Re: [Usability] Reasoning behind default panel setup?

[David Tenser <djst mozilla gmail com>]

On 1/11/06, Steve Frécinaux <nudrema gmail com> wrote:
> David Tenser wrote:
>
> > My proposal is in fact to make it more usable by including a
> > three-column menu, with clear labels above each column (Applications,
> > Places, System). This would make it all accessible in one click, just
> > as it is now.
>
> Mockup ? :-)

I will try to do one tomorrow. :) Btw, there is a bug open for that,
although that one is a WinXP ripoff. Of course, that's much better
than the current one, but I'm hoping to provide an even better one.

>
> > Perhaps two columns would be enough, if it's somehow
> > possible to include Places and System below each other (after all,
> > they include less elements than Applications).
>
> Well, if I count right, right now I have :
>   -  8 entries in the Appliation menu
>   - 16 entries in the Places menu
>   -  7 entries in the System menu

You're right, Places contains more items than I first thought. Anyway,
I'll work on a mockup and we'll see. The idea is to not be forced to
click more just because the menu bar is replaced with a single-icon
menu.

>
> > It seems most people who use Gnome for a long time resort to one
> > panel. That is encouraging.
>
> But they're all power users and don't need all the functionnalities
> provided by the default layout.
>
> Convince me, now :-)

I updated the screenshots to also include the notification area, with
nm-applet and gnome-power-manager running in it. Also, I purposely
included the gnome.org website in the screenshot, to show that not
even the website is suitable on a 800x600 screen. So don't even try
that argument. :)

I also found that a 30px panel worked just as well as the 32px one.
This reduces the difference between window icons and panel launchers,
but still makes the icons look better than on a 24px panel.

The workspace switcher has been moved to give it a more prominent
location on the panel. If we're trying to educate users to use this
feature, it shouldn't be hidden on the right side. This makes it as
visible as the web browser and mail launchers. It's also more logical
to place it on the left side of the window-list, since you immediately
see the difference of the list when switching workspace, without
having to move your eyes to the other side of the screen.

Finally, I noticed that the first round of screenshots didn't have the
standard background set, making the bewel border around window-list
items invisible. This has been fixed now.

--
David Tenser