I would have indented the chapter selection list, so it is clear that it belongs to the "Export Chapters" option rather than being a global selection. David Millington .
I would have indented the chapter selection list, so it is clear that it belongs to the "Export Chapters" option rather than being a global selection. David Millington .
And also, I would probably have a Group Box around the Export radio buttons and the check list box + associated buttons.
Apart from that I like the post.
I have seen too many badly designed user interfaces (Yes, Microsoft, I am looking at you.), so maybe this will improve some (but probably not for Microsoft programs).
(Also see my rant about "Building less annoying user interfaces" https://blog.dummzeuch.de/2018/08/18/building-less-annoying-user-interfaces-part-1/ )
Some questions remain (maybe to be answered in the next blog post):
* What happens if I click on the Maximize or Minimize button of the dialog?
* What happens if I click the close button?
* Is the dialog sizeable? If not, why not? What happens if I resize it? Does it have a minimum size? Do the controls get moved and resized in a sensible way?
* Why is the Export button enabled when none of the radio buttons is checked? And why isn't "Export entire book" checked to start with since it is supposed the default?
https://community.embarcadero.com/blogs/entry/how-to-design-a-great-ui-part-2
And also, I would probably have a Group Box around the Export radio buttons and the check list box + associated buttons.
Apart from that I like the post.
I have seen too many badly designed user interfaces (Yes, Microsoft, I am looking at you.), so maybe this will improve some (but probably not for Microsoft programs).
(Also see my rant about "Building less annoying user interfaces" https://blog.dummzeuch.de/2018/08/18/building-less-annoying-user-interfaces-part-1/ )
Some questions remain (maybe to be answered in the next blog post):
* What happens if I click on the Maximize or Minimize button of the dialog?
* What happens if I click the close button?
* Is the dialog sizeable? If not, why not? What happens if I resize it? Does it have a minimum size? Do the controls get moved and resized in a sensible way?
* Why is the Export button enabled when none of the radio buttons is checked? And why isn't "Export entire book" checked to start with since it is supposed the default?
https://community.embarcadero.com/blogs/entry/how-to-design-a-great-ui-part-2
Having looked at the link I don't like the "recommended" layout at all. Here are a couple of points:
ReplyDelete1. There's way too much going on in this "simple" GUI.
2. I use the principle, "never show a user an option that isn't relevant". In the dialog there is a list of chapters when the whole book may be exported. I'd only show the list if the "Export Chapters" radio button is checked.
3. The alignment is all over the place (literally). Some elements are right aligned (e.g. buttons), other are left aligned (e.g. radio buttons and list)
4. The buttons are placed in an unorthodox way i.e. to the right slightly above the combobox
If it was my app I'd implement this as a "wizard", where the user isn't bombarded with options and knows exactly what they need to decide at each stage.
Steve
Hello,
ReplyDeletePlease note that this is not a recommended layout. It is an incrementally improved layout from the previous one -- and has a number of issues remaining. You've both touched on some of them. Post 3 continues the process of improvement.
I may need to make it clearer, but this focuses on functionality, with visual layout (buttons, min/max, indentation, button location, etc etc) still to come, along with making it look "modern" in design.
I added a followup post that brings things together: https://community.embarcadero.com/blogs/entry/how-to-design-a-great-ui-part-3
ReplyDeleteDavid Millington Looks better. I'd implement it as a "wizard" for clarity. I'd also change the ratio of the height-to-width to be closer to the "Golden Ratio"; currently they seem either too square or too elongated. en.wikipedia.org - Golden ratio - Wikipedia
ReplyDelete