[Usability] Re: Move to Workspace (Right | Left) Proposal

[David Zulaica <david pseudo-cyb org>]

>
>Could I get your opinion on:
>
>	http://bugzilla.gnome.org/show_bug.cgi\?id=145281
>
>I think this a nice compromise that settles current issues, until we
>come up with some more advanced system (like dynamically growing /
>shrinking workspaces) in the more distant future.
>

it's a good compromise, at a glance, but i think it needs to be an 
option. this solution works fine for a minimal number of workspaces, 
but once you get beyond 6, it becomes cumbersome. also keep in mind, 
users that have a large number of workspaces generally name them 
appropriately. 

one of the nice things about this solution is that there is no need 
for the move right/left context menu items. (this actually brings up 
another thought: using the words "left" and "right" aren't always 
"correct"; it all depends on the nubmer of rows and the orientation 
of the workspace switcher.) the size of the workspaces in this 
context-menu switcher also doesn't depend on the size/layout of the 
workspace switcher in the panel, which could increase visibility.

another benefit of this solution, that i see, is in "training" the 
user; drag and drop into the workspace switcher is a very simple 
solution. this will become more apparent with the advent of a 
dynamic workspace switcher. 

suppose the dynamic workspace switcher works like this: there are 
four workspaces in my panel. i fill the first three. upon dragging 
and dropping another application into the fourth workspace, a 
fifth one is dynamically generated. when i clear out any one of 
those, the dynamically generated workspace disappears. another way 
to generate a workspace would be to select the "magic" workspace 
and just begin working in it.

i'm sure there's plenty of thoughts on the subject and perhaps 
i've touched some of them. sorry if i've brought up any dead horses. 
there's no need to beat them. ;)

david