Interface Navigation Guide

🗺 Interface Overview

Kolega Studio is organized into three main panels with multiple navigation areas. Understanding these will significantly improve your productivity and help you manage the build process efficiently through proper thread usage.

📍 Main Navigation Bar (Top)

Kolega Studio Logo (Far Left)

Function: Home navigation

• Returns to "Your Projects" page

• Shows all projects

• Access to create "New Project"

• Trash icon for deleted projects (30-day recovery)

• Project search and refresh functions

Project Name & Status

Location: Center-left of top bar

• Shows current project name

• Green/Yellow/Red Orb - Sandbox status indicator

  • 🟢 Green = "Sandbox is running"

  • 🟡 Yellow = Sandbox restarting/loading

  • 🔴 Red = Issue with sandbox server

Sandbox Management

Click the status orb to:

• View current status

• "🔄 Reset Sandbox"

When to restart sandbox:

• After adding/updating environment variables (REQUIRED)

• When Preview stops updating

• Backend shows disconnected

• To clear cached states

• After major configuration changes

Important: Only restart when no agent/chat thread is running to avoid interrupting processes

🔔 Notifications Center

Location: Bell icon with red badge

• Project creation confirmations

• Deployment completion status (10-15 mins)

• System maintenance notices

• Domain purchase confirmations

• Material notifications for platform operation

How to use:

1. Click bell icon

2. Toggle between "All" and "Unread" tabs

3. "Mark all read" to clear badge

4. Each notification shows timestamp

🐛 Bug Reporter

Location: Bug icon in top toolbar

How to report:

1. Click bug icon

2. Select issue type:

   • Bug/Error

   • Feature Request

   • Other feedback

3. Describe issue in detail

4. Attach files (optional):

   • Maximum 5 files

   • 10MB per file limit

5. Submit and receive tracking ID

🌙☀️ Light/Dark Mode Switcher

Location: Moon/Sun icon

• Click 🌙 for dark/dev mode

• Click ☀️ for light mode

• Preference saved for next session

🚀 Publish Button

Location: Green "Publish" button

Quick publish (current version):

1. Click green Publish button

2. Deployment takes 10-15 minutes

3. Receive notification when complete

Advanced publishing (specific version):

1. Go to Project Settings tab

2. Access comprehensive publishing options

3. Acquire own domain (Pro Plan)

4. Publish to existing domain you won (Pro Plan)

5. Select any GitLab commit to publish

👤 Account Menu (Far Right)

Access to:

• User Profile

• Passwords

• Plan/Subscription Tier

• Credits (check/buy)

• Payment Methods & Billing

• Domain management

• Notification preferences

• Security settings

• Integrations:

  • GitHub (Pro tier - BYO repository)

  • Expo Go (Pro tier - mobile apps)

🧵 Left Panel - Thread Management

Understanding Threads

Threads are like separate conversations within your project:

• Each thread has its own context

• Multiple threads can exist in one project

• Helps manage project context, token usage and costs

• Keeps different features/tasks organized

Thread Best Practices

1. Create new thread for:

   • Each major feature

   • Different phases of development

   • Testing sessions

   • Bug fixes

   • UI/UX refinements

2. Thread naming:

   • Be descriptive

   • Include phase/feature

   • Easy to navigate later

3. Context window management:

   • Watch for warnings at ~80% capacity

   • Start new thread when warned

   • System compresses thread context as last resort

Thread Operations

• Rename: Click thread name to edit

• Delete: Remove thread (cannot be recovered)

• New Thread: Click "+" to create

💬 Center Panel - AI Chat Interface

Main Functions

• Primary interaction point with AI agents

• Upload screenshots for bug descriptions

• Upload images for UI reference

• Planning workspace before coding

Important Notes

• Uploads here are thread-specific (not shared across threads)

• For project-wide assets, use Project Files tab

• Can be used like ChatGPT/Claude for planning

• Tell agents "don't code yet" when planning

Agent Outputs

• Your inputs: Green text on right

• Agent outputs: Left side with accent colours

  • Different colours for different agents

  • Coding Agent, Investigation Agent, Browser Agent, etc.

