[openbeos] Re: window placement (was: inconsistency?)


While we're at it,

AFAIK, BeOS does not have an automatic window placement subsystem. A BWindow is declared at some exact coordinates. This means that if we open 10 such windows, they all will be in the same place.
Shouldn't we have a subsystem that places windows on screen by some criteria: cascade, best fit, etc(what else? :-) ).?


Thanks,
Adi.


Adi Oanca wrote: 
Hi,

Helmar Rudolph wrote:

Let me throw the cat among the pigeons here and propose that we
"do away" with modal windows altogether.
* Any dialog window that hasn't been confirmed within a preset
  timeframe (say 1 min) gets "negated", which equals a click on
  "Cancel" or "Abort".


By no means I agree. A secretary just wants to save a document, she goes almost to the place where she wants to put that file. BUT, its boss wants a coffee.

I have a modal window, in which I have a text field with some text that I've just written; my spaghetti watter starts boiling... :-)

    ...Many such cases...

* Any informational window gets moved to a "docked" status bar
  that displays or "tickers" information dialog contents/results.


Modal and floating windows are not shown in any bar.
If so, what happens if I have 3 different windows each with it's own set of modals? Where is that bar? How many will records will it have?
In the end, why should it be moved in that bar? If modal, it "shows" there is an action to be done ASAP. If it's a floating one, it will disappear after its main window loses focus.

* Any floating window gets docked somewhere within the
  application's parent/main window. Especially in graphics apps
  floating dialogs are a bloody PITA (IMHO) and user-unfriendly,
  but developers still don't seem to get it.


The idea of docking them in the main window, is good. Just like MS Office applications. :-) Hey, *not* MDI, I'm talking about toolbars. :-D

I think that would solve some issues around this debate, wouldn't
it? ;)



    Yup. :-)


Adi.




Other related posts: