UI Bites
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But the more I hear about Win11 and future MS plans I feel like I want to start making my own all the things.
Welcome to the club!
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@ixvedeusi teenage me managed a taskbar replacement for Win98 in VB6, nearly-40 me reckons “it can’t be that hard, surely” but also something something free time and something something
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I also miss the days of Win3.1 and Amiga Workbench where things lived in folders with icons in a funky way.
Congratulations for joining the club! Our thread is .
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Edit: I also miss the days of Win3.1 and Amiga Workbench where things lived in folders with icons in a funky way.
Oh! You should totally do that! Instead of INI files strewn around, make it self-contained with alternate data streams!
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@Tsaukpaetra the Amiga didn't have 'alternate data streams', every file had an optional '.info' file that was its icon (if you wanted one of those), plus any additional metadata in key-value form that you wanted to set. It was quite straightforward, worked pretty good.
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@Arantor He's mostly right, but there have been a few good innovations since Windows 95:
- searching from the start menu (or alternatively, its own dedicated textbox like Launchy or MacOS Spotlight)
- snapping windows to the top/sides to maximize/half-imize them
- using the taskbar to launch apps, alongside with currently open windows
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@hungrier I'd argue that's highly subjective. I'll agree with point 1, but point 2 can die in a fire for me. I'll concede point 3 - but with the caveat that it mostly/sorta came in Windows 98 with the Quick Launch toolbar, putting it much closer to way-back-then than more recently.
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@Arantor I guess it is quite subjective. Back when Windows 7 first came out, and I would go back and forth between it and earlier versions, window snapping was the feature I missed the most. Quick launch was ok, but IMO unifying it with the taskbar made it into an integrated part of the UI, rather than a bolted-on addition
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Former UX guy at Microsoft takes aim at the current iterations of the UI.
is that Jensen Harris (whose recent Twitter posts sparked this article) was the guy in charge of UI for Windows 8.
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@Arantor He's mostly right, but there have been a few good innovations since Windows 95:
- searching from the start menu (or alternatively, its own dedicated textbox like Launchy or MacOS Spotlight)
Except it never finds anything, even if I know it’s there. Instead, it searches the fucking web.
If I want to search the web, I’ll use a browser you morons!
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@topspin It works for me … but I only use it to search the menu itself because it is faster than clicking around.
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@topspin It works for me … but I only use it to search the menu itself because it is faster than clicking around.
It's only faster for me because it's marginally faster to search than to wait for it to load the dozen or so list items and then scroll around.
Jesus fuck, remember when you had choice and could organize it into submenu lists?
Remember when there was an option to DELAY the opening of menus because it was too fucking fast?
Now I'm getting worked up....
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@topspin Also nice is the way it will suggest what you search for so you stop typing, then get a "no results" until you type a couple more characters and then it displays the matching results.
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Except it never finds anything, even if I know it’s there. Instead, it searches the fucking web.
I think it does the searches in parallel. But Microsoft's always had trouble with the concept of building the correct indices locally (see also: Windows Update) so the local searches can take a very long time to come back with results. The web searches are quick, even with network overhead, because they're against a proper index (rebuilt with who knows what frequency?)
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is that Jensen Harris (whose recent Twitter posts sparked this article) was the guy in charge of UI for Windows 8.
You know, it's like those former social network executives, who now like to tell everyone that social networks are terrible and they wouldn't let their children use them.
I mean, they're not wrong. But strangely enough, that didn't seem to bother them when they were actively creating the things they now criticize.
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@Zerosquare I actively criticize Internet of Shit while I am actively creating the things
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point 2 can die in a fire
Maximizing is sometimes convenient, when I do it intentionally; sometimes it's a PITA when I just want to position a window at the top of the screen. But I have never, ever (intentionally) dragged a window to the left/right edge of the screen to make it take up half the screen.
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@HardwareGeek said in UI Bites:
when I just want to position a window at the top of the screen.
I really wish there was a modifier you could press to temporarily disable it for this one drag event....
Sadly, my Microsoft Feedback post got obliviated.
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@HardwareGeek said in UI Bites:
point 2 can die in a fire
Maximizing is sometimes convenient, when I do it intentionally; sometimes it's a PITA when I just want to position a window at the top of the screen. But I have never, ever (intentionally) dragged a window to the left/right edge of the screen to make it take up half the screen.
I wish their "maximize vertically" would work. I use that all the time in KDE (middle click the maximize button). The shortcut does not work on the windows installed on my work computer. But yeah, I don't really care about docking on the right or left side of the screen.
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@boomzilla said in UI Bites:
I wish their "maximize vertically" would work.
