unity-design team mailing list archive

[Ed Lin <edlin280@xxxxxxxxx>]

On Sat, May 21, 2011 at 4:28 PM, Niklas Rosenqvist
<niklas.s.rosenqvist@xxxxxxxxx> wrote:
> Here is the mockup:
> http://i.imgur.com/sl8k6.png
> If this won't work then maybe we could just move the whole top panel to the
> bottom of the screen and have a "intellihide" function for it or merge it
> with the launcher:
> http://i.imgur.com/pgmOw.png

> Please note that this is just ideas I'm throwing out so that we can discuss
> a proper solution.

It's very Windows taskbar like. That's not a good thing IMO.

It's too cramped, the targets are too small and the major problem is
the shutdown button, it's not on the screen edge. If we want to pull
off a vertical info area we need to be bolder and bigger. I have never
seen one on any OS or DE that worked as well as a horizontal panel. I
don't know if it's possible at all. What I do know is that simply
vertically stacking panel items is not a solution.

First we need to ask ourselves a few questions:
What is necessary to really have always visible?
Do we have some functions that need to be accessible really fast (i.e.
via a single click on the screen edge/corner)? Which are they?
There are system and application level elements. Do we separate them,
do we allow apps to put stuff there at all?

Here's an idea I just had: we could put icons next to each other, in
violation of Fitts's Law, when we have a single menu for all of them
which can be accessed by clicking on anywhere on the area, from screen
edge to launcher edge.

We could for example condense all hardware related elements into one
launcher icon. It would show a battery, wlan quality and volume
indicator. Clicking on this icon opens a "bubble" next to it with all
the typical menu options of the current panel  indicators. It would
stay open like the dash so you can click multiple things within this
"hardware lens". Another icon could be reserved for communication,
social networks, IM, IRC, email. Whenever you get a new notification
the launcher icon will change accordingly. The third item would be the
calendar and clock "lens". For other activities that are more
application level I'd only use the usual launcher overlay and context
menu options. The corner itself could house a window/workspace manager
"lens". Clicking it executes a user selected task, the context/hover
menu (and by that I mean a big one with icons that are quick and easy
to hit, more like a lens or pie menu) reveals all the other available
options: workspace, window switcher, show desktop, lock desktop... The
logout task I'd add to the BFB menu (which needs a major revamp
anyway) but the system lens would be fitting too.

Altogether four icons which I think would leave room enough for app
icons on smaller screens. If not the BFB and workspace icons could be
smaller because they are so easy to hit in the corner. They should be
stacked beginning in the lower corner to visually separate apps and
info icons. I think the trash needs to go, it isn't used enough to
warrant the prominent spot. A trash entry in the nautilus sidebar and
the home button menu in the launcher should suffice, it could also be
added to the files&folder lens and of course to the desktop. I know it
also doubles for deleting launcher items but that should be made more
discoverable in any case (right now I think new users will all use the
context menu).

This would give us a very consistent and structured layout. The
launcher would consist of icons all having the same size (including
the BFB) and the context- menu/dash/lenses  would all follow the same
theme and design.