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Re: [Ayatana] Launcher DnD - import applications on DnD start



I think there are two different interactions we can implement here, one that is mostly additional functionality and a second that needs further thought and visual design treatment.

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1)  Find all apps that can open a specific file type.

In this interaction, when a user starts dragging a file (or files) the 'App Lens' is one of the Launcher icons that highlighted indicating it is a valid drop receptacle. Dragging the file over the app lens launcher icon reveals the app lens showing only the applications which can open the specific file type(s).

Use Case 1 - Continued drag and drop

The user then continues dragging the file and drops it on a application icon in the app lens. The action closes the app lens and opens the file in the selected application (installing the application first if necessary).

Use Case 2 - Drop then select

The user drops the file on the app lens icon. They then click on the application in the app lens they want to use to open the file. The action closes the app lens and opens the file in the selected application (installing the application first if necessary).

Use Case 3 - Abandon action and exit

If the user decides to abandon the action they can either:
a) drag the file back on to the launcher, this closes the app lens
b) drag the file outside of the dash area (only applies to the desktop dash)
c) drop the file in any area of the dash that is not a application icon

Considerations:
a) In the use cases described above, the app lens should display two category headers. These should be "Installed Apps that can open .jpg files" and "Apps Available for Download that can open .jpg files". Both of these categories should be expanded by default. b) For use case 1 (continued drag and drop) dragging the file to the bottom or top of the app lens should initiate a auto-scroll behavior


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2) Display the currently installed default app that can open the specific file type in the Launcher (if it is not there already).

While I like the interaction because it increases the vocabulary of drag and drop launcher behavior, it is essentially a *slower* way of performing exactly the same action as double clicking or tapping on the file. Re. placement, I like Jason's idea of positioning the icon at the top of the Launcher since is is both transient and a common action.

This interaction need some more thought and/or prototyping and perhaps some careful visual treatment to avoid confusing the user. If it not difficult to add this behavior I would suggest adding it and switching it off by default. When Charline does her next round of user testing we can throw it into the tests. This is a item that really needs to be prototyped to see if it can work.

cheers,
John




On 20/02/11 18:51, Jason Smith wrote:
Placing at the bottom will hold challenges for a folded situation,
though placing at the top will slide things that would otherwise be
stationary. However, since we are known to be in a situation where no
icon can possibly resolve the drop (with the exclusion of the trash),
perhaps always placing at the top (and sliding existing icons down) is
not evil?

On Sun, 2011-02-20 at 15:43 +0000, Mark Shuttleworth wrote:
Great suggestions all! How about this:

  - if no app on the launcher can handle this type, and there is a
default launcher, we put it at the bottom (where it would launch) and
wiggle it to call attention to it

  - we also allow drag to the apps place, which would open (on hover)
with the top section showing all known apps which could handle that type

Mark



--
John Lea | User Experience Architect
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