Re: revised patch to change tooltips

[jpg2 cec wustl edu]

> On Mon, Jul 23, 2001 at 07:08:37PM -0500, jpg2 cec wustl edu wrote:
> 
> > Terminal emulation program - > Command Prompt
> 
> I have some doubt about "Command Prompt".  With *nix systems, "Terminal"
> is an important concept that is hard to fit in a simple "Command Prompt"
> definition: you don't run Mutt inside a "Command Prompt", for example, but
> you run it inside a full-fledged Terminal Window, or something like that.

I fully understand your reasoning.  Here's my reasoning and the
reasoning behind the usability report:

The tooltips are for newbies--someone who has no clue what the icon
does and particularly, someone who isn't familiar with Linux or Unix
at all.  To them if they hover over the icon and a tooltip pops up
that says "Terminal emulation program" that will be absolutely
*nothing* to them.  However, even my mother has an idea what a command
prompt is--and not just from her Windows experience.  The phrase makes
sense to them.  

In addition, the phrase "Command Prompt" is more specific.  A terminal
is a generic term--like you said you can run mutt or vi or pico in a
terminal.  When someone is learning Linux/Unix they will invariably ,
at some point, want to get to the command prompt to try something that
a tutorial or a friend suggested.  They aren't likely to know that
what they want is a terminal emulator that starts a shell, giving them
a prompt.  Who cares that the command prompt is run in a terminal
emulator?  

I guess what it boils down to is that the term "Command Prompt" isn't
incorrect--it's specific.  It doesn't hurt the Unix pro's one bit;
they know fully what they're doing--in fact they can easily change the
tooltip themselves if it bothers them at some philosophical level.
And it helps greatly the newbies--which is really what tooltips are
for to begin with.

----------------------------------------------------
name:    Jamin Philip Gray
email:   jgray writeme com
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I loathe people who keep dogs.  They are cowards who haven't got the guts
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