The @ button: why we rethought branching scenarios
One @ is all it takes for the learner to follow their path, not yours.
A branching scenario, in most authoring tools, is built with arrows. One box, one arrow, another box. It works for three branches. It becomes unreadable from ten onwards.
We observed this problem in several instructional designers before addressing it: the real hurdle wasn't creating a branch, but linking it without losing the thread of the entire scenario.
So we didn't try to add another branching tool. We looked for where, in writing, this link already existed.
The solution we chose doesn't add a new branching tool. It reuses a familiar gesture: the @. You select some text, you type @, you link this selection to another screen in the journey, an audio or a hotspot - exactly like mentioning someone in a message. No new interface to learn. No separate view to manage in parallel with the content. The link is created where the meaning already exists: in the text.
We didn't invent non-linear navigation. We just refused to let it require a separate tool.
What to remember
- Classic branching tools (arrows, boxes) become unreadable beyond a few branches.
- The real hurdle isn't creating a branch but linking it without losing the thread of the scenario.
- The @ button in Thaleia links selected text to another screen, like a mention in a message. Want to see how one of your scenarios would be built with Thaleia? We'll do it together, live, with your content. Book a demo → * No credit card · No commitment · Response within 24h*