-----BEGIN PGP SIGNED MESSAGE----- Hash: SHA1 Thorsten Wilms wrote on 07/06/12 11:59: > > On 06/06/2012 10:28 PM, Hans Heintze wrote: >> >> The menu specifications for Quantal Quetzal include >> right-aligned toggle switches. I am concerned that the >> combination of left and right aligned menu items could make it >> very easy to accidentally trip over other menu indicators when >> trying to reach a toggle. > ... > > If all you have to communicate is On/Off, what is wrong with > checkboxes? They do have unclear target areas (in proper > implementations, the label is clickable, too), but are well > established and do not suffer from the problems switches have, as > listed above.
Good question. For some kinds of boolean setting, a checkbox feels too feeble to control it -- it leaves you unsure whether it is actually turned on or off right now. In the past, a pair of radio buttons, "On" and "Off", was sometimes used to solve this. A switch control does the same job, in a more compact and reassuring way. Examples of this include Flight Mode/Airplane Mode in networking, Bluetooth, automatic backups, and screen reading. For something to fall into this category, it is important for it to have, as its label, an understandable noun phrase (or gerund phrase) with a clear on/off state: "Flight Mode", "Bluetooth", "Automatic backups", "Screen reading". The sort of label you'd expect to see next to a switch in the physical world. Most boolean options either don't need that level of solidity, or can't be labelled briefly enough for a switch, or both. They should continue using checkboxes/checkmarks, or a pair of radio buttons/radio items. "Show Time in Menu Bar", "Record file and application usage", "In the clock, show: [/] Date and month", and so on. This is different from how switches are used in iOS, where they are an all-purpose replacement for checkboxes. That can be awkward when the option is too nuanced for an on/off switch. Some iOS developers work around this by adding explanatory captions underneath switches, while others use custom switch graphics that omit the "OFF" and "ON" text. You may have noticed, in System Settings, that some designers are currently overusing switches -- in the same way that they previously overused icons in menu items, and overused tooltips before that, and overused group boxes and section headers before that. If the past is a guide, they'll exercise more restraint in years to come. - -- mpt -----BEGIN PGP SIGNATURE----- Version: GnuPG v1.4.11 (GNU/Linux) Comment: Using GnuPG with Mozilla - http://enigmail.mozdev.org/ iEYEARECAAYFAk/0bY8ACgkQ6PUxNfU6ecq2QQCgo/HQb3CbYwPdfWIngdP9JNDv R7QAn0ZZ6osUqfdDV/exR8Eqwskt+pfd =AmwB -----END PGP SIGNATURE----- -- Mailing list: https://launchpad.net/~unity-design Post to : unity-design@lists.launchpad.net Unsubscribe : https://launchpad.net/~unity-design More help : https://help.launchpad.net/ListHelp
