dash is very keyboard friendly but when I'm using a mouse (or tablet actually) it's not a very pleasant experience. i only use the first page of the dash to get to the second page.�
this is what i'd like to see on the first click of the dash button.
obviously the search bar stays but the giant buttons have been replaced with sections for "bookmarked" apps, "frequently used" apps, and recent files.�there are still buttons for application and file menus but they're not giant and fit into the available space
the "bookmarked" apps shouldn't show up in the "frequently used" apps section so users actually end up with easy access to 12 or so of their programs half of which are there by their choice and none of them are redundant icons.
it would also be nice if items on the launcher didn't show up in this frequently used section since if someone is opening dash for an application it likely isn't on their launcher.
this�would make dash more immediately useful and more useful in general for everyone.
the application menu is also an unpleasant thing to work with. it's current design causes extra mouse travel and clicks
this is my redesign for the application menus
having the categories listed under the apps button keeps mouse travel in the same direction and makes them a lot closer to the initial click of the dash button.�
the apps available for download has been replaced by a button that opens the software center.�
only having a name and icon for an app doesn't usually tell you a lot about the app. it's a poor use of space that everyone I've read mention it would like to use differently.
this button makes new apps still easy to find for new users but without the poor use of space in the current design.
"most frequently used" sections should be removed from application categories. if someone frequently uses something they're likely to have made it more available to themselves elsewhere such as their launcher or the first page of the dash.
only having a simple showing of a single category means there are no redundant icons and more apps showing at a time. this makes it more likely to find the app on the first page of the category.
i only have experience on my computer but of the 146 apps installed 72 of them are in Themes & Tweaks or System which i never use. my most used categories, graphics and multimedia, aren't even a full page while my sometimes used games category isn't even two full pages.
there should be a button to add applications to the dash.
i think this is needed due to a few situations�I've�run into. �programs that are downloaded ready to go without installation, such as the latest versions of blender,�Wine programs, and programs that a user installs from source don't show up in the dash. two of my most used programs aren't in the dash because they're latest versions from source or didn't require installing.
the button should open a dialogue box similar to the one in gnome2 for adding custom launchers to the panel. it should have the same options plus an option for choosing what category the application shows in and options for adding quicklist commands.
i think the same dialogue box would also be useful in right clicking on the launcher to add or edit things there as well.
as for the files menus...
i want the front design of the files menus to include everything from the old gnome2 places menu. �a lot of people have been missing it and i don't blame them. i put as much of it as i could into quicklists on my Home launcher. aside from the current dash design and lack of places menu i like how the files and folders stuff works now.
overall i think this mock up retains the dash's style while making it more mouse and touch friendly though the view more results text on the first dash page and the files & folders recent section could be turned into slightly larger buttons to make those parts a bit more touch friendly.
also, sorry for being long winded.
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Josh Strawbridge
