[Usability] Re: Switching between tabs with Ctrl+Tab and Ctrl+Shift+Tab and "recency list"

[Roberto Piscitello <robepisc freemail it>]

Simon Francis <thejello <at> gmail.com> writes:

> My biggest complaint with Ctrl-Pg Up/ Ctrl-Alt-Pg Up is it is really
> hard to use. Ctrl-Tab can be used with only one hand and you hardly
> even have to move your fingers anywhere to use it, its just right
> there. Ctrl-Alt-Pg Up requires you to use both hands and move them
> rather far from home row. This is one of the many little things that
> cause me to use Firefox over Epiphany.
> 

I agree with you.
That's why, in every gtk application which use tabs and let me change shortcuts,
I set:
 Alt-Left:  switch to previous tab
 Alt-Right: switch to next tab
 Alt-Up:    open a new document tab
 Alt-Down:  close current document tab

This still requires 2 hands, but arrow keys are far more easy to find than
page-up/down in most keyboards (think of laptops), and you often have your right
hand on them anyway while scrolling a document.
Try this with Epiphany. (you too, usability guys!)
It's incredibly convenient.
And this is one of the many little things that cause me to use Epiphany over
Firefox :-)


So I think these are the more intuitive, convenient and coherent combinations:

* Alt-Left/Right: switch to the previous/following tab
* Alt-1/2/...: switch to the N-th tab (as already is)
* Ctrl-Alt-Left/Right: switch to the previous/following desktop (as already is)
* Ctrl-Alt-1/2/...: switch to the N-th desktop

Also add Shift to _move_ windows (tabs) to a different desktop (tab position),
instead of switching. (Ctrl-Alt-Shift-Left/Right already works)

Thanks,
  robepisc



PS: IMHO the HIG should recommend something like this:
Reserved for the WM and tabs handling(*):
  Alt-[Ctrl]-[Shift]-{0-9,anything but A-Z}
Reserved for label shortcuts (the ones with an underscore):
  Alt-{A-Z}
Reserved for applications shortcuts:
  Ctrl-[Shift]-{any key}

(*) In general, I think document tabs are not very different from windows.
Many think the WM should handle them, not the application. I somehow agree.
And since Alt is "The Metacity Key" (used to move, minimize, maximize windows,
or, with Ctrl, to switch desktops), I think Alt is the more intuitive key to use
to switch document tabs, and, for coherence, tabs in general.