If you drag the top of the window with the mouse, it does. (I use that a bunch)
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@boomzilla said in UI Bites:
I wish their "maximize vertically" would work.
If you drag the top of the window with the mouse, it does. (I use that a bunch)
If it did I'm sure I disabled that. I hate those sorts of actions. I just wish the Shift+Windows+Up worked.
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@Arantor He's mostly right, but there have been a few good innovations since Windows 95:
- searching from the start menu (or alternatively, its own dedicated textbox like Launchy or MacOS Spotlight)
Except it never finds anything, even if I know it’s there. Instead, it searches the fucking web.
Search on Windows 11 is much better at actually working than Windows 10.
INB4: low bar
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@HardwareGeek said in UI Bites:
Maximizing is sometimes convenient, when I do it intentionally; sometimes it's a PITA when I just want to position a window at the top of the screen.
Yeah, I find - key combos very convenient and I use them a lot, but the "randomly maximize if the windows happens to come near an edge of the screen" "feature" can DIAF as far as I'm concerned.
@boomzilla said in UI Bites:
I just wish the Shift+Windows+Up worked.
That maximizes the window vertically for me (hm, might be useful, wasn't aware of that, thanks!). What would you have wanted it to do?
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@Tsaukpaetra said in UI Bites:
@HardwareGeek said in UI Bites:
when I just want to position a window at the top of the screen.
I really wish there was a modifier you could press to temporarily disable it for this one drag event....
Sadly, my Microsoft Feedback post got obliviated.
And also disabling the "Shake a window = minimize all others". Because whenever I hesitate where to put a window, it procs.
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@boomzilla said in UI Bites:
"I just wish the Shift+Windows+Up worked."That maximizes the window vertically for me (hm, might be useful, wasn't aware of that, thanks!). What would you have wanted it to do?
Maximize vertically. I've posted previously in the Win10 thread about how it doesn't do that on my work machine. Instead: nothing.
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@Tsaukpaetra said in UI Bites:
@HardwareGeek said in UI Bites:
when I just want to position a window at the top of the screen.
I really wish there was a modifier you could press to temporarily disable it for this one drag event....
Sadly, my Microsoft Feedback post got obliviated.
And also disabling the "Shake a window = minimize all others". Because whenever I hesitate where to put a window, it procs.
Then you have to shake it five times harder just to get them back.
I inadvertently triggered it just the other day, and had to thrash the mouse so vigorously that somebody nearby questioned what was going on.
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@Tsaukpaetra said in UI Bites:
@HardwareGeek said in UI Bites:
when I just want to position a window at the top of the screen.
I really wish there was a modifier you could press to temporarily disable it for this one drag event....
Sadly, my Microsoft Feedback post got obliviated.
And also disabling the "Shake a window = minimize all others". Because whenever I hesitate where to put a window, it procs.
Then you have to shake it five times harder just to get them back.
I inadvertently triggered it just the other day, and had to thrash the mouse so vigorously that somebody nearby questioned what was going on.
Wow, I didn't know you could get them back. Thanks!
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@boomzilla said in UI Bites:
I wish their "maximize vertically" would work. I use that all the time in KDE (middle click the maximize button). The shortcut does not work on the windows installed on my work computer.
Not helping, but did you try double-clicking the top/bottom edges of a resizable window?
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@Tsaukpaetra said in UI Bites:
@boomzilla said in UI Bites:
I wish their "maximize vertically" would work. I use that all the time in KDE (middle click the maximize button). The shortcut does not work on the windows installed on my work computer.
Not helping, but did you try double-clicking the top/bottom edges of a resizable window?
I hadn't then but I have now. Does nothing.
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@boomzilla said in UI Bites:
@Tsaukpaetra said in UI Bites:
@boomzilla said in UI Bites:
I wish their "maximize vertically" would work. I use that all the time in KDE (middle click the maximize button). The shortcut does not work on the windows installed on my work computer.
Not helping, but did you try double-clicking the top/bottom edges of a resizable window?
I hadn't then but I have now. Does nothing.
#allFuickyWucky
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@Tsaukpaetra said in UI Bites:
@boomzilla said in UI Bites:
@Tsaukpaetra said in UI Bites:
@boomzilla said in UI Bites:
I wish their "maximize vertically" would work. I use that all the time in KDE (middle click the maximize button). The shortcut does not work on the windows installed on my work computer.
Not helping, but did you try double-clicking the top/bottom edges of a resizable window?
I hadn't then but I have now. Does nothing.
#allFuickyWucky
#theWindowsLife #YearOfWindowsOnTheDesktop
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@Tsaukpaetra said in UI Bites:
@HardwareGeek said in UI Bites:
when I just want to position a window at the top of the screen.
