[Usability]Re: GNOME-SEARCH-TOOL: Comment Request [UPDATE]

[Michael Toomim <toomim uclink4 berkeley edu>]

Michael Toomim wrote:
> Michael Toomim wrote:
>
> > How about this:
> >   A) Always keep an extra blank specification row in the "additional 
> > options" box.  As soon as a user starts editing a row, add a new blank 
> > row below it.  This way, users never actually have to explicitly add 
> > rows, and you can do away with that entire section of the UI.
> >   B) You'll need a way to select the "type" of specification.  You 
> > could replace the label in the list of specs with an option-menu like 
> > the one in the "add item" section.
> >   C) Make the default "type" be "Choose a search type", or something 
> > similar.  Now, you know precisely when to create a new blank 
> > specification item: whenever the user changes the type from "Choose a 
> > search type" to a real search type.
>
>
> Oops!  I was looking at the wrong screenshot!  Please disregard all my 
> comments on screenshot 2!

Disregard *that* post!

Now that I'm looking at the right screenshot 2, I think that my 
suggestions for the "additional options" box still might be a better 
solution than the prototope in the real screenshot 2 after all.

The interaction model in the most recent screenshot 2 doesn't appear 
obvious/intuitive to me.  It isn't obvious that the items underneath the 
"available options" row is a list of items.  There needs to be something 
showing the relationship between the item-list and the "available 
options" row that controls them, rather than just lumping them together 
as a sequence of rows of widgets.  Also, the + button should 
horizontally align with the - button.

But I think that this problem can be avoided entirely by changing the 
model of interaction, ie. to the one I described previously, which I 
think is a better solution.

Also, you might want to take a look at the mozilla mail filters dialog 
box (mail/news->tools->message filters->new).  They had an attack to 
this problem that is somewhat in between my model and the screenshot's 
model.