Re: [Evolution] custom keybindings (was Re: Again: Newbie questions/comments)

[Brett Johnson <brett_johnson hp com>]

On Fri, 2002-07-19 at 19:29, Jeffrey Stedfast wrote:
> On Fri, 2002-07-19 at 13:49, Brett Johnson wrote:
> >         * Netscape 4.x (although you have to edit X resources to do it)
>
> lesse, if you want to count having to edit a file then Evolution also
> allows users to change their keybindings, so I guess we're done here
> then eh? ;-)
>
> just edit /usr/share/evolution/ui/*.xml

Since these files are system-wide, it's less than desirable to edit them
directly.  Can they be duplicated in a users home directory somewhere
(like X resources), so that they'll override the system defaults?  If
so, I'm happy.

> >         * KMail, Knode, and pretty much every other KDE app on the
> >           planet.
>
> I don't have KDE installed, but if this feature is anything like the gtk
> feature of typing a new keybinding with the menu in fiocus, then it's
> just broken and not a REAL solution.

No, it's not anything like the gtk keybinding/menu cruft.  It's a dialog
that lets you associate arbitrary keycodes (including mouse buttons)
with arbitrary commands (not limited to just commands available in the
dropdown menus).

> >         * Sylpheed
>
> yea, and like very other gtk app, as soon as you close sylpheed the
> settings are lost. Yea, that's just great.

Eh?  I don't have that problem.  Besides, Sylpheed doesn't just depend
on the gtk keybinding hack.  It has it's own seperate way to select
predefined sets of keybindings (the "Set key bindings..." button in the
"Interface" prefs tab).

> > Granted, the e-mail clients from a certain Redmond monopolist do not
> > allow one to remap keybindings, but I see that as more of a detriment
> > than a feature.  And even M$ lets you remap keybindings in their other
> > Office apps (word, excel, etc...).
>
> Yea, and they've spent a lot more money on UI testing than any of the
> clients listed above... gee, could that maybe be *why* it doesn't have
> configurable keybindings?

Sorry, the "M$ does it, so it must be right" argument just doesn't hold
much validity for me.  Some of the most bone-headed GUI abominations
ever conceived have come from Redmond, and I hardly hold them up as a
paragon of interface design.

M$ seems to feel that the way to make a GUI easy to use is to simply
make all advanced functionality extremely difficult to find, or to
remove it altogether.  If that's the direction you guys want to take
Evo, please say so, so I can quit wasting my time with it now.

> one look at bonobo-ui and you will see what I mean when I say
> "complicated to do".

I'm afraid I spouted off about a subject on which I have little
knowledge.  My apologies for suggesting that it wasn't difficult to
implement.  The fact is that I have no idea whether implementing custom
keybindings in bonobo is difficult or not.  What I meant to say was that
keeping track of whether the user is about to trounce a keybinding isn't
all that difficult conceptually.  As to whether bonobo erects a plethora
of obstacles in your way to make it more difficult, I don't have the
expertise to say (so I'll take your word for it).

Cheers!
-- 
Brett Johnson <brett_johnson hp com>
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