[HIG] Re: [Nautilus-list] Toggable menu options

[Christian Rose <menthos menthos com>]

mån 2002-02-18 klockan 04.01 skrev Owen Taylor:
> > > "Show Hidden Files", by itself,  with no checkbox next to it, is 
> > > ambiguous.
> > 
> > I agree, but IMHO a gtk+ theme that doesn't display a toggable menu
> > option easily identifiable as a toggable menu option, whatever the
> > state, is broken.
> 
> Well, I'm afraid that no themes display check menu items in the off
> state these days... the GTK+ core doesn't allow it (It's very hard to
> do this in an attractive manner and in fact, in a matter that makes it
> clear that what you are drawing is the unselected state, not the
> indicator for the selected state.)

Is this new in GTK+ 1.3.x? My GTK+ 1.2 theme displays unselected
toggable menu options in a clearly different way from other menu
options.
If this is new, I think this is a regression since feedback in advance
that a menu option is toggable is quite important, for all the reasons
people have already mentioned.


> I don't think there is much ambiguity if the menu item has appropriate
> text:
> 
>     Show Hidden Files
> 
> Clearly, a menu item that I select to show hidden files.

Not so clearly. John Sullivan pointed out that this is very ambigous in
the sense that you do not know if it represents the current state or the
state that you will accomplish by selecting it.
Also, there is no visual cue that this option is a toggle option in that
there won't necessarily be any other feedback that this option has been
selected. No dialog will popup, and depending on the option, there may
be no other visual feedback upon selection *unless* you open the menu
again and notice the new checkmark next to it.


>    /
>  \/  Show Hidden Files
> 
> Clearly a selected check menu item, that I select again to uncheck.

Yes, and in this state this is identifiable as a toggable menu option
(if you have learnt that checkmarks symbolize toggable options). The
problem is the unselected state.



Christian