Archive of UserLand's first discussion group, started October 5, 1998.
Re: Why MacOS X Server?
Author: Tim Moore Posted: 3/12/1999; 12:32:31 PM Topic: scriptingNews outline for 3/11/99 Msg #: 4037 (In response to 3989) Prev/Next: 4036 / 4038
Absolutely! The designers of the original Mac OS paid a great amount of attention to subtleties in the interface. In all of the Mac-clone UIs we have, very few of them feel like more than shoddy imitations, because the designers didn't pick up on these subtleties. Unfortunately, I think all of the great UI designers at Apple are long gone.For a great example, look at hierarchical menus. I am constantly missing the menu items when I use Windows. The sub-menu closes before I get to the item. It slows you down more than you realize!
The non-obvious difference occurs when you move your mouse off of the item that the menu is connected to. Windows keeps sub menus open for a fixed amount of time (seems about half a second). Mac OS looks to see if you're moving more down or more sideways. If you move more sideways, it keeps the menu open indefinitely. If you move more down, it goes to the next item. It makes a huge difference!
More of these examples at: http://www.quinn.echidna.id.au/Quinn/WWW/HISubtleties/Index.html
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