[Usability]Re: Nautilus Preference Proposal (screenshots too!!!!)

[Dave Bordoley <bordoley msu edu>]

On Wed, 2002-10-16 at 10:27, Alexander Larsson wrote:

> Actually moving the preferences may be a fair amount of work, as they 
> depend on eel code. Installing a prefs app from nautilus as a control 
> center "capplet" sounds like a good idea though. I still want to be able 
> to launch it from edit->preferences in nautilus though. No need to make it 
> harder to get to.

Thats what I meant, really. I didn't mean to infer that the actual code
should move out of nautilus, just the visible ui. But ok we can include
these prefs in both the nautilus ui and the nautilus window, and i
believe this is what windows does as well.

>   
> > proposal:
> > ========================
> > 1. Views Category
> > ------------------
> Sounds good. We need "show hidden and backup files" to only affect the 
> default for newly opened windows though. Then we need to add a menu item 
> to toggle hidden files "view->hidden files".

agree, well if we had view -> hidden files, i'd say dump the prefernce
altogether and just make it persistent across future windows as I have
proposed for the toolbar, sidebar etc. prefs.


>   
> > 4. Desktop and Trash category
> > -----------------------------
> 
> I'm not sure about these. Maybe we should put them in an advanced 
> ("crack") tab. I don't recommend using either, but they were put there 
> beacause lots of people whined about it.

Come on alex, take a stand :). We have and advanced tab already,
actually its an advance app editor called gconf-editor. Hell these prefs
are prime targer for a tweek ui program.  keep in mind, i'm proposing
removal of prefs i even use cuz i think they are detrimental to good ui.

> 
> > The trash behavior prefs are moved to the "files and folders" category. 
> >  
> > 5. Files and Folders category (currently Icon and List Views)
> > ------------------------------------------------------------- 
> I'd rather have "executable text files". It seems more clear to me, and 
> cannot be confused with nautilus scripts as referenced elsewhere in the 
> ui.

fine


> > 6. Sidepanes category
> > --------------------------------
> > This category is removed. With the new sidebar design the tabs preferences 
> > seem out of place. We may want to include them as hidden preferences for 
> > those tweakers who may gain from minor speed improvements, but this doesn't 
> > really warrant inclusion in the ui. The tree view preference was moved to 
> > the "views" category.
> 
> One (slight) problem with this is that newly installed sidebars seem to be 
> disabled by default when installed, and without this you can't turn them 
> on.

Thats a bug...lets fix it :)

> > 8. Previews Category (currently Performance)
> > --------------------------------------------
> The thumbnailing parts of this is currently nonfunctional due to the icon 
> theme and thumbnailing moving to libgnomeui. These settings will also be 
> system-wide once someone implements them. I don't think it matters that 
> the settings require nautilus to change though, because it *is* possible 
> to change using gconftool, and we don't really support gnome installations 
> without Nautilus much.
>  

Even more of a reason these prefs should be included in a
"control-center" file management module:) I think depending on nautilus
to provide the ui for these prefs is fine as long as they are globally
accessible from the desktop preferences in the panel, as i have
proposed.

dave