Coming soon: Stop Switching Tabs. Start Doing the Work.

Real estate software has a tough job. It has to work for architects doing massing studies, planners doing site analysis, and developers crunching numbers on a deal, all on the same platform.

Giraffe used to have one fixed layout for everyone. It meant everyone was stuck working around a setup that wasn't really built for their job. The fixed layout was holding people back, and it needed to go.

Spotting What's Worth Fixing

Here's how we know wasn't just a hunch.

• Usage patterns. Anonymised data on how people actually move through Giraffe; where people click, pause, or get stuck.
• Support conversations. Every chat with GiraffeBot, plus every direct conversation Holly and Adam have with customers.
• Direct feedback. Calls and check-ins with the people using Giraffe every day.

We also weigh what we find against established usability principles, like Nielsen's heuristics, so we're fixing things that genuinely help, not just reacting to noise.

What we found in the data

In this case, the usage data was the loudest signal: constant panel switching, especially on smaller screens, backed up by a steady stream of "where do I find X" messages that pointed to the same root cause.

• Matching how people actually work. Different jobs need different tools. One person put it simply: "how do I use for site analysis." We saw dozens of messages like that just this year. Close to 200 messages asked some version of "where do I find X." A clear sign the old layout wasn't easy to navigate.

• Working without constant back and forth. People switched between panels more than four times a session on average, with more than a quarter of sessions clocking up five or more switches. Not choice. The layout getting in the way.
• Staying in control of your own setup. People on smaller screens switched panels around half again as often as people on big monitors. A fixed layout just doesn't work the same for everyone.
• Seeing more than one app at a time. This one's been on our radar a while, people wanting to view data or run a function from a couple of different apps at once, instead of only ever seeing one at a time.

What we built

App locations aren't fixed anymore. Create, split, and merge panels. Drag them, resize them, dock them wherever you need. Create multiple layouts in every project for different workflows. Your setup sticks around for next time too. Plus, a redesigned top bar makes getting around easier, no matter how you've set things up.

• Merge, split, and drag apps where you want them.

• Save multiple panel layouts in templates and projects to swap between different types of work.

• Only see what you use - remove what you don't!

What this means for you

Less time messing with your screen, more time doing the actual work. The analysis, the massing study, the client meeting.

Deep in site analysis? Put Map and Layers side by side. Meeting a client? Clear the clutter and show only what matters. Working from a laptop on-site instead of a big office monitor? The layout actually fits now, instead of you squinting to find things.

And once you build a setup you like, Giraffe remembers it. You shouldn't have to rebuild your canvas every single time you open a project. Nobody's got time for that.

This is one part of a broader look at what's changing in Giraffe 6.0. Curious about the thinking behind the changes? We put together a bigger-picture look at why we're making these changes across the whole product.

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