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Re: Txp Admin Facelift
The grey tabs are certainly less heavy. I still have a problem with that double tab row. Conceptually I mean. Both rows carry the same visual ‘weight’, and it doesn’t translate well the parent-child relationship between top and bottom row.
That is partly why I split the two rows in my own restyling. And I was thinking to change the background colour of the top row to more grey as well. after looking at it on some Windows monitors recently – where the blue hue is more pronounced.
The 3 icons are problematic in my eyes. The curent visual aspect of that part of the interface works rather wel in my eyes. I know about the localisation problem with this. Adding a ‘title’ attribute (that can be translated) to each image would help here.
Where is that emoji for a solar powered submarine when you need it ?
Sand space – admin theme for Textpattern
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#26 2005-08-16 19:05:07
- Mary
- Sock Enthusiast
- Registered: 2004-06-27
- Posts: 6,236
Re: Txp Admin Facelift
“I know about the localisation problem with this. Adding a ‘title’ attribute (that can be translated) to each image would help here.”
I dunno, I know I have hated that in the past with other programs (with English being my first and only language, and using programs written for something else), and I think I’d still hate it now if I were in the other position: if I wanted to look at French text, image or otherwise, I’d use the French translation, I shouldn’t have to “hover”.
As I said, the icons are subject to major revision, its just finding icons that are as universal as possible. The alternative is flat text. Maybe “little” side tabs (with correct text orientation) would work – is there any language where “text”, “html” and “preview” would be a very long word?
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Re: Txp Admin Facelift
I like the Aug. 15 verision of Mary’s much better, but I am still in agreement with phiw13 that it would be nice to have the “child” tabs in a different visual format.
It would distinguish the major “sections” in the backend from the immediately available “actions”.
After enduring years of Art School, mild mannered Owen Waring noticed some unusual changes… the constant bombardment of criticism, it seems, had altered his DNA. Half pixel pusher, half programmer, he had become…. THE BIZARTIST
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#28 2005-08-16 23:02:31
- Mary
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- Registered: 2004-06-27
- Posts: 6,236
Re: Txp Admin Facelift
“actions” – that’s a good descriptor. :)
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Re: Txp Admin Facelift
> mary wrote:
I dunno, I know I have hated that in the past with other programs (with English being my first and only language, and using programs written for something else), and I think I’d still hate it now if I were in the other position: if I wanted to look at French text, image or otherwise, I’d use the French translation, I shouldn’t have to “hover”.
You know, the Japanese kids (and so much kids) just love it, having snippets of information put in English instead of Japanese. I’ve done two projects recently, where the main nav for the site uses English. One advantage was that we could use quite short words – 4-5 characters, whereas the Japanese words would have been quite long – 8-10 characters.
This wouldn’t be much of a problem for those 3 items in TXP: 4 to 6 characters.
As I said, the icons are subject to major revision, its just finding icons that are as universal as possible. The alternative is flat text. Maybe “little” side tabs (with correct text orientation) would work – is there any language where “text”, “html” and “preview” would be a very long word?
The latest (aug 16) rev is already more in line with te concept: ‘little tabs’. One idea would be having a light grey border going down the height of the text-area, and having the littel tabs butting on it. (Just thinking out loud here, with the default form styling in Firefox, this will give a neat effect. Other browsers have different form styling – including my own copy of Firefox – and already have a border on the right side of the textarea.
Where is that emoji for a solar powered submarine when you need it ?
Sand space – admin theme for Textpattern
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#30 2005-08-17 02:48:47
- andjules
- Member
- From: toronto
- Registered: 2004-10-20
- Posts: 44
Re: Txp Admin Facelift
looking good.
the first two icons work for me…
not sure what might work better for a ‘preview’ metaphor… a computer monitor? thinking out loud
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#31 2005-08-17 02:59:55
- Mary
- Sock Enthusiast
- Registered: 2004-06-27
- Posts: 6,236
Re: Txp Admin Facelift
an eye!
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#32 2005-08-17 05:57:51
- Mary
- Sock Enthusiast
- Registered: 2004-06-27
- Posts: 6,236
Re: Txp Admin Facelift
I wrote: “an eye!”
That’s always the way: seems completely obvious now, but it wasn’t then. Try #4.
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#33 2005-08-17 07:42:13
- ian_ep
- Member
- Registered: 2004-02-29
- Posts: 25
Re: Txp Admin Facelift
Mary,
I have to say I still prefer the existing design.
Both the tabs and icons in your version are all but invisible on my screen. More contrast!
I also prefer text to icons on the write pane.
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Re: Txp Admin Facelift
Mary, if i may offer some suggestions, the side (text, html, preview) tabs are showing very little contrast on my screen. Especially on the off (not selected) tabs, the icons blend into the tabs, and the tabs merge into each other. I´d darken the outlines of both the tabs themseleves and the icons. perhaps separate the tabs a pixel or 2 vertically to better differentiate them?
I also agree it would be good to have differences between both sets of tabs, maybe just a size change would make a difference and show the hierarchy?
I really like where this is going, and would love to contribute. let meknow if i can lend a hand
~~~~~~~~~~~~~| monolinea.com | pixilate.com | istockphoto.com/kemie |~~~~~~~~~~~~~
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#35 2005-08-18 15:20:34
- andjules
- Member
- From: toronto
- Registered: 2004-10-20
- Posts: 44
Re: Txp Admin Facelift
I’m tempted to tell ian_ep and kemie that their screens don’t have enough contrast… But Mary, as you know, what’s appropriately subtle on your (and apparently my) screen will always be too subtle somewhere else. I like the lower contrast (remember, the interface isn’t ‘the point’; what you are doing – writing – is ‘the point’) and I especially like the type/color treatment of tab and subtab in the last two versions.
my 2¢: elongate the vertical tabs so they have sloping sides much like the top horizontal tabs/subtabs. I’m concerned a beginner contributor won’t ‘get’ that they’re functional tabs.
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#36 2005-08-18 19:31:12
- igner
- Plugin Author
- Registered: 2004-06-03
- Posts: 337
Re: Txp Admin Facelift
well then, julian, you’d have to tell me as well :) You have to remember that Windows and the Mac OS use different default gamma values, and that can affect the way things display.
I agree with kemie, on my PowerBook display, the side tabs are too subtle. And I’m not so sure that excessive subtlety is called for in this case – the only reason I can identify the HTML icon is because I sorted out the other two, and knew what the three tabs are supposed to be. I can see my clients clicking the HTML tab, seeing all the code, and getting flummoxed.
And then my dog ate my badger, and the love was lost.
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