Plans for Reload/Stop?
wmarcello
the stop/reload button to various parts of the UI. I was just
wondering if there has been any concrete decisions as to where it is
going to be and how it is going to function?
Personally I am not a fan of having it tied to the right side of the
URL bar. Browsers seem to be trending towards getting rid of the
dedicated Search box. Chrome and IE9 have already dropped it, and I
have recently dropped it from my setup and instead search directly
from the URL bar. What this does though is it pushes the stop/reload
button to the very far right of the browser window, far far away from
the other page navigation buttons (back, forward, etc) on the left
side. To me it makes button navigation feel broken as there is a huge
gap between the related navigation elements, even if the user decides
to keep the dedicated Search box.
On a related note, is it really necessary to present the stop and
reload buttons as two separate elements when customizing a toolbar?
Again, it seems like every other browser has moved away from separate
stop/reload buttons. I believe it would be a lot better to simply
combine them by default. If a user really enjoys the old style,
somebody will surely make an extension to bring back that
functionality. I think we might as well give the casual users, who
won't go to the trouble of installing an extension, a default option
that mimics standard behaviour in every other browser.
wmarcello
>
> On a related note, is it really necessary to present the stop and
> reload buttons as two separate elements when customizing a toolbar?
> Again, it seems like every other browser has moved away from separate
> stop/reload buttons. I believe it would be a lot better to simply
> combine them by default. If a user really enjoys the old style,
> somebody will surely make an extension to bring back that
> functionality. I think we might as well give the casual users, who
> won't go to the trouble of installing an extension, a default option
> that mimics standard behaviour in every other browser.
Sorry, my bad. IE9 has the stop and reload buttons as separate and in
the URL bar. IMO it's less of an issue with their layout as the URL
bar is very short. Hitting the refresh button doesn't mean that the
user has to go all the way to the right edge of the window.
Jean-Marc Desperrier
> Browsers seem to be trending towards getting rid of the
> dedicated Search box. Chrome and IE9 have already dropped it, and I
> have recently dropped it from my setup and instead search directly
> from the URL bar.
Safari on the iPad, even though space is restricted there, did not get
rid of it. What they do instead, is to enlarge the search box when you
give it focus.
I find that really smart, and would enjoy seeing the same thing on Firefox.
wmarcello
That's not a bad idea. I'd probably still hide the Search box myself,
but for others that could be good.
Even if the Stop/Reload button(s) don't get moved out of the URL bar
like I think they should, I hope that the dev team can find a more
elegant solution to the ability to customize the toolbar. Right now
there are so many different permutations:
1. If you put the Reload button next to the Stop button (in that
order), they get combined.
2. If you put the Stop button next to the Reload button (in that
order), then they remain as separate buttons.
3. If you put Option #1 just to the right of the URL bar then they get
combined INSIDE the URL bar.
4. If you put Option #2 just to the right of the URL bar then they
exist as separate buttons OUTSIDE the URL bar.
As it stands, casual users will need a tutorial to keep all that
straight. There has got to be a better way to do this. Some
suggestions:
1. If the default setting is going to be a combined Stop/Reload
button, then it could show up as a combined button when customizing
the toolbar. Maybe have a setting in the Fx options to "Combine Stop/
Reload". If checked, then the button shows up as combined during
customization. If unchecked, then the buttons show up as separate
during customization. This option could even be put in the
customization dialog next to the "Use small icons" option.
2. The whole thing where different things happen depending on which
button is on the left is too confusing, and it limits options for the
user as it's currently impossible to have Reload and Stop (in that
order) as separate buttons. If suggestion #1 is implemented, then this
problem is already solved.
3. If suggestion #1 is a no go, then perhaps it would be useful to
have 3 choices of buttons during customization. Physically give the
user the option to drag any of a Reload button, a Stop button, or a
combined button onto the toolbar.
There are probably other ways to do this as well. I am just hoping
that something happens as the current behaviour is pretty confusing
IMO.
EE
What is the point of scattering the navigation buttons instead of
leaving them where they were? Is there some urge to copy other browsers
at work here?
Bill Braun
When did innovating the future give way to catching up to the past?
Bill B