If I'm using Linux, I want my software to look like Linux software. If I'm using my Mac, I want my software to look like Mac software. If I'm using my NeXT, I want my software to look like NeXT software. If I'm using Windows -- as much as I hate to say this -- I want my software to look like Windows software.
This "cross-platform UI" bullshit is so incredibly wrongheaded I can't even begin to describe it. It will be the death of Mozilla, I swear it. I can tell you right now that Macintosh users will reject it if it's too nonstandard. That's why Internet Explorer is such stiff competition on both Macintosh and Windows -- it integrates with the operating system, it doesn't try to replace it or snub it.
And what's with this "controls changing their look on mouseover" bullshit? I mean, this draft is better than the previous (where a button didn't have an outline unless you put the pointer over it) but really, what are these people thinking?!Enabled controls should look like enabled controls. Period. Does Netscape have any objective human interface studies that they can show us to demonstrate that such behavior is really warranted, especially with respect to applications that use such controls when the operating system itself doesn't?
But you have to move the mouse a lot further from where you are working to get to the menu bar.
The designers of the Macintosh (well, Lisa) interface thought about this. Perhaps you're trying to carefully position the pointer over the menu you want to pull down like you have to do with some other systems... On the Mac, you only have to use such fine motor skills to select the command from a menu. Thanks to a real acceleration curve and the fact that you can't normally "overshoot" the menu bar, gross motor skills suffice to allow you to pull down a menu.
It works, it scales (somewhat), it supports real authentication, it's open, it presents the right paradigm for instant messaging and online discussion. (Since I used it heavily at CMU, using AOL Instant Messenger, IRC, and ICQ is just painful.)
There's an effort underway by the IETF to come up with a standard protocol for instant messaging and "presence information" called IMPP. Anyone considering working on a project like this should get in the loop so they can make sure all their bases are covered, and so that they can interoperate with others' servers.
If someone does write a QuickTime library for Linux, they should also follow the QuickTime API. It would be a great draw to Macintosh developers if they knew they could at least port QuickTime-dependent code with a minimum of effort.
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This "cross-platform UI" bullshit is so incredibly wrongheaded I can't even begin to describe it. It will be the death of Mozilla, I swear it. I can tell you right now that Macintosh users will reject it if it's too nonstandard. That's why Internet Explorer is such stiff competition on both Macintosh and Windows -- it integrates with the operating system, it doesn't try to replace it or snub it.
And what's with this "controls changing their look on mouseover" bullshit? I mean, this draft is better than the previous (where a button didn't have an outline unless you put the pointer over it) but really, what are these people thinking?! Enabled controls should look like enabled controls. Period. Does Netscape have any objective human interface studies that they can show us to demonstrate that such behavior is really warranted, especially with respect to applications that use such controls when the operating system itself doesn't?
It works, it scales (somewhat), it supports real authentication, it's open, it presents the right paradigm for instant messaging and online discussion. (Since I used it heavily at CMU, using AOL Instant Messenger, IRC, and ICQ is just painful.)
Go to ftp://athena-dist.mit.edu/pub/ATHENA/z ephyr/ to download the source.
There's an effort underway by the IETF to come up with a standard protocol for instant messaging and "presence information" called IMPP. Anyone considering working on a project like this should get in the loop so they can make sure all their bases are covered, and so that they can interoperate with others' servers.
Go to http://lists.fsck.com/cgi-bin/wilma/pip for mailing list archives.
If someone does write a QuickTime library for Linux, they should also follow the QuickTime API. It would be a great draw to Macintosh developers if they knew they could at least port QuickTime-dependent code with a minimum of effort.