A plain-language record of meaningful changes to the exercises, accessibility, privacy, identity and wording. Each new entry explains why the change was made, what improved and who may benefit. Small technical housekeeping changes may be grouped together.
Rebuilt the homepage around the illustrated Movement Lab landscape
Why this changed
The first illustrated homepage attempt treated the artwork as a separate panel and did not match the intended welcoming, landscape-led design. The homepage has now been rebuilt so the generated countryside artwork forms the opening scene rather than looking like a card added beside the content.
What's improved
The generated countryside artwork is now used as the full-width hero background, with responsive positioning so the composition adapts to phones and larger screens.
The main heading, explanation and buttons remain real HTML over the artwork instead of being baked into a screenshot, preserving keyboard access, text scaling and screen-reader access.
The opening content now follows the visual hierarchy of the approved concept more closely, with three large practice choices, a self-paced/configurable/private/lived-experience strip, an encouraging quote and the inclusive “This site is for people who…” panel.
The hero image is kept on the site itself and adds no external trackers or third-party requests. A plain-colour fallback keeps the page usable if the artwork cannot load.
Made the first side of alternating Reach & Return configurable
Why this changed
Alternating Reach & Return always began on the left. That was predictable, but it still imposed a starting side on people who may prefer to begin on the right because of comfort, weakness, fatigue or how their device is positioned.
What's improved
The practice-side setting now offers Alternate — start left and Alternate — start right.
Left-only and right-only practice remain available exactly as before.
Changing the alternating start side during a session immediately affects the next side target without changing scoring or timing.
No practice data is saved or uploaded; the exercise remains entirely session-only.
Remembered the preferred Deliberate Key Presses layout
Why this changed
Deliberate Key Presses already offers WASD, IJKL and arrow-key layouts, but the choice reset to WASD on every visit. Re-selecting a comfortable keyboard position adds unnecessary setup, especially when someone consistently practises from one side of the keyboard.
What's improved
The selected key layout is now remembered in the current browser and restored on the next visit.
The page explains that this preference stays on the device and is not uploaded.
If private browser storage is blocked, the exercise still works normally and falls back to WASD on a future visit.
No scoring, timing or key-press behaviour changed.
Made the main menu consistent across the site
Why this changed
The main navigation had gradually drifted between pages. Some pages included the support link while others did not, which could make the site feel unpredictable and make it harder to know whether a destination was available.
What's improved
Every public page now receives the same six navigation destinations in the same order.
The current section is still identified with aria-current="page" for assistive technologies and visual styling.
Exercise pages correctly keep Practice exercises marked as the current section.
The shared navigation script is now the single source of truth, reducing the chance that future pages drift out of sync.
Made Typing Accuracy prompts inclusive of different hand use
Why this changed
One practice paragraph still described learning the keyboard specifically with a left hand, even though Movement Lab is intended to welcome people practising with the left hand, right hand, both hands or another comfortable combination.
What's improved
Replaced the side-specific paragraph with neutral keyboard-practice wording.
Added a prompt that explicitly welcomes one-handed, two-handed or mixed hand use.
Renamed the paragraph choices so they describe the type of practice rather than a particular hand.
Kept accuracy scoring, session behaviour and private browser storage unchanged.
Made the homepage easier to choose from
Why this changed
As Movement Lab adds more exercises, showing every activity on the homepage makes the first choice increasingly busy and gives new exercise names more importance than the kind of practice someone actually wants.
What's improved
Replaced the long homepage activity catalogue with three clear starting points: Touch & reach, Keyboard control and Typing & attention.
Featured the new Reach & Return exercise directly on the homepage so touch-screen visitors can discover it without searching the full exercise list.
Kept a prominent See all practice exercises route for visitors who want the complete range.
Kept the wording focused on what someone wants to practise rather than assuming which hand or arm they use.
Added Reach & Return — a more predictable touch exercise
Why this changed
Target Tap deliberately moves a target to changing positions. That is useful for varied reaching and visual scanning, but sometimes a simpler, repeatable centre-to-side pattern is easier to concentrate on.
What's improved
Added Reach & Return, an untimed exercise that alternates between a central Home target and a side target.
Visitors can practise on the left, right or alternate between both sides without the exercise assuming which hand or arm they use.
Target size and reach distance are configurable, and the exercise works with touch, stylus, mouse and other pointers that activate ordinary buttons.
A repetition is counted only after returning to the centre, keeping the activity focused on the full out-and-back pattern rather than speed.
Session counts stay only on the open page and are not saved, uploaded or shared.
Quiet improvements also shipped recently
Letter Garden and Deliberate Key Presses now leave normal keyboard controls alone when a menu, button or input has focus.
Letter Drift now describes its WASD-side word set without assuming which hand someone uses.
The private progress page now handles blocked browser storage more gracefully when clearing saved progress.
Easier keyboard access, plus some quiet reliability work
Why this changed
Small accessibility and reliability improvements are easy to miss, but they matter to people who navigate by keyboard or use browsers with stricter privacy settings.
