[opensource-dev] Review viewer -- draw distance slider

Ima Mechanique ima.mechanique at blueyonder.co.uk
Sat Jun 11 16:53:39 PDT 2011


> On Fri, Jun 10, 2011 at 8:59 PM, <aklo at skyhighway.com> wrote:
> 
> > The binocs idea for the icon is the best!  It's totally like the average
> > person is going to think about it.  And it's the way our eyes work.
> 
> 
> I have serious concerns (based only on the screenshot posted earlier):

> * By elevating this option to the top bar, we would expect many more users
> to interact with the control than when it is buried in preferences.

Yes, but only those that need/choose to adjust their draw distance
regularly. The same could be said of the volume control, which I adjust
once to an appropriate level and never touch again. I expect I would use
the draw distance more often and find it more useful on the top bar.

> * Without textual cues, you rely on the users to associate the button with
> some meaning. While binoculars may be a good metaphor (and perhaps the best
> available), it's not a commonly used glyph. Contrast with play/pause/stop or
> speaker-as-volume, which are now nearly universal in audio controls. I would
> not expect many users to either go looking for it or easily understand what
> the control is affecting from just the icon.

Binoculars is a commonly use icon in some applications. However, it is
used for "Find/Search" hence it being a temporary choice here for
demonstration purposes until a custom icon can be made. I liked Hitomi's
eye, but would prefer it without the radiating lines, too easy to
confuse that with an active speaker icon at small sizes or on large
monitors.

> * In the mockup I've seen, the control will look similar and behave almost
> exactly like the nearby volume control. I would expect many novice users to
> click the icon by mistake, adjust the setting, then wonder why the volume
> didn't change, and thus leave the draw distance altered unexpectedly.

> * The negative side effects of setting a large draw distance are not obvious
> to most new users. By making the control so prominent, I would expect that
> many would discover the control, set it to the most aesthetically pleasing
> value (i.e. "see more stuff"), then forget about it and wonder why the world
> is suddenly reacting more sluggishly.

Something best dealt with by education.  The same problem exists with
the current preferences, people will still ignore the recommended
settings that SL sets up on startup, and turn up the quality. The only
difference here is the ease with which it can be done. The same ease
they have to turn it down again. Additionally this is only one setting,
not all of those available in preferences.

> I think it's a very cool idea and conceptually love the design, but please
> proceed with caution. At the risk of making the implementation more
> difficult, I'd suggest adding labels along the lines of "See More (Slower)"
> "See Less (Faster)" at the top/bottom of the slider to alleviate the
> confusion.

Agreed. Given Jonathan's recent comment regarding the tooltip, keeping it
simple (More/Slower, Less/Faster) might be an idea.

--
Ima Mechanique
ima.mechanique(at)blueyonder.co.uk



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