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List:       kde-core-devel
Subject:    Re: The handle arrows in kicker (was kicker applets usability)
From:       John Firebaugh <jfirebaugh () kde ! org>
Date:       2001-12-13 5:47:12
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On Wednesday 12 December 2001 04:12 pm, Cristian Tibirna wrote:
> On Wednesday 12 December 2001 18:15, Waldo Bastian wrote:
> > I think the arrows are misleading, they suggest that when you LBM click
> > on the handle you will get a popup menu. After all that's what these
> > arrows mean in other places. Compare e.g. the button left of the taskbar
> > (and just right of the taskbar's handle)
>
> My personal (and perhaps no relevant, by consequence) is that the handles
> waste space and are counterintuitive. I don't really understand why the API
> of the applets can't be made to predefine the RMB contextual menus (of an
> applet) so that "remove", "preferences" and "move" actions be available by
> default from there.

The reason, besides "no one has volunteered", is that it would involve both a 
total rewrite of the applet API, breaking source and binary compatibility, 
and source code changes to all existing applets to support. I have been 
thinking about the issue for awhile, and to my mind the best solution would 
be to create a new applet API, in a kdebase/kicker/libkicker, that basically 
allows applets to be written the same way as KParts or Plugins, and use 
merged XMLGUI for the menus. Existing applets would be supported, but would 
not have the usability enhancement of merged menus.

later,
John
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