Inspiration, making more-interesting product



  • Google, and any software vendor or other IT provider, definitely has a big concern of comfortability and satisfaction to the customer. Let we say "Customer Oriented". As one of implementation, they made a product or service which easiest to be used without had to lose the benefits behind it. As we see on mail client application of gmail, when we click the "Compose" menu, there would be three buttons on the top and bottom of mail editor. The three top buttons and three bottom buttons are same with the same functions; they are "<font style="font-weight: bold;">Send</font>", "<font style="font-weight: bold;">Save Now</font>", and "<font style="font-weight: bold;">Discard</font>".

     Gmail Mail Editor

    I realized, this strategy is not just a casually thing, but gives an easy way when we want to do an action from one of three actions on that buttons.  If our cursor is being on the top area, so it will be more easy to click the top buttons. In the other hand, it will be easier to click the bottom buttons when our cursor is being on the bottom area.

    It's interesting.. why? Because i'm inspired. Actually I created a simple character recognizion application; I called it "CatchUp".

    CatchUp uses Kohonen Algorithm as its Neural Network with poor quality of interface, since this application was my homework when I was studying and I had a very limited time, so that's it the interface. So yes, i'm inspired about how to implement a Customer Oriented strategy in order that CatchUp appearance could be more interesting and (perhaps) can be useful to the others. Honestly, even I'm puzzled to see this application appearance.

    CatchUp
     

    Well, regarding to mail client of gmail (see the first figure above), in order that CatchUp can be easier to be used. In this case, easier to reach the "Learn" button and "Recognize" button wherever the cursor is being on, so I make it to be like this:

    Messy CatchUp 

    Learn and Recognize everywhere!!

    Oh, yes, one more thing.. often times I heard peoples complained about software installation because of a long procedure to be done. Often times the procedure requires us to click "Next" button for many times.. So, i'm inspired (again), someday I will create an installer software like InstallShield, but when the installation is running, there will be a new feature in form a button like in the figure below:

    Next To All 

    One single click of "Next To All" is enough, then the installation will be running until finish.



  • Some wizards have a Finish button which will use default settings for all next pages.



  • Well, regarding to mail client of gmail (see the first figure above), in order that CatchUp can be easier to be used. In this case, easier to reach the "Learn" button and "Recognize" button wherever the cursor is being on, so I make it to be like this:
    Learn and Recognize everywhere!!


    While it's laudable that you notice interface tricks that seem to do good, and want to use them in your own applications, it is probably clear from your screenshot that copying those two buttons everywhere doesn't really serve any purpose.

    Your situation is not the same as Google's. Gmail is an application that may sometimes have the action buttons "far" removed from the point on the screen the user is currently working at. So it makes sense to place buttons within the user's field of view. This has nothing to do with speed of clicking*, obviously, but with making sure the user can see their options.

    Your application, however, does not seem to use that much space. The entire interface is visible in a single glance. In addition, yours is a desktop application. Surely you have made keystrokes available? It also seems that the default button is the "Recognize" button, so users need only press Enter and BAM it works.

    Putting buttons everywhere you you did only succeeds in making the app look clownish.


    *) if you want a button that is clicked faster: make it bigger. Extreme example: Window's Close button on a maximized window touches the corner of the screen, so it's effectively infinitely large. Closing a window doesn't even require locating the button and pointing at it -- just throw your mouse up-right and slap the mouse button. This effect, incidentally, is why Mac menus are way faster to access than Windows menus.


  • I'm honestly not quite sure but I think it was meant ironically.



  • @PSWorx said:

    I'm honestly not quite sure but I think it was meant ironically.

     I hope so. That screenshot of the "improved" U/I makes me want to barf.



  • @Fajar Endra Nusa said:

    Now, to be fair, the two sets of buttons may not even be on the screen at the same time, depending on the size of your browser window. And not everyone has a scroll wheel.



  • I agree with the OP however, that those wizards really can be annoying at times. Especial for those where you have to enter CD keys, I could really use a "next to all" button ;)

    Seriously though, how do you think that would work? What will you do if you skipped a page but needed the input?

    If this all is meant as a joke, please tell. 



  • I'm not sure if this is genius or madness, but that "improved" UI with the Learn/Recognize buttons everywhere (and accompanying rationale) actually made me laugh out loud.

    Nice work. 



  • @XIU said:

    Some wizards have a Finish button which will use default settings for all next pages.

    Yeah, but that doesn't have the same feeling of "next to all". This one made my day and my week.



  • @XIU said:

    Some wizards have a Finish button which will use default settings for all next pages.
    <o:p></o:p>

    Yeah, you were right. But the point is.. Did you ever thinking of "Next To All" instead of "Yes To All" and "No To All"? ;)<o:p></o:p>



  • @jpaull said:

    @PSWorx said:

    I'm honestly not quite sure but I think it was meant ironically.

     I hope so. That screenshot of the "improved" U/I makes me want to barf.

     Well, actually i came to write it with no serious intention at all ;D I hope I will never see an UI like that in my REAL whole life ;)
     


Log in to reply