Snake Pattern Seat Map
We've introduced a new "Snake" layout pattern for seat allocation, giving you more flexibility in how students are assigned to seats in the room. Here's what's new:
What Is the Snake Layout?Previously, seats were always assigned left-to-right across every row (Standard layout). With the new Snake layout, rows alternate direction — making it easier to seat students in a continuous physical flow through the room:
Standard:
1 | 2 | 3 | 45 | 6 | 7 | 8
Snake:
1 | 2 | 3 | 48 | 7 | 6 | 5
Layout Pattern in Allocation ModalsA new Layout Pattern dropdown (Standard / Snake) is now available in both the single and bulk allocation modals:
- The default is set by your organisation's admin
- If your admin has enabled overrides, you can change the layout pattern per allocation
- If active seat allocations already exist for a reservation, the dropdown is disabled — deallocate seats first before switching layouts
- In bulk allocation, the selected pattern applies to all selected reservations at once
Layout Pattern Indicator in Reservation DrawerWhen reviewing a capacity reservation in the detail drawer, a new read-only label shows which layout pattern was used:
- Layout pattern: Standard or Layout pattern: Snake — if the reservation has been allocated
- Layout pattern: Not set — if no allocation has been made yet
The seat map in the drawer also renders seats in the correct physical positions based on the layout pattern.
Notes
- Existing allocations made before this feature are unaffected and will continue to render in Standard layout
- The layout pattern is set per capacity reservation — the same room can use different layouts across different sessions
- Seat numbers remain unchanged — only the physical grid position is affected