Re: [HIG] Icons in application menus and dialog action buttons

[Seth Nickell <snickell stanford edu>]

Comment by Sullivan on the mixed use of icons in Nautilus menus....

------- Additional Comments From sullivan eazel com 2000-12-12 11:20:09
----

Currently we use standard GNOME menu icons for (at least some of) the
standard
menu items, like Cut/Copy/Paste/Close Window. We haven't been careful
about
doing this for all the standard menu items. Also, we have the bookmark
items,
whose icon is an integral part of the item, much more so than for
Cut/Copy/Paste, etc. I've deliberately made the bookmark icons always
show up
(ignoring the GNOME user preference) because I felt they are of a more
essential
nature than the arguably-decorative icons next to standard commands.

We could leave this as is, remove the few standard-command icons we're
using, or
add icons for more standard-command items. Any of these seem fine to me,
so I'll
leave this up to Arlo.


n Wed, 2001-10-24 at 18:52, Gregory Merchan wrote:
> The HIG has not yet addressed icons in application menus and dialog action
> buttons.
> 
> Status:
>   GNOME pre-2.0 allows a global setting of whether icons appear in menus and
> dialog action buttons. Unfortunately, this is dependent on programming nits.
> It is possible that:
>   * the setting will apply to the widget,
>   * the widget will always have an icon, or
>   * the widget will never have an icon.
> This holds to the particular widget; the results in a menu or dialog may be
> mixed. The setting cannot be changed while the program is running and the
> setting affects both the panel menus and the application menus. There is
> at least one existing application partially loses functionality if menu
> icons are not on. Though there is a stock icon group, it is neither
> user-configurable nor does it span all possible menu items or dialog 
> buttons. This contributes to the mixing of widget types as programmers may
> try to force their own icons despite the presence of an API for adding to 
> the stock. The provided stock set has issues in its own right.
> 
> Pending:
>   My experience with Gtk+ 2.0 (pre-releases) has revealed some things. The
> stock item system from GNOME is now part of the toolkit and is themable. All
> of the other aforemention problems still exist, but it is not yet clear if
> the existence of icons can be globally determined or how. The default is that
> icons exist wherever a stock item is used (pending the completion of the stock
> set).
> 
> Recommendation:
>   HIG should adress this by advising that:
>     * icons must not be used for application menu items
>     * icons must not be used for dialog action buttons except
>       a Help button which should have only the icon.
>     * icons must be used for global menu items (i.e., the panel)
> 
> Rationale:
>   The presence of icons on application menu items distracts from the supreme
> importance of the user's document. The mixed presence of icons results in
> a user interface that either appears broken or incomplete or as if it is
> calling special attention to those items with icons. The use of graphics
> for indicating toggle state and also for whatever reason the item icons are
> present presents a duality of purpose with no commonality. This lessens the
> value of check marks, radio marks, and submenu indicators; it may also confuse
> users who expect a graphic on a menu item to be indicative of direct
> functionality rather than duplicating the message of the item label.
>   Much the same applies for action buttons in a dialog. The mixed presence
> may appear as breakage or incompleteness or distract from the purpose of other
> buttons with graphics. As the same widget (programmatically and in general
> appearance) is used for dialog action buttons as elsewhere, the mixed message
> is even more confusing. On the other hand, by making the Help button appear
> with just an icon and no label, this makes it appear as similar to a toolbar
> button which must never dismiss the window it is in; the same may apply to
> the Next and Prior buttons in assistants (a.k.a. - Druids or Wizards). The
> similar widgets here include scrollbar buttons, disclosure buttons (which are
> not yet standardized), combo box buttons, option buttons (a.k.a. option menu
> buttons), and buttons as may appear on toolbars and within dialogs or on
> web pages.
> 
> Provision:
>   If there is an option to toggle the presence of icons in these places, we
> should advise that the defualt must be as would result from the above
> recommendation. Whereas this will present the problems experienced prior
> to GNOME 2.0, guidelines for the icon designed must be available and a guide
> to proper use of the stock system should be available. However, since the
> nature of that system is not known at this time, it is not yet possible to
> make the latter set of guidelines.
> 
> Cheers,
> Greg Merchan
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