Re: [Usability] Context for Evo 2 Mockups.

[Ettore Perazzoli <ettore ximian com>]

> 	- the search tools are available as a separate pop up window, search 
> icon moved to the main toolbar (wrong dimensions, sorry);

This way you are actually reducing the usability of the app, not
increasing it.

The search bar is one of the UI's most useful elements; if you move it
to a separate pop-up you make any search a pain in the ass, which
defeats one of Evoluiton's main design goals (i.e. searches should be
easily accessible and fast).

> 	- the progress bar is gone to become another pop up window;
>
> 	- the status bar could also go, but it doesn't really seem necessary at 
> this point.

No, it cannot go.  It provides useful information.

> * if the apps have to live in the same window, instead of the navigation 
>   buttons you could use tabs as shown in evo2_mail_RRDT-2.png (the 
> highlighted one is the calendar instead of the mail one, sorry): this is 
> perhaps suboptimal as the icons are smaller, tooltips could help; and 
> they're not aligned with the main view on the right (the mockup of the 
> guy on Slashdot was more consistent).

Why is this better than Anna's mockup?

The tabs look uglier, and also give you the false impression that by
clicking on them you are just switching pages in the folder view. 
Instead, they are supposed to switch full components.  (Because it
simplifies the common case where you are switching between reading your
mail and reading the calendar, for example, without requiring extra
clicks.)

-- Ettore