fix(ui): fix HUD dismissal flicker and center transport recessed island alignment

- Prevent in.selectHeld and trigger activity from resetting hudDismissed_ after manual dismiss
- Add App::dismissHud() to reset activity anchors to current controller poses and establish a 500ms cooldown
- Center transport recessed island background at cx=0.0f, hw=0.34f, giving symmetrical 34mm padding across all 5 buttons
- Add hover tooltip pills for [Hide UI] and [Stop]

TODO.md

@@ -53,6 +53,19 @@
     - Updated `tools/package-release.sh` to package updater scripts in the release tarball.
     - Updated `README.md` with comprehensive update instructions across all platforms.
 
+- [x] **6. Fix UI Dismissal Flicker and Recessed Island Alignment**
+  - **Symptom:** Clicking outside the controls or clicking the Hide UI button caused the UI to briefly flicker for 1 frame and immediately reappear. The Hide UI button was also visually misaligned (half outside the dark island).
+  - **Root Cause:**
+    - `in.selectHeld` and trigger activity handling in `App::tick()` continuously reset `hudDismissed_ = false` and set `activity = true` on subsequent frames of the trigger pull, fighting the dismissal call.
+    - Controller activity anchors were not reset on dismissal, and there was no dismissal grace cooldown, causing slight hand tremor during trigger release to immediately re-trigger movement thresholds.
+    - The center transport recessed island background in `VulkanRenderer` was rendered at `cx = -0.05f, hw = 0.30f`, clipping through the center of the Hide UI button at `+0.26f`.
+  - **Resolution:**
+    - Created `App::dismissHud()` which sets `hudDismissed_ = true`, records `hudDismissTime_`, zeroes out activity, hides the control bar and laser ray, and snaps controller activity anchors to their exact current positions.
+    - Added a 500ms dismissal cooldown preventing accidental re-engagement from trigger release tremors.
+    - Blocked `in.select` and `in.selectHeld` from clearing `hudDismissed_` while the HUD is dismissed.
+    - Re-centered the transport recessed island background to `cx = 0.0f, hw = 0.34f`, creating perfect 34mm symmetrical padding for all 5 buttons (`Stop`, `SeekBack`, `PlayPause`, `SeekFwd`, `HideHud`).
+    - Added hover tooltip pills for `[Hide UI]` and `[Stop]`.
+
 
 ---
 

src/app/app.cpp

@@ -311,6 +311,8 @@ void App::loadMedia(const std::string& path) {
         PIXELVR_LOG_WARN("Failed to open %s", path.c_str());
         return;
     }
+    hudDismissed_ = false;
+    lastControllerActivity_ = std::chrono::steady_clock::now();
 
     // Refine the stereo layout from the frame aspect ratio when the filename did
     // not state it: once the projection is a VR type the aspect is unambiguous
@@ -548,6 +550,20 @@ void App::performVaultLock() {
     PIXELVR_LOG_INFO("Vault locked and sanitized");
 }
 
+void App::dismissHud(const XrInputState& in, std::chrono::steady_clock::time_point nowT) {
+    hudDismissed_ = true;
+    hudDismissTime_ = nowT;
+    lastControllerActivity_ = nowT - std::chrono::seconds(10);
+    renderer_.setControlBar(false);
+    for (int h = 0; h < 2; ++h) {
+        if (in.controllers[h].active) {
+            for (int k = 0; k < 3; ++k) activityAnchorPos_[h][k] = in.controllers[h].position[k];
+            for (int k = 0; k < 4; ++k) activityAnchorOrient_[h][k] = in.controllers[h].orientation[k];
+        }
+    }
+    PIXELVR_LOG_INFO("Player HUD dismissed");
+}
+
 void App::openSmbModal(bool isNew, const std::string& smbPath) {
 #ifdef PIXELVR_HAVE_FREETYPE
     smbModal_.active = true;
@@ -1018,6 +1034,8 @@ int App::run() {
             // Controller activity: moving a controller past a small threshold (or
             // any button/stick input) keeps the laser, models and controls shown;
             // after a few seconds of stillness they fade away.
+            const auto timeSinceDismiss = nowT - hudDismissTime_;
+            const bool inDismissCooldown = hudDismissed_ && (timeSinceDismiss < std::chrono::milliseconds(500));
             bool activity = false;
             for (int h = 0; h < 2; ++h) {
                 const auto& c = in.controllers[h];
@@ -1042,8 +1060,8 @@ int App::run() {
                 const float rotDiff = std::fabs(od);
 
