TODO – Future Migration to PySide6

[TobiaRigon]

Objective

Evaluate and plan the migration from tkinter to PySide6 (Qt for Python) to enhance UI flexibility, scalability, and visual consistency across platforms.

Reasons for Migration

• Modern and professional UI components with native look and feel.
• Better support for complex widgets (e.g., collapsible trees, tabs, docking panels).
• Improved layout management and styling via Qt Designer or QSS.
• Asynchronous operations and threading better integrated with the event loop.

Migration Plan (Phased)

Phase 1 – Feasibility & Setup

• Set up a minimal prototype using PySide6 for the main window.
• Identify dependencies currently tied to tkinter (dialogs, previews, widgets).
• Decide if Qt Designer will be part of the workflow.

Phase 2 – Core UI Porting

• Migrate main window layout and logic to PySide6.
• Replace message boxes, file dialogs, and input dialogs with Qt equivalents.
• Rebuild TreeView with QTreeView + QFileSystemModel and custom checkboxes.

Phase 3 – Feature Parity

• Re-implement file preview panel with live update.
• Port settings dialog with token presets and scrollable layout.
• Ensure theme support (light/dark) using QPalette or QSS.

Phase 4 – Testing and Optimization

• Test performance with large projects.
• Validate token counting and live preview responsiveness.
• Ensure backward compatibility of settings and CLI tools.

Phase 5 – Optional Enhancements

• Add dockable panels for preview and progress.
• Support high-DPI scaling and retina displays.
• Integrate markdown rendering directly in the GUI using Qt WebEngine or QTextBrowser.

Considerations

• PySide6 increases app size and complexity but unlocks professional UI capabilities.
• Cross-platform packaging (e.g. using PyInstaller) must be re-evaluated for Qt dependencies.
• GUI testing becomes easier with tools like pytest-qt.