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List:       kde-core-devel
Subject:    Re: Icons on Buttons - again
From:       Mike Richardson <mike () quaking ! demon ! co ! uk>
Date:       2002-01-19 19:13:59
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On Saturday 19 January 2002 5:47 pm, Thomas Zander wrote:
> On Sat, Jan 19, 2002 at 04:44:57PM +0000, Mike Richardson wrote:
> > On Saturday 19 January 2002 2:57 pm, Thomas Zander wrote:
> > > Excuse me for stating the obvious; the button is an icon AND a word. If
> > > you seperate them then there is no gain in using the icons. Please
> > > don't make the mistake that there is suppost to be an icon for every
> > > button; that was never the purpose!
> > > The icon complements the word and both together will be able to show a
> > > more consistent desktop.
> >
> > Sorry, I think this is wrong. The icon is a visual representation of the
> > action that the button performs; the text is a textual description of
> > what the button does. They __individually__ mean the same thing.
>
> This is your opinion on what the rules (should) be.

Clearly. Had it been someone else's, I'd have acknowledged them

> The system is being written by the KDE authors, the rules are not yet made.

True, but I am simply offering an opinion. 

> I don't say my opinion is the best there is; but yours adds little to the
> usability of KDE.

Really? I'd have to say that your opinion (please, nothing personal here) 
detracts from the usability of KDE

>
> > Think of a tool bar where you can select text+icon or text or icon. You
> > view would lead to identical controls if you turn off text
>
> As buttons have the combination of an icon and a text, and with toolbars
> the text is optional (and rarely used) this is a really bad reason to
> assume the workings of the button icons.
>

In which case we have a precedent for not having the same icon for two 
different buttons. I thought one of the aims of good interface design was 
consistency?

> /me leaving this discussion to the implementors

Mike

-- 
mike@quaking.demon.co.uk
http://www.quaking.demon.co.uk
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