                 if (hudDismissed_) {
-                    // Requires intentional hand movement to re-engage HUD after manual dismissal
-                    if (moveDist > 0.10f || rotDiff < 0.970f) {
+                    // Requires intentional hand movement after dismissal cooldown to re-engage HUD
+                    if (!inDismissCooldown && (moveDist > 0.12f || rotDiff < 0.950f)) {
                         hudDismissed_ = false;
                         activity = true;
                         for (int k = 0; k < 3; ++k) activityAnchorPos_[h][k] = c.position[k];
@@ -1056,12 +1074,17 @@ int App::run() {
                     for (int k = 0; k < 4; ++k) activityAnchorOrient_[h][k] = c.orientation[k];
                 }
             }
-            if (in.togglePlay || in.browserToggle || in.select || in.selectHeld ||
-                in.recenter || std::fabs(in.thumbstickX) > 0.15f ||
-                std::fabs(in.thumbstickY) > 0.15f ||
-                std::fabs(in.thumbstickRX) > 0.15f) {
+            const bool stickMoved = (std::fabs(in.thumbstickX) > 0.25f ||
+                                     std::fabs(in.thumbstickY) > 0.25f ||
+                                     std::fabs(in.thumbstickRX) > 0.25f ||
+                                     std::fabs(in.thumbstickRY) > 0.25f);
+            if (in.togglePlay || in.browserToggle || in.recenter || stickMoved) {
+                activity = true;
+                if (!inDismissCooldown) {
+                    hudDismissed_ = false;
+                }
+            } else if (!hudDismissed_ && (in.select || in.selectHeld)) {
                 activity = true;
-                hudDismissed_ = false;
             }
             if (activity) {
                 lastControllerActivity_ = nowT;
@@ -1085,9 +1108,7 @@ int App::run() {
                     browser_.setOpen(false);
                 } else if (mediaOpen_ && renderer_.controlBarVisible()) {
                     // HUD is visible during playback: B/Y dismisses the HUD!
-                    hudDismissed_ = true;
-                    lastControllerActivity_ = nowT - std::chrono::seconds(10);
-                    renderer_.setControlBar(false);
+                    dismissHud(in, nowT);
                 } else {
                     browser_.open();
                 }
@@ -1523,7 +1544,7 @@ int App::run() {
                 if (kbActive && !renderer_.laserOn(0) && !renderer_.laserOn(1)) {
                     renderer_.setLaserOn(1, true);
                 }
-                const bool showLaser = (uiPanelActive || controllersEngaged || kbActive);
+                const bool showLaser = (uiPanelActive || (controllersEngaged && !hudDismissed_) || kbActive);
                 // Build each controller's render state: corrected model pose,
                 // low-pass smoothed (the raw hand pose jitters), while the aim
                 // pose stays raw so the laser remains responsive.
@@ -2067,8 +2088,8 @@ int App::run() {
 
             // Cinema Transport Dock is only active when the Unified Spatial Hub is closed.
             const bool barOk = !browserOpen && !settingsOpen && !downloadsWindow_ &&
-                               pendingDl_.empty();
-            if (barOk) {
+                               pendingDl_.empty() && !actionMenu_.visible && !smbModal_.active;
+            if (barOk && renderer_.controlBarVisible()) {
                 // Point-and-click the media control bar with the trigger.
                 const int btn = renderer_.pointerButton();
                 // The trigger clicks the bar; A does too (A is the reliable
@@ -2160,18 +2181,14 @@ int App::run() {
                             renderer_.setSphereZoom(1.0f);
                         }
                     } else if (cb == VulkanRenderer::CtrlButton::HideHud) {
-                        hudDismissed_ = true;
-                        lastControllerActivity_ = nowT - std::chrono::seconds(10);
-                        renderer_.setControlBar(false);
+                        dismissHud(in, nowT);
                     }
 #endif
                     interacted = true;
                 }
                 // Click outside the control dock in empty space immediately hides the HUD
                 if (in.select && btn < 0 && !renderer_.pointerOnTimeline() && !renderer_.pointerOnTimeToggle()) {
-                    hudDismissed_ = true;
-                    lastControllerActivity_ = nowT - std::chrono::seconds(10);
-                    renderer_.setControlBar(false);
+                    dismissHud(in, nowT);
                     interacted = true;
                 }
                 if (in.select && renderer_.pointerOnTimeToggle()) {

