Re: Keyboard usage on some Gnome windows not working

[Calum Benson <Calum Benson Sun COM>]

On 10 Oct 2005, at 18:37, Matthew Thomas wrote:

> I think making the distinction more explicit would make the  
> guideline more likely to be followed by developers, and more likely  
> to be understood by non-developers.

Yep, certainly don't disagree that it could do with fixing  
regardless.  (I'm *really* hoping that I'm going to have a chunk of  
time to devote to the HIG again in a couple of weeks or so... I  
haven't been able to go near it for months, unfortunately.)

> > > In brief:
> > >
> > >       * Dialogs have a close button in their title bars, which makes
> > >         them look unnecessarily similar to windows. (It's also
> > >         ambiguous, because some people assume the close button means
> > >         "Cancel", while others assume it means "Get out of my face",
> > >         and sometimes these are opposites.)
> >
> > Yep, have always wanted to see that one fixed.
>
> What's hindering it?

Don't know the technical ins and outs, but metacity just doesn't  
currently support it, and last time I asked about it (admittedly a  
looong time ago) nobody seemed too keen to try and fix it.   
Unfortunately it's one of those ones that seems to have slipped  
between the cracks of the HIG only recommending what's possible, and  
filing bugs for what we'd like... at least, I can't find a bug about  
it now.  I'll get onto it.

> > >       * GNOME has no standard, easy-to-use shortcut for closing
> > >         non-dialog windows.
> >
> > True, but does any desktop have one of those?
>
> Yes, Mac OS (all versions) uses Command+W.

Hmm, yes, I suppose it does.  (I very rarely find a need for Close on  
OSX, most times I find it more useful just to Hide or Quit the whole  
thing.)

Cheeri,
Calum.

--
CALUM BENSON, Usability Engineer       Sun Microsystems Ireland
mailto:calum benson sun com            Java Desktop System Team
http://blogs.sun.com/calum             +353 1 819 9771

Any opinions are personal and not necessarily those of Sun Microsystems