Re: 2008.08 - First Impressions

2008-08-09 Thread Jay Vaughan
> screen real estate.
> i might be wrong but i imagine "finger friendly" with large buttons  
> and so
> on, taking up a lot of space.


i don't think so, but thats just me.  there is a lot that can be done  
with overlays and sliders and so on that just isn't being done.  but  
enough complaints, off i go to try to do some nice GUI that shows the  
nerds how things are done ..

;
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Re: 2008.08 - First Impressions

2008-08-09 Thread arne anka
> Bah, this is really terrible thinking.  Whats wrong with making a
> purely finger-friendly interface, besides laziness?

screen real estate.
i might be wrong but i imagine "finger friendly" with large buttons and so  
on, taking up a lot of space.

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Re: 2008.08 - First Impressions

2008-08-09 Thread Jay Vaughan
> Not really, I don't see a need - Installing software is not something
> you're going to be doing five times a day while on the train on the  
> way
> to work.

So?  What if I want to install software at least once or twice a week,  
do I have to have a stylus around all the time?

> Sure, you _might_ use it once a day, but i think for that one
> time you can fumble around and find your stylus. And even if you are
> installing software 5 times a day, on the train and have lost your
> stylus, you can always use your keys ;)
>

Bah, this is really terrible thinking.  Whats wrong with making a  
purely finger-friendly interface, besides laziness?

Its not the 90's, stylus-based computing is not cool.  The rest of the  
world is going multi-touch, no accessories required.  We ought to at  
least keep up.

;
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Re: 2008.08 - First Impressions

2008-08-09 Thread Dale Maggee
ted braak wrote:
> Thanks for your impression. Really helpful in deciding NOT to install this. I 
> am pretty amazed you claim that the OM team have made a big leap forward and 
> also saying this version still has issues with the basic functionality of the 
> phone.. Power management, calling, sms and intuitive entering of text without 
> stylus should be the main focus. The rest can follow later (even GPS). 
>
> Of course this is not a fact, it is just my opinion.   
>   
Haha, That was written within very shortly after installing it. Since 
then, the 'annoyances' have elevated themselves to 'extreme 
frustrations', and I've become thoroughly disenfranchised with it - I'm 
restoring my FR back to 2007.2 as I type this...

I maintain that the interface at least is a big leap forward - it's very 
slick and pretty, and it shows alot of promise - once the bugs have been 
worked out to the point where it's on par with 2007.2 for stability, and 
something has been done about the *awful* keyboard, I'll happily go back 
to it.

In the meantime, though, a pretty-looking paperweight has the same 
functionality as an ugly looking one - I'll take usability over eyecandy 
any day...

In my opinion, your opinion is spot on - eyecandy is all well and good 
but making the thing work should be a much higher priority.

-D

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Re: 2008.08 - First Impressions

2008-08-09 Thread ted braak
Thanks for your impression. Really helpful in deciding NOT to install this. I 
am pretty amazed you claim that the OM team have made a big leap forward and 
also saying this version still has issues with the basic functionality of the 
phone.. Power management, calling, sms and intuitive entering of text without 
stylus should be the main focus. The rest can follow later (even GPS). 

Of course this is not a fact, it is just my opinion.   

> Overall, I think that openmoko have made a *big* leap forward with
> 2008.08, keep up the great work!
> 
> 
> -Dale
> 
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Re: 2008.08 - First Impressions

2008-08-09 Thread Dale Maggee

>> The graphical installer is great! I really like this, although I agree 
>> with the opinion stated elsewhere that the text is too big, and I'd 
>> really like to see the 'description' text on the package details screen, 
>> so that I know what the package is (names aren't always that informative).
>> 
>
> So you don't think it should be usable without a stylus?
>
>   
Not really, I don't see a need - Installing software is not something 
you're going to be doing five times a day while on the train on the way 
to work. Sure, you _might_ use it once a day, but i think for that one 
time you can fumble around and find your stylus. And even if you are 
installing software 5 times a day, on the train and have lost your 
stylus, you can always use your keys ;)

The letters on the keyboard are smaller than the text in the installer, 
and they're pressable with fingers. I didn't say the text should be 
small, just not so enormous!

