toolbar and command bar options
  3. Observe the amount of visible controls, panels, and sections around the document area
  4. Compare the amount of space used by UI chrome versus the actual writing canvas

Actual result

The UI appears crowded and visually noisy, with too many controls competing for attention.

Expected result

The UI should feel streamlined, with the writing area clearly prioritized and secondary controls presented more progressively.

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