Subject: Re: FAQ -- why the MSDI interface? (aka, no pagers please)
From: JAL (solnul@yahoo.com)
Date: Sat Aug 18 2001 - 21:29:21 CDT
On 18 Aug 2001 21:27:18 -0400, Tim LaDuca wrote:
> On 18 Aug 2001 18:33:34 -0700, Paul Rohr wrote:
> > At 09:04 PM 8/18/01 -0400, Tim LaDuca wrote:
> > >On 18 Aug 2001 16:43:36 -0700, Paul Rohr wrote:
> > >> Erp. In what widely-used SDI application does File / Close *not* have the
> > >> exact same semantics as clicking the little X? And why aren't they in the
> > >> User Interface Hall of Shame?
> > >
> > >:-) Microsoft Word. When you click File-> Close you are left with a
> > >"document-less" window.
> >
> > I asked this elsewhere in the thread, but is there a **non-MDI** version of
> > Word with this behavior? If so, two questions:
> >
> > 1. What version is it?
> > 2. What does the UI look like when you File/Close the last open document?
>
> Yes, I'm speaking of Word 2000(my memory is so short I don't remember
> how Wod 97 or 95 behaved). Basically what happens after you file-close
> the last document is your left with evrything but an actual document to
> work on. Where a document would normally be you just have an empty
> space. Personally I say why not just make use of that space and throw an
> empty new document there. It's like a notebook-- after you're done with
> one sheet, there's always another one there waiting for you if you need
> it.
Every version of Word for Windows 2.0 and up (maybe 1.0, I forgot) has a
larger parent window in which the document's child window resides. The
true SDI versions offer a full set of titlebar buttons (min, max,
close), and the MSDI versions have only the close button. If the close
button on the last child window or the File->Close menuitem is clicked,
Word displays the parent window only: a titlebar, menubar, toolbars, and
a gray background where the document would normally be.
> >
> > It's obvious how to show that state on a Mac or in a true MDI app. The
> > pesky question that remains is whether anyone's established a comparable UI
> > convention for apps like AbiWord.
> >
> > >But most others behave like you say. To be
> > >clear, I'm not arguing that AbiWord is not behaving like other SDI
> > >programs, just that tying the File menu items to window operations just
> > >doesn't make sense overall, but SDI basically forces you to do this.
> > >Also to be fair, I am not a fan of the SDI interface, so I could
> > >probably argue all day with the "SDI people". I'll stop now ;-)
> >
> > I know, you're an MDI fan. Gotcha. ;-)
> >
> > Paul
> >
>
>
-- JAL - I live the way I type; fast, with a lot of mistacks.
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