>> * keyboard
>> - Predictive text is annoying as hell.
>> 
>
> Agreed.
> There seem to be some kind of "interface nazism" (to quote Thorvalds) 
> going on.
> Apart from the predictive keyboard being *really* annoying - especially 
> if you are typing URL's, shell commands or a non-english language!! then 
> I don't understand this idea that there can't be a bring-up-the-keyboard 
> button. (yes I know I can install a qwerty-button).
> For me the correct way is like qtopia:
> * Have a bring-up-the-keyboard button
> * Have change-input-method option
> * Have a set of different keyboards (multitap,full 
> qwerty,handwriting,om2008-like) to toggle between.
> * Be able to turn predictive keyboard OFF
> ... and for goods sake... don't make a keyboard without a delete key.
>
>   
Yeah, well put. It's not just the predictive text either when typing 
URLs. for example, typing in my mail server was *horrible* -
- i type 'mail', then tap the word 'mail' to insert it into the textbox
- then I stroke down until I get to the screen with the period, then i 
press that, then i tap the period at the top to put it in the textbox.
- this inserts a space after "mail.", so i have to position the cursor 
after the space and stroke left for backspace, then reposition the 
cursor at the end of the line.
- then I stroke up a couple of times to get back to qwerty
- then I type internode, but internode isn't in the dictionary so I have 
to type and tap on 'inter' 
- then I repeat the space erasure procedure.
- then I type type 'node', click on 'node'
- then I repeat space erasure procedure.
- then I have to type 'on.net' using this same painfull process.

and these are all dictionary words! multiply the annoyance by 2 seconds 
for each keypress if your mailserver / URL isn't made up of dictionary 
words! :O

compare this with 21 stylus taps using the matchbox keyboard. and this 
isn't even a particularly difficult thing to be typing!

I think the real solution to make everybody happy will be a set of 
different keyboards: a multitap-type keypad like on a phone, a 
stylus-friendly full qwerty keyboard like matchbox keyboard, and a 
finger-friendly, multi-mode qwerty keyboard like the one we have (with 
an option to turn off the predictive text), aimed primarily at 
finger-friendly texting.

>> - I'd like to see letters on the numeric keypad screen. For example, 
>> the PIN on my sim card is a word typed using the numbers on my phone 
>> keypad, not a number - I have no idea what the numbers in my PIN are! in 
>> order to enter my pin using this numpad, I have to get out my nokia and 
>> look at it's keypad and then type in the numbers. 
>> 
>
> Arhh... go write it down, then.
>   
So, just to be clear, you're telling me that I should totally void any 
security which this pin provides by writing it down? If I'm going to do 
that, I might as well just disable the PIN.

I did say 'I'd like to see', not "OMFG THIS IS THE WORST!".


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Re: 2008.08 - First Impressions

2008-08-09 Thread Peter Mogensen
Dale Maggee wrote:
> Firstly, it's *gorgeous* - eyecandy city! I *really* like the look and 
> feel of it! It's much more friendly and less 'clunky' feeling than 2007.2.

Hmm.. let's just say I'm impressed by how good Qtopia on X11 actually 
performs. Some of the earlier snapshots were really slow, but this is 
acceptable.

> The graphical installer is great! I really like this, although I agree 
> with the opinion stated elsewhere that the text is too big, and I'd 
> really like to see the 'description' text on the package details screen, 
> so that I know what the package is (names aren't always that informative).

So you don't think it should be usable without a stylus?

> * keyboard
> - Predictive text is annoying as hell.

Agreed.
There seem to be some kind of "interface nazism" (to quote Thorvalds) 
going on.
Apart from the predictive keyboard being *really* annoying - especially 
if you are typing URL's, shell commands or a non-english language!! then 
I don't understand this idea that there can't be a bring-up-the-keyboard 
button. (yes I know I can install a qwerty-button).
For me the correct way is like qtopia:
* Have a bring-up-the-keyboard button
* Have change-input-method option
* Have a set of different keyboards (multitap,full 
qwerty,handwriting,om2008-like) to toggle between.
* Be able to turn predictive keyboard OFF
... and for goods sake... don't make a keyboard without a delete key.


> - I'd like to see letters on the numeric keypad screen. For example, 
> the PIN on my sim card is a word typed using the numbers on my phone 
> keypad, not a number - I have no idea what the numbers in my PIN are! in 
> order to enter my pin using this numpad, I have to get out my nokia and 
> look at it's keypad and then type in the numbers. 

Arhh... go write it down, then.



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