Re: The target user and consequences

[Stephan Pfab <pfab thales mathematik uni-ulm de>]

   From: JR Tipton <nails@maybe.net>

   On Fri, 7 Aug 1998, Stephan Pfab wrote:
   > GNOME will be (more or less) different from every other GUI.
   > That means that everybody will have to learn to use GNOME efficiently.

   Why?  Why can't someone who doesn't know a damn thing about GNOME use it
   efficiently *without* learning?  

If it would be that simple there would be no flashing 12.00 on
videorecorders all over the world. Minimise learning: good.
Make it that simple for some and really difficult for others: bad.

   > Accepting that GNOME is different we should make it clear to the user 
   > too. If we follow any other GUI too closely he will
   > not tolerate the differences. 

   The user shouldn't have to accept anything, relatively speaking.

Sorry, I meant if we the designer accept this.

   When I use a toaster, all I accept is that "toast takes up space, I want
   my toaster small, so I can only do two pieces of toast at a time" and that
   "toasting isn't instant."  Other than that, it's straighforward: drop the
   slices into the slots, push down.  If I want to be a power user, I turn
   the knob. 

   The toaster accepts that it is a tool of the human; I do not accept that I
   must conform to the toaster.

A toaster is much simpler than most applications.
If you can redesign GIMP so that no learning is involved I would
like to see it.

   >   (binding "alt" to menu open seams like a waste of an modifier).

   I personally find it handy, sometimes, and I once worked with many average
   users who felt the same way.  I'd watch them hit ALT-F and then use the
   arrow keys to select save.

That would mean that we could use ALT for menus. There much 
more commands so (compare emacs).

   >   We need to come up with this standard pretty fast.
   >   (The coders will hate the GUI proposel people
   >    if they have to change their programs dramatically.)

   Then the coders shouldn't be coding.  Let them not forget that their best
   interest is the user's best interest, same as the GUI Style Guide people.

The GUI designers can not force the coders to do so. 
We should give them a reason to do so.

If we say, whatever you did so far is garbage. Do it our
way, but we don't code. That would seem incredibly arrogant.

We could come aup with a standard gradually. So that coders
don't have to change their porgram drastically in 2 years,
just because we could not agree on  the names of some menus.

Stephan