[Usability]Should "widget" be mentioned in the GUI? (was widget style vs window decoration)

[James Ramsey <jjramsey_6x9eq42 yahoo com>]

Here's my $0.02 on the little flamewar about whether
to use the word "widget" in the GUI.

Now we have of course these things called widget
themes that, when applied, decorate the buttons,
scrollbars, checkboxes, etc. of applications. We would
like to concisely convey to the user that there is a
dialog for applying these widget themes.

The problem is that 

1) the term "widget" is abou the only word that
concisely and consistently refers to buttons,
scrollbars, checkboxes, menus,and all the other GUI
controls.

2) the term "widget" is unfortunately a piece of
computer jargon *that most Mac and Windows users have
never heard of.*

Let me take each of these points in turn. 

First, the main alternatives to the term "widget" have
been either "controls" or some reference to
"application," such as "Application Theme". 

"Control" is a word that requires context to be
meaningful. In documentation, the word is useful
enough, since the topic of the documentation and the
sentences and words nearby will make it clear what
"control" or "controls" means. In short phrases such
as the kind seen in menu entries and dialogs, the word
is almost useless. "Control" could be a noun or a
verb. As a noun in a short phrase, it may not be clear
what a "control" controls.

"Application theme" is tricky, because as someone
pointed out, that could refer to themes of specific
apps, i.e. Mozilla or XMMS. It also does not make
clear that "application" themes could affect the
desktop, which to the user is probably not considered
an app.

In short, we don't have a substitute for "widget" that
doesn't involve at least some vagueness or ambiguity.

Second, it has been said that the problem with the
word "widget" is that it is jargon. That isn't
strictly the issue. The real problem is that "widget"
is unfamiliar GUI jargon.

Think about it. Mac and Windows users use jargon all
the time. Ponder a bit about how the terms "window,"
"desktop," "wallpaper," "menu," "application,"
"taskbar," or "dock" get used in a computer GUI
context. Some of these are everyday terms with
radically different meanings in a computing context.
How many people actually lay a stack of real windows
on a the top of a real desk, let alone drag them
around and risk getting cut by possible glass shards.
What resemblance does a "menu" on Win2k have to a menu
in a restaurant? Other terms, such as "taskbar," are
pretty much new. All of these terms have meanings in a
computer GUI context that users not only have to
learn, but do. Computers UIs use jargon, period--and
so do the users. Users just use the terms so naturally
that when we observe them, we don't realize that
they've been using jargon all along.

Users who get confused about the word "widget" get
confused not because it is a piece of jargon, but
because it is a piece of jargon that they haven't had
any opportunity to pick up.

So, when it comes to the use of the word "widget," we
have a dilemma. We either

1) avoid the use of the term "widget" at the cost of
using phrases that might turn out to be vague to the
user, or

2) use the term "widget," knowing that a user from a
Mac or Windows background will probably not know what
it means unless explicitly told.


IMHO, I think it is better to go ahead and use the
word "widget." The cost of the user not knowing what
it means is fairly low. Not knowing how to theme the
widgets is unfortunate, but it won't lead the user to
lose work or other bad catastrophic things. 

Also, the problem of users not knowing the meaning of
"widget" will solve itself over time, either through
word of mouth, explicit education, or whatnot. If the
new meanings of the terms "window," "desktop,"
"wallpaper," and "menu," can worm their way into the
common lexicon, so can "widget." In contrast, the
meanings of phrases like "Application Theme" or
"Controls Appearance" won't get clearer in time. They
are vague by nature, so vague they stay.



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