Re: GNOME Total Interface Style Guide

[Gleef <gleef capital net>]

On Sat, 15 Aug 1998, Dan "Effugas" Kaminsky wrote:

> Before I respond to some of the statements which Tom has made, I have
> decided that, yes, an *application level* style guide should not define
> segments of the total interface.  Because of this, I'm starting up a Total
> Interface style guide.  This will contain those suggestions that the group
> seems to agree would be good for the GNOME authors, as opposed to GNOME App
> writers, to adhere to.  Code that we believe should be handled by libraries
> should go into the TISG.  Code that we believe authors should write should
> go into the GUIG and UISG.  This should lower the demand on application
> writers while increasing the quality of the entire GNOME interface.
> 
> The following are examples of issues I believe the TISG will cover:
> 
> 1)  Panel contents(the GUIG and UISG would refer to how to link to the
> panel)
> 2)  GC2 level system design specs(ability to multitask, ability to change
> without reboot)
> 3)  Keyboxes
> 4)  Maybe cluehunting--depends on the sample implementations
> 5)  Launcher patterns.  The UISG/GUIG would define how the app author would
> provide GNOME with the .lsm information, and the TISG would provide the
> standard method to deal with this information.
> 
> By GNOME authors, I'm referring to both those who write GNOME and those who
> write GNOME WM's.
> 
> How does this sound?  I'm not doing this over gnome-gui's dead body.
> However, Gnome-GUI is not Gnome-App-GUI, and these aren't two competing
> projects--just two documents created for two different audiences.

I like the idea of a Total Interface Style Guide, but since the scope of
such a guide would take it so far beyond the scope of GNOME, I think
calling it the "GNOME TISG" might be a bit too much of a mouthful.

I think it would have the best chance of succeeding if the TISG were not
actually a GNOME project (altough it could refer to and insist on GNOME as
a TISG element), but a global manual on how to write effective and
cohesive software.  Think about it.

-Gleef