Re: [Usability] Cross-Desktop UI Pattern Library

[Calum Benson <calum benson oracle com>]

On 13 Oct 2010, at 13:47, Allan Caeg wrote:

> Great. We're moving forward. I might start a web UI Pattern Library at work.
> Will incorporate what I do there to our Cross-platform UI Library if ever.
> 
> Such a library simply requires best practices for certain widgets. It's okay
> to borrow ideas to other platforms, even on the web, as long as they fit the
> toolkit.

FWIW, I'd say a good pattern library requires best practice for certain tasks, rather than certain widgets.  In most cases, the 'best practice for a widget' should be enshrined as the default behaviour of that widget. (And we need to be proactive at filing bugs when it isn't.)  

Of course there will be situations where using something other than the defaults is necessary, and we do need to document the more common of those situations too -- but again, in more of a "when the user needs to do that, use the widget like this" sort of way, rather than the way the HIG currently does it ("here's the XYZ widget, and here's ten different ways you can use it").

Cheeri,
Calum.

-- 
CALUM BENSON, Interaction Designer     Oracle Corporation Ireland Ltd.
mailto:calum benson oracle com         Solaris Desktop Team
http://blogs.sun.com/calum             +353 1 819 9771

Any opinions are personal and not necessarily those of Oracle Corp.