[Scribus] Thus is has been with Scribus.

[Richard]

10.000 points.



El 04/02/2008 12:13 a.m., Roger escribi?:
> <snip>
>   For that matter, there is no perfect layout design -- at some
> point you must say, "This is good enough, it meets my standards of
> quality, but I have learned something with which I can make the next
> design better." Thus it has been with Scribus.
> </snip>
>
> <snip>
> Many of the complaints we hear about "why doesn't Scribus do
> such-and-such like AppX?" really relate to us being creatures of habit.
> </snip>
>
> I would add also the reluctance to learn, or fear of learning a new AppX (which
> produces the same result ) with a different UI.
>
> An example close to home for me is my daughter and her learning Blender3d.
> Dad, why doesn't blender do this or that,   ---  It does, like this.
> I can't find the nnn funcion ---- its here.
> Why aren't there any icons, yadda , yadda, yadda. ----  It doesn't need them, it
> uses hot keys.
> And it wasn't until she began using 3dmax that she realised how easy Blender
> actually was to use.
>
> I used MS Publisher until I found Scribus and my workload eased once I knew Scribus.
>
> My point is that Scribus has a good UI, it is clear and unobtrusive.
> My daughter, who has never used Scribus did an explanation sheet for me in 10
> minutes.
> Simply because she has no fear of different UI's.
>
> Thank you Greg and Craig
> Your explanations are of great help.
>
> Roger
>
>
> My daughters comments are below:
> I use on average, 15 completely different applications every day, and and push
> them to their limits, yesterday I found that I could
> model for a project, in Blender in 2 hours, where in 3dmax and maya its double
> or more time because the functionality is completely different and the UI is
> much more complex. The blender UI is far easier and less time consuming, less
> mouse intensive than any other proprietary software.
>
> I have spent a lot of time with user interfaces due to my university course,
> where I study how games are created and how the interaction works with those who
> "use" the application.  The UI of any application is vital to how the user uses
> the application. The way the UI looks and feels depends on functionality. This
> functionality is dependant on the user. If the user finds the UI difficult or is
> too many mouse clicks away from performance, the user tries to find a more
> "basic" or "simplified" way of making the program work.
>
> Most applications are bent on the "mouse clicks away from performance",  they
> feel that the more clicks they make the better off the user will be. But sadly,
> this is not the case. During my studies I found that a meager 10% of any
> application is used at any one time and the remaining program is gone to waste.
> This is due to UI.
> Most major applications, for example, Studio Max, have menus - menus, menus and
> more menus - and the user has to find themselves immersed in these menus before
> they actually can use the program.
> Menus are the bane of any applications existence, they are unnecessary in their
> present form and fill up much needed work space on screen.
> To do away with the current menu system will be a leap forward in UI development.
>
> Menus can be changed to an interactive dynamic pop-up, like in Blender when you
> hit Space Bar, or in Bryce where each object has a small vertical "box" menu on
> the right side made up of four 10x10px squares and each has a pop-up that
> appears when you click on it. With Bryce, the user must be coherent with what
> each "box" does, although the name is clearly marked on the top of the dialog
> box that appears, this makes the workspace clutter free.
>
> Basically, what UI developers can ask themselves is :
>
> 1. Are we making a user friendly piece of software? - If so, then the
> application must appear friendly. (not necessarily icons)
> 2. Do we want only 10% of our hard effort to be used? - No, then become dynamic,
> use the all technologies available to create program dynamics.
>
> We all have had experience in word dynamics, where you're typing something in
> Open Office and the remainder of the word suddenly appears highlighted in blue -
> and Wow! how did it know I was going to type that? Applications need menu
> dynamics, like that.
> The application should not be annoying - like in Microsoft Word where the little
> yellow dog appears and suggests something ridiculous like "are you typing a
> letter?" but something more advanced, more user friendly, more upbeat and up
> with the times.
>
> Each application needs to read what the user is doing at the point in time that
> the user is doing it. 'Dynamics'. And show the alternate routes to getting the
> most out of the application in the less amount of time.
>
> Basically, the way games are going now is that they are pre-reading the human
> mind and the AI characters choose to act in a way that "prevents", "deters" and
> "suggests" a better route to the players character. This technology needs to be
> included in software. This is what is neglected in applications. The technology
> is there for games, why can't it be used in applications?
>
> In reality it doesn't matter what the UI looks like, simply because the ones who
> use it will become accustomed to it over time. It seems as though many programs
> have  'all of the same problems', and this is because all UI's are based on the
> "fundamentals" of program layout and not on "how does the user actually use it".
>
> Thanks
> Sonia
>
> A simplistic instance that came to mind with Scribus was:
> Open a new document, a popup says (T)ext  (I)mage; (G)et, (A)ppend, (E)dit
> depending on which selection is made opens the appropriate editor or files.
> If text is placed in a text box and a spell or other error is apparent the
> word/s is/are highlighted, the editor opens and the highlighted word offers a
> list of alternatives with a possible recommendation for replacement . Just this
> alone removes a number mouse clicks. The 'requestor' asks the user to enter
> distances from page borders and other items or 'move with mouse'. then pop up a
> 'requestor' to enquire about locking, grouping, etc once the page is done.
>
> If an image is placed near a text box: The 'requestor' shows the current
> distances from text and page border and asks about the appropriate relationship
> questions such as distance from text, page borders, scale to frame size, etc.
>
> Mouseover a placed filled text box or image box a pop up 'requestor ' asks
> (E)dit (T)ext  (I)mage.
>
>
>
>
>
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