Chapter 3. The User Interface


Chapter 3. The User Interface

One of the responsibilities of a graphical operating system like Windows XP is to provide a common set of interface controls not only for itself, but for all the applications that run on it. This chapter provides an alphabetical reference to the elements of the Windows XP user interface, how they're used, and what tricks can be performed with them. Also included are some of the building blocks of the Windows XP shell (commonly known as Explorer), such as the Desktop and the various toolbars . Chapter 4 provides a similar alphabetical reference to the individual programs and utilities that make up Windows, whether they are accessible through the graphical user interface or the command line. The alphabetical reference entries in this chapter are as follows :.

Address Bar

Labels

Shortcuts

Buttons

Listboxes

Shut Down

Checkboxes

Log Off

Start Menu

Clipboard

Menus

Status Bar

Combo Boxes

My Computer

System Tray

Context Menus

My Network Places

Tabbed Dialogs

Control Menus

Notification Area

Taskbar

Desktop

Progress Indicators

Text Boxes

Details

Properties

Title Bars

Dialog Boxes

Radio Buttons

Toolbars

Drop-Down Listboxes

Recycle Bin

Tray

File Open /Save Dialogs

Run

Trees

Icons

Scroll Bars

Turn Off Computer

Input Fields

Send To

Windows


In addition to imposing a certain level of user interface consistency, these common elements allow programmers to quickly piece together the interfaces for their applications with a "toolbox" of parts . While these interface elements are available to all applications, some application designers choose instead to implement their own custom controls and interface paradigms . Sometimes this can lead to an innovative and clever design, but more often than not, it just results in a mess. A poor result typically comes not so much from the choice not to use Windows common controls, but from a failure to follow the rules of good user interface design.

The following are a few guidelines that apply to all elements of the Windows interface, which should provide some understanding of why certain elements are designed the way they are in Windows XP.


Visual clues (perceived affordances )

One of the most basic advantages of a graphical operating system is that the elements of the interface contain visual clues on how they're used. For example, buttons have a 3D look, implying that you're supposed to push them in. Folder icons look like actual yellow folders you'd see in a file cabinet, reinforcing the notion that they are containers that hold your documents. They also light up when you're dragging items over them, signalling that they can accept dropped objects. Even the mouse pointer provides visual feedback, changing to a resize arrow when it's over the edge of the window, or changing to a circle with a line though it when you're dragging over an object that can't accept the object you're holding. (Don Norman, author of The Design of Everyday Things [Doubleday], calls these visual clues , which are intended to recall the way the physical world affords opportunities to interact with objects, "perceived affordances.") These clues are present in nearly every aspect of the Windows interface; learn to recognize them, and you quickly find even the most unfamiliar interface more intuitive and easier to use.


Constraints

Many controls have limits, or constraints , that permit only certain values to be entered. Scrollbars have a maximum and minimum limit, for instance, so you can't scroll past the end of a document.


Grayed-out (inactive) controls

Any control that appears " grayed out" is disabled because the underlying operation is not currently available. For example, in the dialog box shown in Figure 3-1, you need to click the "Single-click to open an item" checkbox before you can choose the Underline button.

Figure 3-1. Some options are disabled (grayed out) when unavailable or not applicable

Gray items typically don't respond at all when clicked, and sometimes it's not obvious what action must be taken in order to "un-gray" a menu item. If you're stuck, try to imagine in what context the menu item is used, and then try to put the application in the correct state for that menu item to be appropriate. For example, some menu items in your word processor will be grayed out when graphics are selected, or if the spelling checker is open.


Ellipses (...)

You'll commonly see ellipses on menu items and command buttons, and occasionally on other interface elements. This notation implies that a new window will appear when the control is activated.


Focus

The focus (explained in greater detail in Chapter 2) is the visual highlighting of a single control, identifying which element will receive input from the keyboard. Since there's only one keyboard, only one control can have the focus at a time, and since only one window can be active at a time, you should always be able to determine what will happen when you press keys on the keyboard by simply looking for the focus. For example, if a button has the focus, a dotted line will appear around its inner parameter (classic style only); if an input field has the focus, a blinking cursor will appear where text is to be typed (this is known as the "insertion point"). You can usually click an item to give it focus, or use the Tab key to move the focus from one control to another.


Style

A new concept in Windows XP is the user-selectable style of all your windows and interface elements. The cheerful, brightly colored style that is the default when Windows XP is first installed is known as "Windows XP style." As shown in Figure 3-2, you can choose another style, such as "Windows Classic style," by going to Control Panel Display Properties Appearance. Windows XP only ships with these two styles, but additional styles can be added with third-party utilities (available at http://www.annoyances.org/ exec /show/article02-001). Using these tools, you can choose the look and feel of all of the controls documented in this chapter, including titlebars, buttons, scrollbars, and even the Start button and Taskbar.

Figure 3-2. The Display Properties dialog allows you to choose between the two visual styles available in Windows XP

Don't confuse styles with themes. A theme is a collection of settings. Once you've chosen the style, specified colors, and selected a screensaver, go to Control Panel Display Properties Themes tab to "save" your settings under a single theme name . See "Display Properties" in Chapter 4 for more information on these settings.



Windows XP in a Nutshell
Windows XP in a Nutshell, Second Edition
ISBN: 0596009003
EAN: 2147483647
Year: 2003
Pages: 266

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