[Usability] Close buttons on instant-apply {dialogs|windows}

[Daniel F Moisset <dmoisset arnet com ar>]

Disclaimer: although this is my first post onto this list, I've been
reading it for two months, and I've read all mails about this topic (my
memory might fail, though).

Let me see if I can summarize the problem:

The choices are: 1) include a "Close"/"Done" button in utility instant
apply windows, or 2) not doing so.

1) The point for including it is to ensure there is an (usable) way to
close the window even when the WM doesn't provides one, increasing
accesability providing a larger target to hit, and having a Tab/spacebar
navigable way to close these windows.
2) The point for not including it is to have a single way to close this
kind of windows using a mouse click (there are another alternative ways
like WM menus, taskbars, shortcuts, etc.). This is good for consistency
and to avoiding ambiguity. This would (theoretically) increase usability
by not forcing the user to make a choice where there's nothing to
choose.

[If I missed something in any side, please, add it].

The main problem for deciding, IMO, is that the GNOME goal of being
WM-independent (it IS a goal, isn't it? If you can't agree in what is a
goal and what isn't, you'll probably be unable to agree in this issue).
If we know that our WM provides an usable way to click-close a window,
probably 1) is better (assuming that we solve de accesability issue). If
we're not sure, 2) is better.
That is, we all would prefer one and only one usable and accesable close
button. If we choose 1) and are wrong, we might wind up having two. If
we choose 2) and are wrong, we might wind up having none.

Currently, there isn't enough knowledge to decide. You could leave the
decision to the user (through some "enable close buttons in utility
windows" preference), but the user doesn't want to know about this. You
could leave the choice to the programmer (The programmer puts or not a
close button), but he doesn't know if people running his app will have a
wm-provided close button (and probably, some/most will have, some will
haven't).

If we're forced to decide, I would vote for 1 (iff the accesibility
problems of the close button are solved), because the worst case
scenario isn't as bad as 2 (even when the best case scenario isn't as
good as 2).

But if we're aspiring for perfection, I would prefer an automatic
solution. In a perfect and integrated desktop, the application could be
able to know if windows frames have a close button or not. That would
require some kind of protocol that enables applications to query about
"capabilities" of other desktop components (in this case, the WM). In
this case, there should be some kind of utility-window widget that has a
close button or not according to what the WM/theme answers when queried
about "Do you have a close button in the frame?". If the WM/theme
doesn't support the protocol, or there is no WM, a compromise choice
should be taken (I would say 1, which is less bold but less risky).

We could implement this at least for the default WM/theme, and make easy
for third parties to implement it for their WMs/themes.

If you think it's a good idea, I can try to design it/implement it.

	Daniel

-- 
Python is executable pseudocode. Perl is executable line noise.