Mask and layout mean the same work object from a user perspective in Nuclos: the surface where a Businessobjekt is entered and read. In the technical wiki the term is Layout. For decision-makers the benefit counts: fields, groupings, tabs, and related lists sit where the process needs them, not where a standard module forces them. In short: the mask makes the data model usable.

What the layout delivers

A layout is WYSIWYG-configurable. It carries data components (fields on the Businessobjekt), static components (labels, hints, separators), and container components (groupings, tabs, areas). That yields a mask that makes business logic visible: required fields where they matter in the flow; references where the relationship is needed; little distraction where speed counts.

Layouts can be auto-generated or built manually. Automation speeds entry. Manual refinement keeps complex processes readable. Both stay configuration in the Nuclet, not custom UI code beside the system. Platform context: Nuclos 5 as a platform.

Web layout key and client

The web layout key controls which layout applies in the web client. That matters when desktop and web need different presentations, or when you deliberately release a layout for web access. For IT: clear mapping prevents “wrong mask in the wrong client”. For business units: the same entity, fitting operation per channel.

Related lists on the same mask run through subforms. Without a clean layout, subforms remain technically possible but hard to use.

Nuclosian: building and rearranging masks

Nuclosian builds and rearranges masks. Typical flow: business sketch, place components, structure tabs. Nuclosian writes directly into the instance. After a change to an existing mask, a line compare with Undo appears while the previous version is still held in memory. Nuclosian can regroup fields, extend layouts, and adapt the mask to the process without configurators setting every pixel by hand. Entry points: Nuclosian: first steps.

Technical wiki page: Layout. Configuration reference there. Here the lexicon answer for buy and scope: the mask is where your individual ERP becomes operable.

What masks do not replace

A good mask does not replace process clarification or a state model. It makes the clarified flow operable. Overloaded masks with every field on one page create errors and training load. Lean masks on the process create speed. Anyone who only wants to export lists does not need layout work. Anyone who wants to work in ERP does.