unity-design team mailing list archive

[Thorsten Wilms <t_w_@xxxxxxxxxx>]

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/