David Phillips (![[info]](http://p-stat.livejournal.com/img/userinfo.gif){kind=small} davidphillips) wrote,@ 2005-01-31 08:29:00 |
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Mouse Habits
I changed offices at work on Friday and due to the different desk arrangement I had to place my second monitor on the right of the primary monitor instead of on the left. The physical arrangement matters because I set the logical arrangement in Windows to match. I found that when going for the titlebar icons (minimize, maximize, close) I usually overshoot them and end up on the second monitor (which is bad because I then click on the titlebar icon of the maximized application on that monitor).
I don't do this intentionally. It's a habit of using Windows for ten years. Normally, this behavior is fine since the edge of the screen bounds the mouse pointer and it ends up in almost exactly the right spot. This is a great example of the problems faced when doing interface design. What works well in one situation breaks down the moment some assumed constraints are changed. I think that the taskbar would be even worse. I always "overshoot" the taskbar buttons.
Would this be better on Mac OS X? I think so. Why? Because on OS X the icons are on the left and my second monitor is on the right! But seriously, it would be better because I rarely use the icons. The keyboard shortcuts are much better: Cmd-Q to quit the application, Cmd-W to close the current window and Cmd-M to minimize the current window. Windows doesn't have a keyboard shortcut for minimize and the other equivalent shortcuts are not nearly as convenient. As ironic as it sounds, I use the keyboard more on my PowerBook for window operations than I do on Windows.
That said, I don't think the Mac is perfect. For example, the ancient behavior of not automatically closing applications when the last document window is closed seems counter intuitive, especially for normal users who have used Windows, and should at the very least be configurable. However, it could in fact be easier for people that have never used a computer. I also find it annoying that Safari doesn't have an option to warn me when I Cmd-Q with multiple tabs open.
I changed offices at work on Friday and due to the different desk arrangement I had to place my second monitor on the right of the primary monitor instead of on the left. The physical arrangement matters because I set the logical arrangement in Windows to match. I found that when going for the titlebar icons (minimize, maximize, close) I usually overshoot them and end up on the second monitor (which is bad because I then click on the titlebar icon of the maximized application on that monitor).
I don't do this intentionally. It's a habit of using Windows for ten years. Normally, this behavior is fine since the edge of the screen bounds the mouse pointer and it ends up in almost exactly the right spot. This is a great example of the problems faced when doing interface design. What works well in one situation breaks down the moment some assumed constraints are changed. I think that the taskbar would be even worse. I always "overshoot" the taskbar buttons.
Would this be better on Mac OS X? I think so. Why? Because on OS X the icons are on the left and my second monitor is on the right! But seriously, it would be better because I rarely use the icons. The keyboard shortcuts are much better: Cmd-Q to quit the application, Cmd-W to close the current window and Cmd-M to minimize the current window. Windows doesn't have a keyboard shortcut for minimize and the other equivalent shortcuts are not nearly as convenient. As ironic as it sounds, I use the keyboard more on my PowerBook for window operations than I do on Windows.
That said, I don't think the Mac is perfect. For example, the ancient behavior of not automatically closing applications when the last document window is closed seems counter intuitive, especially for normal users who have used Windows, and should at the very least be configurable. However, it could in fact be easier for people that have never used a computer. I also find it annoying that Safari doesn't have an option to warn me when I Cmd-Q with multiple tabs open.
