Re: scrollbar display options

[Paul Davis <pbd Op Net>]

>I was told that a good design means aligning something with something
>else, so that the whole thing doesn't look like a bunch of widgets
>randomly dropped on the screen.

This part I agree with. But your example is a poor one. The positional
indicators would be quite unnecessary if the scrollbar had the
functionality that a click anyway in its length moved to that
position. Some scrollbars (perhaps even GTK+'s) work this way.

As a general principle of design-with-themes-in-mind, don't ever try
to aggregate distinct widgets into a "whole" simply by placement. If
you want a scrollbar with tick marks under it, you need a new widget
type. Likewise, if you want a widget thats like the spinbutton, but
puts the arrows in different places, don't try to use a GtkEntry plus
two GtkArrows - this may come out wrong with certain themes. You need
a new widget that ensures the placement because of its internal design.

--p