On Mon, 19 Apr 1999, Creative Digital Publishing Inc. wrote:
> >However, I'm slowly coming to the conclusion that it would be better for
> >Address Book to scroll the names list to the same place it was scrolled
> >when I left (as Memo Pad already does, it would appear).
>
> And the appointment book to resort to the same view and date as previously
> selected, and essentailly all the built-in apps to remember where they
> were. I totally agree.
Actually, that one is easily arguable, and Bob's statement is based on
that argument. The datebook has about three separate functions that I can
think of: "show me stuff I need to do today", "show me some stuff for a
particular day", and "show me the stuff that I was looking at last". How
do you choose which of these functions the hard key should trigger?
The law of least harm says that the entire state should be retained, so
that the hard key will take you back to whatever you were doing in the
app. Law of least effort says that Datebook should do whatever you need to
do most often -- which Palm has obviously decided means looking at today's
appointments. Law of least modalities says that a configuration option to
choose between these modes isn't warranted.
> > The built in PIM apps deliberately avoid doing this. Instead, when you
> > launch the app they take you to the screen you're most likely to need.
>
> Why would the ROM apps presume to know what I'm most likely to need? What I
> need is for them to remember their previous environment.
Which is the programmer point of view. For general consumers (i.e.,
Palm's, and thus ours, bread and butter), a bit of presumption is useful,
if it is warranted.
--
Kenneth Albanowski ([EMAIL PROTECTED], CIS: 70705,126)
