unity-design team mailing list archive

["Scott E. Armitage" <launchpad@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx>]

I think that relying on mouse cursors as notifications is a scary idea. With
the advent of new input methods (and old ones becoming more popular) such as
touch-screens, the role of the mouse cursor does not have a 100% rock-solid
future. Why put the effort into something that may not be there five years
down the road?

Also, I don't know about you, but I am rarely actually looking at my mouse
cursor. I am looking at the screen behind it. If I am trying to actively
click something, I use my peripheral vision to tell my hand where it needs
to go, then when it comes into view over where I need it, *bam* I click. I
don't want to have to focus on my actual cursor, which could be well away
from where I am actually working. This is even more true when I am not
actively using the mouse, for example while I am typing this e-mail, I have
no clue where the mouse pointer is, because I have no use for it. If I am
watching a video, I may even intentionally push the mouse cursor off the
edge of the screen so that it doesn't get in the way. In all of these
situations, I won't see whatever an app is trying to tell me through the
mouse cursor.

-S

On Tue, May 4, 2010 at 7:22 PM, Shane Fagan <shanepatrickfagan@xxxxxxxxxx>wrote:

> Hey all,
>
> Since we are looking to innovate for 10.10 how about something as
> fundamental as the mouse cursor. Ok at the moment we have very simple
> and old school but maybe we can do some indications with the mouse
> cursor, im doing something, you can type here...etc.
>
> What im thinking is that if something is going on in the background that
> may not need a notification but a user may want to go to like an app
> opening or just that the app needs attention. So my idea is that the
> mouse cursor displays the icon of the app (for a few seconds) that needs
> attention if its not focused. I know that the window list at the bottom
> of the screen indicates that the app needs attention but the user always
> has an eye on the mouse so it makes sense to put some indications there
> too.
>
> What do you all think? I know its a little bit out there but its just a
> little idea.
>
> -fagan
>
>
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-- 
Scott Armitage, B.A.Sc., M.A.Sc. candidate
Space Flight Laboratory
University of Toronto Institute for Aerospace Studies
4925 Dufferin Street, Toronto, Ontario, Canada, M3H 5T6