Re: [Usability] Default Panel Layout

["Lars E. Pettersson" <lars homer se>]

On Wed, 2005-06-15 at 00:10, Bryan Clark wrote:
> The 'Show Desktop' button on the bottom confused a lot of people into
> thinking it was a Windows style start button.  I got a number of reports
> of people clicking on it a lot trying to get the start menu to appear.
> I'm planning on removing that from the default for next release.

I think that this will happen whatever you put there. So my vote would
be to let it stay.

If you plug something in, USB/whatever, or starts a CD, you may swiftly
move the mouse down to the lower left corner, click to show the desktop,
and then you may easily reach the thing you plugged in, or the CD. I.e.
having it in a corner, be it left or right, speeds things up.

So I see no reason to remove it due to people forgetting that they are
not using Microsoft Windows. It does not have to be in the lower left
corner though.

> The volume capplet should be to the left of the clock.  People would
> rather throw their mouse up to the right to click on the calendar than
> click on the volume.  

I disagree on this one. The "landing zone" is smaller for the volume
caplet than for the clock, i.e. it is easier to put the mouse pointer on
the clock than on the volume caplet.

Imagine the following, you have accidentally turned up the volume too
high, put in a CD and the music starts playing at high volume. With the
volume caplet at the upper right corner, you just move the mouse pointer
there, and turn the volume down with the mouse wheel. If it is moved to
the left of the calendar the user have a much smaller area to hit, to
turn down the volume, and may easily miss it.

I can not imagine that you ever want to use the calendar that quickly,
and given its larger landing zone, I think the current placement is the
best.

> The Applications/Places/Desktop button wasn't obvious that it was a
> button and instead looked like plain text.  I guess requires some theme
> fixes or something?

Yes, a button like theme for these three would be good. It looks too
much like plain text now.

Regarding the trash applet:

> The bottom left seemed more appropriate for the GNOME desktop since all
> of our files drop on the desktop from the left to the right.

And put the "show desktop" on the right? I think the "show desktop"
should be in one of the corners, perhaps it is even better to have it in
the lower right, as the workspace switcher is there already (combining
things that have to do with desktop/workspace.)

Lars
-- 
Lars E. Pettersson <lars homer se>
http://www.sm6rpz.se/