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Re: [Ayatana] What's up with all the non-resizable windows?



On Thu 13 Oct 2011 03:22:12 PM MDT, Stefanos A. wrote:

2011/10/13 Matthew Paul Thomas <mpt@xxxxxxxxxxxxx <mailto:mpt@xxxxxxxxxxxxx>>

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    Stefanos A. wrote on 13/10/11 15:09:
    >
    > I just installed 11.10, just to be assaulted by ugly non-resizable
    > windows. Why, oh why?
    >
    > Off-hand, I recall the official installer, which cannot be resized
    > when the "show details" area does not fit inside the window. This
    > happens in the "downloading packages" and " installing packages"
    > parts of the installation - since you can't resize the window, you
    > cannot see what actions are being taken by the installer.


    This seems to be <http://launchpad.net/bugs/149911>, which was
    reported in 2007, so it's not specific to 11.10.

In previous versions of the installer I could read messages just fine. In 11.10 I can't, on all three different systems I tested, because there is no space for these messages to appear. This is on the English version, so it's not the bug in your link.

    > The new "System Settings" control panel also fits the bill. This
    > is *especially* aggravating, since the window is a tad too big for
    > a 1366x768 or 1280x800 screen (that's what most laptops use).
    > Today, I had an issue with a misconfigured keyboard shortcut, so I
    > opened an internet article that described the fix. In such
    > occasions, I arrange the browser window and the configuration
    > window side-by-side, so I can refer to the article while fixing the
    > issue. Or that's what I used to do, since the new settings window
    > *cannot be resized* to fit side-by-side on my monitor. It's always
    > there, taking up lots of space, *covering* the article with the
    > instructions I need.


    Like most dialogs, many of the System Settings panels are designed
    with a particular size in mind. For the window to be manually
    resizable would be inappropriate.


Why? Why are they designed for a specific size, when that's against the Gnome HIG? What if I use a larger font or a different screen size?


    If the window is too large for an important proportion of screens,
    that's a bug that should be fixed, not an excuse for making the window
    resizable.


These "dialogs" were proper resizable windows in 11.04, so this is a regression not an excuse.

Besides, what is the common thread between a proper "ok, cancel" dialog and something like the "mouse settings" panel or the ubuntu installer? That's a rhetorical question, these things have absolutely *nothing* in common.

If you have a more convincing argument than "inappropriate" I would love to hear it.


    > What is this new fad? Microsoft abandoned modal/non-resizable
    > windows after WinXP.


    That isn't true.


But it is.

"A /top-level/ window has no owner window and is displayed on the taskbar. Examples: application windows. In Windows Vista and later, dialog boxes without owner windows and property sheets are also considered top-level."

From MSDN (http://msdn.microsoft.com/en-us/library/windows/desktop/aa511262.aspx)

(And parented dialogs are not recommended for new applications.)


    > Apple just added more resize borders in their latest OS.


    That made it easier to resize windows that are already resizable. It
    has nothing to do with which windows are resizable in the first place.


So why was ubuntu installer made non-resizable in the first place?


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But they still aren't resizeable. The Open/Save dialogs are a great example. And I've never seen a resizable installer window in Windows.