Remote Jupyter server and kernel picker UX

Define idealized UX for connecting to remote Jupyter servers

Open questions

1. If we were to improve current UX/UI…

What does the user expect to see in the kernel drop down list when…

1. They’re on VS Code desktop / vscode.dev / Codespaces?
2. They have N Python environments? a. Python not installed b. Only global Python envs (is “Global Env” descriptive enough?) c. Multiple Python environment manager types
3. Opening a notebook for the N-th time (i.e. kernel suggestion)?
4. The user is connected to a local Jupyter kernel, but have connected to a remote Jupyter server via the Specify Jupyter Server for Connections command? Current:

How well are these remote server connection entry-points served?

1. Specifying an currently running Jupyter URI with password authentication does not work
2. Running a cell without selecting a kernel ❔
3. Using SSH to start & connect to a Jupyter server (e.g. access remote notebook via port forwarding) ❔ a. Command line SSH b. Remote-SSH extension
4. Going backwards, clicking on ‘Jupyter Server: <Local/Remote>’ button doesn’t give option to disconnect / “connect” back to local server

What does the user expect to see in the remote connection server drop down list when…

1. There are multiple connection tokens for the same URI? E.g. how do we represent the notion of multiple tokens for the same server, and how would we save tokens?
2. There are multiple older connections for the same URI? Current:
3. There are one or more local Jupyter servers running (i.e. http://localhost:8888/?token=<…>)?
4. Some existing connections are active / reachable and some are inactive / unreachable?

2. If we were to “reimagine” the UX/UI…

What does the user expect to see in the VS Code window when connected to a kernel / Jupyter server?

1. File system in the context of the kernel / server?
2. Integrated terminal in the context of the kernel / server?
3. Should connecting to a remote Jupyter server be treated as a Remote Window? i.e. a part of this (the >< indicator on bottom left): a. How about when user types jupyter notebook in the integrated terminal? Should this open a Remote Window instance on VS Code?

[miguelsolorio]

I think we can include this dialog when installing the environment, and maybe with a “don’t ask again” checkbox?

[miguelsolorio]

Will be posting various scenario demos that I’ve mocked up.

Scenario 1: Running a notebook for the first time with no environment/extensions installed

This mirrors what we do right now out of the box and then leverages the “auto-create environment” concept that @IanMatthewHuff is currently working on.

https://user-images.githubusercontent.com/35271042/185251947-188d7ea9-9647-4006-af27-0b285cf03dea.mp4