GUI #983
Description
Is your feature request related to a problem? Please describe.
Development of a GUI for ActivitySim. The concept of “a GUI” for a model is extremely broad and can mean different things to different users. These notes (developed by Billy Charlton) are an attempt to identify what would be immediately useful and place tasks in a logical order, so that the consortium can decide how/whether to proceed.
Describe the solution you'd like
The solution could take many forms, and should probably start with something basic, and evolve as needs change.
Baseline assumptions:
- Build a web-based UI so system looks/runs the same for all agencies, whether local or cloud. New users shouldn’t be expected to configure any YAML files, Python installations, etc.
- Back-end must (eventually) support everything from teach-sized models running on local laptop to on-premises rackservers to cloud AWS/Azure, etc
- Agencies want to keep using their existing setups as much as possible. This system should complement current operations, not replace them
- 100% open source – but support connections to commercial packages
The following components of “a GUI” could be developed independently, in order, or in tandem. They would all work together as a complete system.
1. Run configurator & launcher
A web-based launcher, perhaps as simple as a web form, to select model version, location of input files, where to run it, and basic configuration options
A back end to receive the run request, provision the server resources if necessary, launch the run, and return the result code/error log via email when done
Additional features could include drag/drop of inputs, re-running existing setups with new inputs, and so on
There is already a bare-bones proof of concept here with SimWrapper running MATSim at TU Berlin
2. Run dashboard/manager
A run dashboard listing all currently running models and status of completed runs with links to output logs, folders, etc. Filtering for your own runs, team runs, runs for a specific project, etc.
3. Output viewer
Generate standard outputs as a final post-processing step, with a link to outputs in the above run manager. Could have simple default dashboards/notebooks in Quarto or SimWrapper, and be extensible to provide future links to commercial platforms like Tableau and PowerBI.
Getting all of this developed would be a long-term project, but initial versions of items 1,2,3 are actually not that far from the current capabilities of SimWrapper used for MATSim.
Are there other GUI components that the consortium feels should be a priority or be somewhere on this list? Again, what are the most important goals of having a GUI from the agency perspective?