• Collapsed by default: Click to expand details

• Summaries provided: End of each task/action

📱 Right Panel - The 6 Essential Tabs

1️⃣ Preview Tab (Eye Icon)

Purpose: Live application view

• View modes:

  • 📱 Mobile view

  • 🖥 Desktop view

• Refresh button

• Preview in browser option

2️⃣ Monitor Tab

Purpose: Watch AI work in real-time

• Code generation progress

• Command line activities

• Browser agent screenshots

• File creation/modification logs

• Best paired with Dev Tools for terminal view

3️⃣ Code Viewer Tab (<> Icon)

Purpose: Browse and edit project files

IMAGE/VIDEO comes here

• Direct file editing

• Access .md documentation files

4️⃣ Database Viewer Tab

Purpose: View application data in MongoDB backend

• View all collections

• View records in collections

• Browse/edit individual records

Note: Shows "No collections found" until data is added

5️⃣ Project Files Tab (Folder Icon)

Purpose: Project-wide asset management

Upload files:

1. Drag and drop OR click "Browse"

2. Maximum 50MB per file

3. Any file type accepted

4. Accessible across ALL threads

Use for:

• Logos and images

• PDFs and documentation

• Excel/CSV files

• Reference materials

• SDKs and technical papers

6️⃣ Project Settings Tab (⚙️)

Purpose: Project configuration

Environment Variables:

• Add API keys, secrets, tokens

• Values encrypted (shown as •••••••)

• MUST restart sandbox after changes

• Pre-configured:

  • DATABASE_NAME

  • MONGODB_URI

Project Management:

• Edit project name

• View project ID

• Creation timestamp

Deployment URLs:

• Auto-generated: https://[unique-project-name].kolegaapps.com

• Custom domain purchase option

Revisions (Version Control):

• Automatic GitLab commits

• Restore to earlier versions

• Download project as ZIP

• Complete code history

Delete Project:

• Soft delete (30-day recovery)

• Access deleted projects via trash icon

🛠 Dev Tools Panel (Bottom)

Access: Click ">_DevTools ^" at bottom

Terminal Tab

Capabilities:

• Preview Terminal commands ran by the agents

• Multiple terminal sessions

System Logs Tab

Log types:

• [INFO] - General information

• [SUCCESS] - Successful operations

• [ERROR] - Error conditions

Example:

[05:16:36 PM] [INFO] Kolega Chat initialized 
[05:16:37 PM] [SUCCESS] Event WebSocket connected 
[05:18:19 PM] [INFO] Sandbox ready - refreshed workspace 

🎯 Workflow Tips

Development Flow

1. Create planning thread → Write requirements

2. Create implementation plan → Save as .md

3. New thread per phase → Reference the plan

4. Watch Monitor tab → See progress

5. Check Preview tab → Test results

6. Database Viewer → Verify data

7. New thread for fixes → Keep context clean

Testing Flow

1. Complete a phase

2. New testing thread

3. Use browser agent

4. Check System Logs

5. Fix issues

6. Mark complete in plan

Deployment Flow

1. Test thoroughly in Preview

2. Check environment variables

3. Verify version you would like to publish (last version by default)

4. Click Publish button

5. Wait for notification

6. Test live URL

🚨 Quick Troubleshooting

💡 Power User Tips

1. Multi-tab testing: Open Preview in browser window

2. Quick debugging: Keep Browser logs open

3. Batch uploads: Upload all assets at once to Project Files

4. Version control: Regular GitLab commits happen automatically

5. Context management: New thread = fresh context = better results

6. Agent summaries: Use end-of-task summaries to brief new threads

⚡ Keyboard Shortcuts & Quick Access

📊 Interface Efficiency Guide

Optimal Panel Usage

• Planning: Center chat + Code Viewer for .md files

• Building: Center chat + Monitor + Preview

• Testing: Center Chat + Browser agent + Dev Tools + System Logs

• Debugging: Center Chat + Monitor + Preview + Code Viewer + Database + System Logs

• Deploying: Settings + Publish button

Credit-Saving Interface Tips

1. Use separate threads (left panel) for each feature

2. Upload all assets once (Project Files) instead of per-thread

3. Check Database Viewer before assuming data issues

4. Use Code Viewer to edit directly for small changes

5. Monitor System Logs to catch errors early

Remember: Mastering the interface, especially thread management, is key to efficient development and credit usage in Kolega Studio.