Re: gEDA-user: Layer button backgrounds

[Colin D Bennett <colin@xxxxxxxxxxx>]

On Thu, 18 Aug 2011 22:22:11 -0700
Andrew Poelstra <asp11@xxxxxx> wrote:

> On Thu, Aug 18, 2011 at 11:34:04PM +0200, Kai-Martin Knaak wrote:
> > Andrew Poelstra wrote:
> > 
> > > I like KMK's
> > >>    click/double-click idea if possible.
> > > 
> > > Very possible. But you would still be unable to toggle visibility
> > > independent of selection using the mouse. 
> > 
> > Why is this so? Are double clicked items automatically selected 
> > in GTK widgets?
> 
> They are in a GtkTreeView. It's a nasty, inflexible widget.

In defense of GtkTreeView in this case :-)  I suggest that it would be
theoretically impossible for it to satisfy both
(a) good responsiveness to select an item when it is single-clicked, and
(b) allowing double-click on an item without selecting it.
  (Unless the program can predict a future event: whether the user
  will click again within the double-click time duration... if that
  is implemented, then we'll have more important concerns.)

Think about the sequence of events:

----------------
Case (a) the widget is optimized for good responsiveness to
clicks.

 Scenario (a.1): User selects an item.
 (1) Stimulus: User presses mouse button over widget.
     Response: Item under mouse is SELECTED.

 Scenario (a.2): User double-clicks an item.
 (1) Stimulus: User presses mouse button over widget.
     Response: Item under mouse is SELECTED.
 (2) Stimulus: User releases mouse button.
     Response: No response.
 (3) Stimulus: User presses mouse button.
     Response: Oh!  It's a double click.  Dispatch signal to widget.

----------------
Case (b) allow double-click on an item without selecting it.

 Scenario (b.1): User selects an item.
 (1) Stimulus: User presses mouse button over widget.
     Response: No response.... computer needs to wait to determine if a
     second click will follow.
 (2) Stimulus: User releases the mouse button.
     Response: No response.... computer STILL needs to wait to determine
     if a second click will follow.
 (3) Stimulus: Timeout has expired since (1) -- SELECT the item.
               User is thinking... Wow! the program is slow to react.

 Scenario B: User double-clicks an item.
 (1) Stimulus: User presses mouse button over widget.
     Response: No response.... computer needs to wait to determine if a
     second click will follow.
 (2) Stimulus: User releases mouse button.
     Response: No response.... computer waiting for possible double
     click.
 (3) Stimulus: User presses mouse button.
     Response: Oh!  It's a double click.  Dispatch signal to widget.

----------------


> > > How important is this to people? 
> > 
> > Quite important. When working with four layer layouts I often 
> > need to toggle visibility of layers while I keep working one
> > of the inner layers.
> > 
> > > It bothers me, but only because there is no keyboard
> > > shortcut in Gtk for toggling visibility.
> > 
> > I'd prefer to have both: Mouse click action and keyboard accels.
> > 
> 
> I've gotten the swatch-clicking to work by catching mouse clicks
> over the visibility toggle column and preventing those clicks from
> propagating to the GtkTreeView.
> 
> You say you don't want to reach for a tiny area with the mouse.
> I have increased the swatch size. Take a look at:
> 
> http://wpsoftware.net/andrew/dump/mockup3.png

Simple, functional, beautiful.  A+

> The swatches are far larger than the radio buttons, have more
> visibly clickable area (as they are square), and contrast with
> their surroundings more.

I like it.

Regards,
Colin


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