TJACOBS@cc.utah.edu (06/09/90)
On Applink in the Devloper Services section under the Human Interface section there has been some interesting discussion (more like people say what they want, and Apple tells what they'll get) on System 7 issues. I'd like to bring up a couple of them here and solicit opinions. Both issues I'd like to talk about have to do with the Apple Menu. Application Menu - In System 7.0a9 they have the applications under the Multi- Finder Icon just like On Que. I'm sure On Que fans love this but I don't. I can see reasons for having it in either place and perhaps the best solution is to allow the user to have it where he wants it or even have it in both places. One of the problems with it on the right is that when an application uses the notification manager an their small icon flashes over the Apple menu icon your reaction is to go the Apple menu to answer it. But hold your horses, now you have to go to the other side to answer it! Sure you could just flash it on the right but another problem is that going back and forth between the two sides is an unecessary hastle and can be confusing. This is especially a nuisance on a large screen monitor. They have made one improvement to the way the 6.1b9 MultiFinder does things. Instead of having one menu item for hiding the current application menu or the other application menus you have one for current and one for the others and you don't have to do any option-menu stuf. Part of their justification for putting it in the MF-icon is that they say it is inconsistent to have anything in the Apple Menu that isn't menu. So they turned the MF-icon into a menu. I'll put the second issue in a second post to keep the threads seperate.
macman@wpi.wpi.edu (Chris Silverberg) (06/10/90)
Well, very briefly, I like the new methods of keeping the Application & window controls in the new Multifinder menu over on the right corner of the screen. This makes sense, since it's where you control what program is on top, and what programs are hidden. If there are controls that make the Apple menu icon blink, that will have to relect such changes and make the multifinder menu blink instead, if that's possible. I'm also pleased with the Apple menus flexibility. It might be pretty good if Apple took your hierarcheal (sp?) idea, and say, if you selected a menu item that is acutally a folder (or an alias of the folder), to offer a hier. menu containing the contents of that menu. That way, with some aliasing, and structuring, we could have very powerful and organized Apple menus. As far as the ability to move the multifinder controls over to the Apple menus, this personally doesn't seem "right" to me... i like the new method much better. If we had the customization to move the multifinder controls over, what would be in the "multifinder" menu... nothing? I'm a bit against offering applications in the Applemenu... but open to some well thought out finder customization, if the performance can be sustained, and it wont cause to much trouble to have an empty multifinder menu or something.... just my 2 cents. - Chris ._._._._._._._._._._._._._._._._._._.._._._._._._._._._._._._._._._._._._._. Chris Silverberg AOL: Silverberg Worcester Polytechnic Institute GEnie: C.Silverberg INTERNET: macman@wpi.wpi.edu SYSOP: Main Street U.S.A. BBS FIDONET: 322/575.1 508.832.7725 (1200/2400)
jbr0@cbnews.att.com (joseph.a.brownlee) (06/11/90)
In article <68206@cc.utah.edu> TJACOBS@cc.utah.edu writes: >Application Menu - In System 7.0a9 they have the applications under the Multi- >Finder Icon just like On Que. [...] Great! I was hoping this would be in 7.0. I don't want my DAs and applications mixed together, especially when I have a lot of DAs. >[...] perhaps the best solution is >to allow the user to have it where he wants it or even have it in both places. Well, maybe where he wants it, but I don't see any reason for both places. >One of the problems with it on the right is that when an application uses the >notification manager an their small icon flashes over the Apple menu icon your >reaction is to go the Apple menu to answer it. That _is_ a good point, but I think it would be best to give the notification manager the ability to blink the MF icon or something. -- - _ Joe Brownlee, Analysts International Corp. @ AT&T Network Systems /_\ @ / ` 471 E Broad St, Suite 1610, Columbus, Ohio 43215 (614) 860-7461 / \ | \_, E-mail: jbr@cblph.att.com Who pays attention to what _I_ say? "Scotty, we need warp drive in 3 minutes or we're all dead!" --- James T. Kirk