On 10/23/2011 12:16 AM, Jo-Erlend Schinstad wrote:
The pane handles, used to decide the size of the left/right or upper/lower part of a pane, are very difficult to see.
Strictly speaking the dots/strokes are not handles, but decoration to differentiate draggable dividers from empty space.
It's not necessary and even disadvantageous to aim for this decoration, but it does invite to do so. In this sense their only-in-center placement is harmful. Making them stand out more means risking turning them into distractions, constantly attracting the eye.
As I type this, I have to note that Thunderbird uses thin, uniform lines as dividers. Space saving, they stay in the background visually, but pose no problem in operation. The only downside is the lack of differentiation from static separating lines.
Ideally all draggable dividers would look the same. Somehow visually differentiated from static dividers over their entire area, not just marked in the middle, I think. Though the context of their occurrence does help in any case.
-- Thorsten Wilms thorwil's design for free software: http://thorwil.wordpress.com/