Snapshots

snapshotsdropspositionsseatingeditor

Snapshots save the positions and visual properties of your Drops at a particular moment. You can restore a snapshot later to instantly rearrange participants into a different seating layout — without manually moving every Drop.

What Snapshots Capture

Each snapshot records, for every Drop:

  • Position (X, Y coordinates)
  • Size (radius)
  • Fill colour and opacity
  • Fill image
  • Hover effect

This means a snapshot can do more than just rearrange seats — it can change how the Drops look as well.

Creating a Snapshot

  1. Arrange your Drops on the canvas the way you want them
  2. Open the Snapshots tab in the Structure panel
  3. Click Save Snapshot
  4. Give it a name (e.g., "Circle Discussion", "Classroom Rows", "Breakout Groups")

Restoring a Snapshot

In the editor, click a snapshot to preview it. The Drops will move to their saved positions so you can see the layout.

During a live session, the host can apply a snapshot from the runtime controls. All participant Drops animate smoothly to their new positions.

Use Cases

Snapshots shine when your Ripple has different modes or activities:

  • Discussion to presentation — move Drops from a circle to rows facing a stage
  • Breakout groups — rearrange into small clusters
  • Different activities — one arrangement for introductions, another for the main session, a third for Q&A
  • Before and after — show the same space with different seating for comparison

Applying Snapshots via Actions

Besides applying snapshots manually during a live session, you can trigger them automatically using the Apply Snapshot action. Attach this action to any trigger — a button click, a timer, a variable change — and participants' Drops will animate to the snapshot positions when the action fires.

This is useful for:

  • Rearranging seating at a specific point in a presentation flow
  • Responding to a quiz outcome by grouping participants differently
  • Timed activities where seating changes happen automatically

Default Snapshots

You can assign a default snapshot to a scene. When participants switch to that scene, the default snapshot is automatically applied. This pairs scenes with seating arrangements seamlessly.

Snapshots and Scenes

Snapshots are ripple-wide — they are not tied to a specific scene. You can apply any snapshot in any scene. However, if Drops are assigned to specific scenes, only the Drops visible in the current scene will be affected.

Tips

  • Create snapshots for each distinct activity in your session plan
  • Name snapshots after the activity, not the layout (e.g., "Q&A" rather than "Three rows")
  • Use default snapshots on scenes to automate seating changes when the host switches scenes
  • Snapshots animate smoothly at runtime — participants see their seats glide to new positions