src/app/app.hpp

@@ -78,6 +78,8 @@ private:
     bool downloadsWindow_ = false;  // downloads list window toggled from the bar
     bool dlWasActive_ = false;      // edge detect: auto-open the window on start
     bool hudDismissed_ = false;     // manually dismissed player controls / HUD
+    std::chrono::steady_clock::time_point hudDismissTime_{}; // timestamp of manual dismissal
+    void dismissHud(const XrInputState& in, std::chrono::steady_clock::time_point nowT);
     // Low-pass smoothed model pose per hand (the raw hand pose jitters; the
     // system's own controller model is visibly smoothed).
     bool modelSmoothInit_[2] = {false, false};

src/gfx/vulkan_renderer.cpp

@@ -2252,8 +2252,10 @@ void VulkanRenderer::renderView(uint32_t viewIndex, uint32_t imageIndex,
         drawUiElement(vpPanel, 0.0f, kBarY + 0.125f, kDockHalfW - 0.045f, 0.052f,
                       UiShape::RoundedBox, grooveBg, 0.35f, 0.015f, grooveBorder);
 
-        // Center transport recessed island
-        drawUiElement(vpPanel, -0.05f, kBarY - 0.045f, 0.30f, 0.098f,
+        // Center transport recessed island: centered at 0.0f, symmetrically
+        // enclosing [Stop] (-0.26), [Seek -10] (-0.13), (Play/Pause) (0.00),
+        // [Seek +10] (+0.13), and [Hide UI] (+0.26).
+        drawUiElement(vpPanel, 0.0f, kBarY - 0.045f, 0.34f, 0.098f,
                       UiShape::RoundedBox, grooveBg, 0.50f, 0.015f, grooveBorder);
 
         const float btnBgHover[4] = {
@@ -2364,6 +2366,19 @@ void VulkanRenderer::renderView(uint32_t viewIndex, uint32_t imageIndex,
                           UiShape::RoundedBox, tipBg, 0.35f, 0.03f, themeAccentCol);
         }
 
+        // Button hover tooltip pills
+        if (pointerButton_ == static_cast<int>(CtrlButton::HideHud)) {
+            const CtrlButtonRect rH = get_ctrl_button_rect(static_cast<int>(CtrlButton::HideHud));
+            const float tipBg[4] = {0.04f, 0.07f, 0.12f, 0.96f};
+            drawUiElement(vpPanel, rH.cx, rH.cy + 0.065f, 0.068f, 0.024f,
+                          UiShape::RoundedBox, tipBg, 0.35f, 0.025f, themeAccentCol);
+        } else if (pointerButton_ == static_cast<int>(CtrlButton::Stop)) {
+            const CtrlButtonRect rSt = get_ctrl_button_rect(static_cast<int>(CtrlButton::Stop));
+            const float tipBg[4] = {0.04f, 0.07f, 0.12f, 0.96f};
+            drawUiElement(vpPanel, rSt.cx, rSt.cy + 0.065f, 0.052f, 0.024f,
+                          UiShape::RoundedBox, tipBg, 0.35f, 0.025f, themeAccentCol);
+        }
+
         if (textReady_) {
             vkCmdBindPipeline(commandBuffer_, VK_PIPELINE_BIND_POINT_GRAPHICS, textPipeline_);
             vkCmdBindDescriptorSets(commandBuffer_, VK_PIPELINE_BIND_POINT_GRAPHICS,
@@ -2407,6 +2422,15 @@ void VulkanRenderer::renderView(uint32_t viewIndex, uint32_t imageIndex,
 
             const CtrlButtonRect rS = get_ctrl_button_rect(static_cast<int>(CtrlButton::ScreenToggle));
             drawFitCentered(rS.cx, rS.cy, rS.hw * 1.88f, pillSc, themeTextCol, hudScreen_);
+
+            // Tooltip text for button hover
+            if (pointerButton_ == static_cast<int>(CtrlButton::HideHud)) {
+                const CtrlButtonRect rH = get_ctrl_button_rect(static_cast<int>(CtrlButton::HideHud));
+                drawFitCentered(rH.cx, rH.cy + 0.065f, 0.12f, pillSc * 0.90f, themeTextCol, "Hide UI");
+            } else if (pointerButton_ == static_cast<int>(CtrlButton::Stop)) {
+                const CtrlButtonRect rSt = get_ctrl_button_rect(static_cast<int>(CtrlButton::Stop));
+                drawFitCentered(rSt.cx, rSt.cy + 0.065f, 0.09f, pillSc * 0.90f, themeTextCol, "Stop");
+            }
         }
     }