I really wish there was a modifier you could press to temporarily disable it for this one drag event....
Sadly, my Microsoft Feedback post got obliviated.
And also disabling the "Shake a window = minimize all others". Because whenever I hesitate where to put a window, it procs.
It's easy to disable on Windows 11; I guess I can't say they didn't make any useful changes. :)
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The most useless piece of UI in the whole computing history
No matter what choice you do, it will still show every time you login
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@TimeBandit It usually works for me. Which service and browser combination shows it every time? Also, if you ever use “log out”, you are .
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Which service and browser combination shows it every time?
VPN client, Office365 login, everything using O365 integration.
Chrome, Firefox, on Windows or Linux.Also, if you ever use “log out”, you are
Why the hell would I ever logout of Office365 since all our services use it to login
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@Tsaukpaetra said in UI Bites:
@HardwareGeek said in UI Bites:
when I just want to position a window at the top of the screen.
I really wish there was a modifier you could press to temporarily disable it for this one drag event....
Sadly, my Microsoft Feedback post got obliviated.
And also disabling the "Shake a window = minimize all others". Because whenever I hesitate where to put a window, it procs.
Then you have to shake it five times harder just to get them back.
I inadvertently triggered it just the other day, and had to thrash the mouse so vigorously that somebody nearby questioned what was going on.
Wow, I didn't know you could get them back. Thanks!
All can be solved by flailing wildly.
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@TimeBandit said in UI Bites:
Which service and browser combination shows it every time?
VPN client, Office365 login, everything using O365 integration.
Chrome, Firefox, on Windows or Linux.Hm, O365 only ever asks me to log in again twice a year when the retarded policy requires bumping the password sequential number. Otherwise it either just keeps running, or occasionally flashes the login screen in and returns back, though losing some state. And the Azure portal keeps asking me to select the account (separate account there for ), but it does not ask me for either password or whether to stay logged in either.
I am wondering whether the VPN client can eff it up somehow…
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@TimeBandit said in UI Bites:
No matter what choice you do, it will still show every time you login
Presumably if it can't find the cookie that stores your affirmative answer, yes. One of the reasons I sign out and clear them is precisely so that all the evil cruft is cleared the fuck out.
I'd say it's not just useless, but moronic. For another simple reason:
- if I sign out, I damn well better have to sign in again
- if I do not and there are sign in speedbumps when I'm already signed in, ostensibly as security checks, they damn well better be there for good reason and without any possibility whatsoever to sidestep them
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@Applied-Mediocrity said in UI Bites:
'd say it's not just useless, but moronic.
It would be useful if it actually stated its purpose—which some similar dialogs do, but Microsoft has strange aversion to buttons with other labels than “Yes”, “No” and “Cancel” even though they are no longer limited by moronic ancient decisions when designing the API.
Properly described the choices should be
- This is device only I use, the session is safe if it stays logged in.
- This is a shared device, the session might be abused if it stays logged in.
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@TimeBandit said in UI Bites:
The most useless piece of UI in the whole computing history
No matter what choice you do, it will still show every time you login
Works fine IME
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@Bulb It only makes sense on a stationary device. Any portable device can be misplaced or stolen.
I'm pretty sure it was actually conceived because some was annoyed at all the sign in prompts, but security professionals protested, so a half-assed solution was devised to placate both.
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@TimeBandit
Most likely the issue is a policy set by your system administrator that is limiting your session token length before you have to reauthenticate.
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@izzion It is set to 24h, but if I login 3 times the same day, I get that stupid prompt every time anyway
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@TimeBandit said in UI Bites:
@izzion It is set to 24h, but if I login 3 times the same day, I get that stupid prompt every time anyway
Remember, time is hard.
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@Applied-Mediocrity said in UI Bites:
@Bulb It only makes sense on a stationary device. Any portable device can be misplaced or stolen.
It does make sense on portable devices. If the portable device requires a login and its storage is encrypted, there is still an obstacle to whoever got physical access to get into your account and once you notice the device is lost, you change your password and the session gets kicked. So it's a sensible compromise between security and usability.
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It does make sense on portable devices. <big>If</big> ... and once you notice
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sensible compromise between security and usability.
Speaking of, BofA is still cargo-culting. Even setting up biometrics, it will text the same device an OTP code, because the biometrics login only let's me authenticate the anti-sql-injectioned password.
Fucktards.
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@TimeBandit said in UI Bites:
@izzion It is set to 24h, but if I login 3 times the same day, I get that stupid prompt every time anyway
Remember, time is hard.
Did Kevin write the service?
https://what.thedailywtf.com/topic/24431/not-dates-but-hours
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If only there was a better way to display 1000.0k