What's improved
Typing Accuracy now has a Skip to content link, so keyboard and assistive-technology users can bypass the repeated navigation and reach the exercise more quickly.
Recent behind-the-scenes work also made private progress recording and Movement Key Finder more tolerant of browsers that block or restrict local storage.
If private storage is unavailable, the exercises remain usable rather than letting a saving error interrupt practice.
Corrected the Gentle Maze description in the practice chooser
Why this changed
The practice chooser still described an older version of Gentle Maze as a square controlled only with WASD, which could wrongly suggest that the current woodland activity was unavailable to people using another keyboard position.
What's improved
The chooser now describes guiding the little mouse through the woodland.
It clearly lists WASD, IJKL and arrow-key controls.
The description continues to emphasise that there are no enemies or time limit.
Moved Gentle Maze into its first 2.5D woodland pass
Why this changed
The flat top-down prototype established a calmer exploration style, but it did not yet have the depth, raised scenery or storybook presentation intended for the magical woodland concept.
What's improved
Introduced a three-quarter tile projection while retaining simple one-key-at-a-time grid movement underneath.
Added raised paths, depth-sorted trees and rocks, stronger shadows, a dimensional mouse character and a glowing home landmark.
Moved the discovery backpack outside the playable scene so it cannot obscure paths.
The backpack now shows each treasure type individually, including saved quantities and items not found yet.
Kept WASD, IJKL and arrow-key layouts, reduced-motion support, private browser storage and untimed practice.
Made Letter Drift feel more alive and easier to target
Why this changed
The exercise felt visually sterile, successful key presses lacked impact and words with similar beginnings could make the automatic target choice difficult to understand.
What's improved
Added layered star motion, gentle word sway, a brighter ship and an animated engine glow to create a stronger sense of movement.
Each correct key now launches a visible projectile that travels to the next letter and produces a clear impact effect.
Completed words break into a larger but still gentle particle burst, providing more satisfying confirmation.
The selected word now has a persistent dashed targeting frame and clearly highlights its next required letter.
Visible words use different starting letters wherever possible, reducing accidental lock-on to similar words.
Reduced-motion mode keeps the clearer targeting while simplifying movement and effects.
Added a voluntary way to support Movement Lab
Why this changed
Movement Lab is free to use, but keeping the site online and continuing to improve it involves practical costs, development time and a fair amount of coffee.
What's improved
Added a dedicated Help build Movement Lab page explaining the project honestly before presenting a Ko-fi link.
Added a visible but non-intrusive support link to the homepage navigation and a clear homepage panel near the end of the content.
Explained that support helps with site upkeep, accessibility work, new ideas and coffee.
Confirmed that support is completely optional and will never unlock or restrict features.
The Ko-fi page opens securely in a new tab without adding tracking scripts or an embedded payment form to Movement Lab.
Reworked Finger Lifts as Deliberate Key Presses
Why this changed
The previous exercise combined a written finger prompt, a WASD diagram and a separate Space-bar confirmation. Those elements did not always correspond clearly, making the activity harder to understand than the movement it was intended to practise.
What's improved
Renamed the activity Deliberate Key Presses while keeping its familiar page address.
Replaced abstract finger-lift instructions with one large key prompt that always matches the highlighted layout preview.
The activity now detects the actual key press, brief hold and release directly, removing the confusing separate Space-bar step.
Added clear feedback for key down, release, an incorrect movement key and a press that may have been quicker than intended.
Added selectable WASD, IJKL and arrow-key layouts so the activity does not assume one hand or keyboard position.
Kept the activity untimed, private and focused on control rather than speed.
Explained why every activity exists
Why this changed
The activities described what to do, but not the real frustrations and everyday abilities that inspired them. Without that context, they could feel like unrelated browser exercises rather than tools created from lived experience.
What's improved
All seven activity pages now include a consistent Why this exists panel before practice begins.
Movement Key Finder explains its origin in wanting to return to first-person games and practise familiar movement keys without enemies, teammates or time pressure.
Each panel states the practical skill the activity allows someone to practise without promising a medical outcome.
The wording recognises left-side, right-side, one-handed and two-handed use where the activity supports those choices.
No controls, scores, saved progress or gameplay behaviour were changed.
Clarified the keyboard requirement in Movement Key Finder
Why this changed
People opening the activity on a phone or tablet could reach the practice screen before discovering that it needs a physical keyboard.
What's improved
A device note now explains the physical-keyboard requirement before practice begins.
People without a keyboard are directed to Target Tap as a touch-friendly alternative.
The exercise controls and behaviour remain unchanged.
Made the full activity range clearer on the homepage
Why this changed
The homepage displayed six activity cards and omitted Target Tap, which could make Movement Lab appear to offer fewer ways to practise than were actually available.
What's improved
The homepage now presents all seven current practice activities, including Target Tap.
