[sldev] build 3109

Mike Monkowski monkowsk at fishkill.ibm.com
Fri Jan 22 14:13:38 PST 2010


Melinda Green wrote:
> Mike Monkowski wrote:
> 
>> Melinda Green wrote:
>>
>>> Even two buttons can often be too much clutter which is why I 
>>> implemented the snapshot "Save As" using a flyout button with only 
>>> two options. Adding a single button may not seem like a big deal, but 
>>> ever visible control requires some level of user attention and is 
>>> therefore a serious cost. The whole point of the 2.0 viewer is to 
>>> flatten the learning curve by reducing that clutter.
>>
>>
>> Reducing the clutter is a noble goal, but flyout buttons do have a 
>> discoverability issue, so they're more likely to steepen the learning 
>> curve rather than flatten it. 
> 
> 
> A flyout button won't steepen the learning curve because it will be no 
> more confusing that it is currently. Discoverability of the new 
> functionality is certainly a consideration, but once learned in one 
> context, users will quickly discover (and expect) it in others.

OK, I may be just an exception, but it was months before I accidentally 
clicked on the triangle next to "Say" and discovered the "Shout" and 
"Whisper."  I've now been using SL for years but just recently noticed 
the flyout on "Communicate" while I was working with the UI code.  Was 
that there the whole time?

Mike


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