On Wednesday, July 19, 2000 11:25:29 AM, Brian Mathis wrote:
> On Wed, 19 Jul 2000, Khanh Tran wrote:
>> Is there any way to "dim out" an already disabled button? I want to
>> enable/disable this button dynamically, I didn't want to remove it totally
>> from the form for consistency reason. But a disabled button looks just like
>> an enabled one, which could cause some confusion.
>>
>
> The Palm style guide specifically tells you not to do this. What is
> consistent from the programmer's POV is not necessarily consistent from
> the User' POV.
>
> A greyed out button causes confusion. If it's not available, it should
> not be displayed.
I don't necessarily agree that it shouldn't be displayed. As an example, in
the Expense application, clicking on "Details" when nothing is selected
generates an alert "You must have a record selected to perform this command.
To select a record, tap on the description of the item".
Otherwise, the Details button would be constantly appearing and disappearing
which would be distracting.
In addition, users sometimes think "I know I've seen a Details button
around; where did it go". By keeping it there, but telling them why it
doesn't work in the current situation, the interface to the app appears more
stable.
Neil
--
Neil Rhodes
Calliope Enterprises, Inc.
1328 Clock Avenue
Redlands, CA 92374
(909) 793-5995 [EMAIL PROTECTED] fax: (909) 793-2545
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