The section heading and introduction explain the range of touch, reaching, movement-key, finger-control, typing and sequencing practice.
WASD Finder is now labelled by its inclusive current name, Movement Key Finder, and mentions WASD, IJKL and arrow-key layouts.
A clear link leads to the full comparison page for visitors who want help choosing an activity.
Reduced motion in Target Tap when requested
Why this changed
The target previously slid between positions after each successful tap. Some visitors reduce animation through their phone, tablet or computer accessibility settings because motion can be distracting or uncomfortable.
What's improved
Target Tap now detects the device's reduced-motion preference.
When reduced motion is enabled, the target changes position immediately instead of sliding across the practice area.
The normal gentle transition remains unchanged for visitors who have not requested reduced motion.
Completed the site-wide Movement Lab rebrand
What's improved
Updated the remaining public page titles, headers, footers and exercise labels to use Movement Lab.
Updated the Journey, Resources and private Progress pages, including copied text, downloaded progress-card filenames and visible progress-card branding.
Updated every listed exercise page so the site identity is consistent when opening an exercise directly.
Kept the old local-storage key unchanged so existing private practice history is not lost during the rename.
Retained references to the former name only where the changelog is deliberately describing project history.
Renamed the project Movement Lab
Why this changed
The previous name, Recovery Arcade, made the project sound more childish and entertainment-led than intended. Movement Lab better reflects a thoughtful place for accessible, experimental and repeatable movement practice, while still allowing individual exercises to be playful.
What's improved
Introduced Movement Lab as the public project name while keeping the existing wbaldwin.co.uk domain.
Updated the homepage, About page, practice index and technical documentation.
Began the branding cleanup across individual exercise pages with Target Tap.
Added clearer wording that presents the project as accessible movement practice rather than an arcade.
Kept the founder's lived experience and the project's neurological recovery focus central to the identity.
Added side-specific practice regions to Target Tap
Why this changed
People may want to practise movement on the left, right or across both sides. The original Target Tap exercise could change the reach distance, but it could not keep targets within a chosen side of the screen.
What's improved
Added a Practice region setting with full-width, left-side and right-side options.
Kept the existing central and wide reach settings, so side choice and reach distance can be combined.
Updated the instructions to explain that the setting can suit whichever side or sides the visitor wants to practise.
Kept the exercise untimed and retained the same privacy-preserving on-device progress behaviour.
Who benefits
People with left-arm weakness.
People with right-arm weakness.
People practising bilateral scanning or reaching.
People who need a smaller, more predictable movement area.
Introduced touch-screen practice with Target Tap
Why this changed
The project, then named Recovery Arcade, previously concentrated mainly on keyboard movement. Touch-screen exercises make it useful on phones and tablets while practising equivalent rehabilitation goals such as deliberate reach, visual scanning and controlled contact.
What's improved
Added Target Tap, an untimed exercise where a target moves around a calm touch area after each accurate tap.
Added adjustable large, medium and small targets.
Added central and wide reach options so users can choose a comfortable movement range.
Included misses, session summaries and private on-device progress recording without introducing time pressure or a game-over state.
Supported touch, stylus, mouse and switch-compatible pointer input.
Who benefits
Phone and tablet users.
People practising reach, aiming, visual scanning or controlled touch.
People who find keyboard-based exercises unsuitable or inaccessible.
Improved accessibility of Movement Key Finder
Why this changed
Screen-reader users benefit when related controls are clearly grouped and when explanatory guidance is announced together with the control it describes. This makes the exercise easier to understand and configure before practice begins.
What's improved
Introduced a dedicated Practice settings group for the exercise controls.
Connected the movement-layout selector with its explanatory text so assistive technologies announce them in context.
Improved guidance for WASD, IJKL and arrow-key practice layouts.
Reduced the effort needed to understand and configure the exercise before starting.
Who benefits
Screen-reader users.
Keyboard users.
People using alternative movement layouts because of upper-limb weakness or reduced dexterity.
More inclusive movement-key practice
Renamed WASD Finder to Movement Key Finder while retaining the familiar web address.
Added selectable WASD, IJKL and arrow-key layouts.
Removed instructions that assumed everyone was practising with their left hand.
Added optional, non-prescriptive placement guidance for each layout.
Saved statistics separately for each layout on the visitor's own device.
Added this changelog and visible page-update timestamps.
Earlier improvements
Inclusive project wording
The homepage, About page and exercise descriptions were broadened so the site can welcome people with left-arm, right-arm or bilateral weakness, neurological conditions, brain injury, surgery recovery and temporary injuries, while keeping the founder's stroke story authentic.
Private progress
Public scoreboards and server-side score storage were removed. Practice history is kept locally in the visitor's browser, with an optional progress share card.
Gentler exercise choices
Typing Accuracy, Gentle Maze, Letter Drift and Letter Garden were refined to emphasise control, accuracy and self-paced practice rather than competition.
How updates are released
Changes are first published to a development preview for review. They only reach the live website after approval.