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List:       kde-usability
Subject:    Re: Fwd: Guidelines for System Tray icons
From:       Lubos Lunak <l.lunak () suse ! cz>
Date:       2003-03-19 7:56:15
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On Tuesday 18 of March 2003 21:55, Manuel Amador (Rudd-O) wrote:
> I personally think this is overkill.  And confusing.  Let me present an
> idea:
>
> We have three different metaphors:
> * taskbar
> * applets
> * notification area / system tray
>
> to represent several kinds of things to the user:
> * full apps (GNUmeric, Kdevelop, Kate)
> * notifications ("you have new mail", "you have new hardware", "you have
> new porn", "Manuel Amador just signed in")
> * "transient" apps ("media player, radio player, volume control")

 Bad luck, window managers have already taken word "transient" for another 
meaning ;).

>
> So far, so good.  Now, where should they interact with the user?
>
> Here's what I propose:
>
> * use the taskbar for "document" windows.  The traditional
> maximize/close/minimize works here.
> * use the system tray for notification events.  That is, a process not
> necesarily associated with a running application places an icon on the
> system tray and simultaneously notifies the user in the KPassivePopup
> style.  Activating the icon (single or double click, according to the
> user settings) performs the action advertised by the KPassivePopup.  The
> traditional maximize/close/minimize works for any application that opens
> when activating the icon.
> * use the applets for long-running low-profile "transient" apps.  That
> is, your media player and volume control get their own applet, and each
> application defines its own policy of interaction with their own applet.
>  But basically, the close button is still the close button, the minimize
> button still minimizes to the taskbar (remember that the minimize icon
> resembles a taskbar element), and closing the app doesn't necesarily
> terminate the process, since the applet is still running.  Instant
> activation for volume controls, multimedia players, and the like.

 Let's take the radio player for example: According to this, it should have an 
associated applet. However, people won't be running the radio applet all the 
time - so will they have to manually add the applet everytime they want to 
launch the radio player (really launch, not just show), or, in case it will 
be added automatically, will they have to adjust repeatedly its position in 
case they won't like the default?

>
> advantages:
> *no need to present popup dialogs explaining that "close isnt really
> close in this and other zillion cases"
> *no need to change window management metaphor
> *distinct places for distinct window management behaviors
>
> Now, perhaps this has an effect on IM dynamics.  You probably see I'm
> advocating applets for IM apps.  The IM app could have its own applet,
> and still show notifications in the notification area.  Activating the
> notification icon performs an action related to the notification
> (response window, show message, etc.) and activating the applet shows
> the main window.  Closing the IM closes the window, but the applet keeps
> the process running.  The applet is also more suited to showing status
> information (number of people logged in, online/offline, time offline,
> etcetera) than a simple icon.
>
> Key for this idea to work is to have small applets, not big ones.  The
> current volume control applet in KDE is so hated by me, i never use it.
>  The volume sliders are extremely small, too small to be effectively

 Who cares?

> used, there's no quick way to get the full Kmix,

 KMenuEdit, assign keyboard shortcut for KMix.

> and there's no keyboard access.  The keyboard access is currently also a

 Right-click on the applet, assign keys - much better than docked KMix in 
fact.

> problem for applets and notification area icons.

-- 
Lubos Lunak
KDE developer
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