Re: [Usability] new search/replace dialog proposal for gedit

[Joachim Noreiko <jnoreiko yahoo com>]

--- Matthew Paul Thomas <mpt myrealbox com> wrote:

> On Nov 9, 2006, at 9:32 AM, Joachim Noreiko wrote:
> > ...
> > --- Baptiste Mille-Mathias
> > <baptiste millemathias gmail com> wrote:
> >> I did some work on the bug
> >> http://bugzilla.gnome.org/show_bug.cgi?id=369053
> to improve the 
> >> search/replace dialog; I just wanted to ear your
> comments and 
> >> thoughts about that change.
> > ...
> >> For the new dialogs I advice you to try to
> compile gedit with the new
> >> glade file instead of viewing the screenshots
> posted on bugzilla, 
> >> because they were old and wrong.
> >
> > Is the resounding silence from the usability team
> due to everyone's 
> > fear of reawakening two mighty dragons that
> slumber in bugzilla?
> > I speak of
> http://bugzilla.gnome.org/show_bug.cgi?id=85606 and
> > http://bugzilla.gnome.org/show_bug.cgi?id=169537
> ....
> > ...
> 
> In my case, more because (a) I didn't receive the
> original message, and 
> (b) compiling is hard(TM). :-)
> 
> I don't know whether it's helpful, but I think that:
> *   A Find bar should be used only for type-ahead
> find, with a floating
>      window being used for more complex options.
> *   "Find" is a more positive name than "Search".
> *   If an application is able both to find things
> and to change them, it
>      should have a single "Find/Change" window that
> does both jobs (as I
>      reported in bug 169537). Separating them is
> aggravating.
> *   "Close" buttons are tragic time-wasters in any
> window, Find windows
>      included.

Let's rein this in before it spirals out of control,
as I could reply to all of mpt's points above and it
wouldn't actually move things on for the original
question. Not that the usability list's street cred
could sink ANY lower, but what the hell, call me an
optimist.

1. It would be nice to have a common Search dialog
design
2. Angels being on pinheads, this ain't gonna happen
anytime soon
3. We might as well cut to the chase. 

Is the proposed dialog perfect? Nope. There's no help
button for a start, and neither is there room for one.
Is it a step closer to a common design? I doubt it.
Is it acceptable by the standards of the HIG and an
improvement on the current dialog?
The only real questions to resolve, the only meat
here, is:
- is it ok to have two columns of checkboxes?
- does the addition of two bold headings make the
dialog clearer?

Let's keep it to that for now, or we'll be here for
another two years.

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