Re: [Gzz] Re: Is xupdf reasonable?!

[Tuomas Lukka]

> >> 
> >> These are very good points, and we do need to address them before 
> >> the article deadline.
> >> 
> >> 1) The idea is that the user can also write short notes and link them.
> >>    This way, the link types should become more apparent. I'll be 
> >> implementing
> >>    this ASAP.
> >> 
> >> 2) At least my view of xupdf so far is that it's more for "personal" use,
> >>    so that you know the articles you're browsing.
> >
> > Forgot to make explicit the question: do you think this will be enough?
> 
> You have said that beginner and professional users should have the same ui
> and usability. To your 2) view of xupdf if someone sit to your chair and 
> starts browsing the articles with xupdf - he doesn't know what the link 
> means. 

Remember the Lego idea as embodied in PP: there, the type of link is not
determined either.

A Lego brick does not usually have a "meaning", but its meaning is determined
by the context. That's the idea here, too: *we* don't say how you should
use these but just give power.

Forcing the user to choose link styles, colors etc. always from a semantic
list would be taking power away, IMHO.

Now, allowing the user to write, *if she wants*, text on the link or so,
would be good.

Can you see the difference?

Also, note that people using this are not machines: for a machine,
not having link types would make it completely lost; however,
people are intelligent and can usually understand why something
is close to something else.

> Ok, talked with Asko about this and we can use different fillets 
> and colors something like here:
> 
> http://www.workpractice.com/trigg/thesis-chap4.html
> 
> ..but what we get?  "What does this color means?", "What this fillet 
> means?" - We still have only 'links'. And if we limit the freedom by 
> chosing left links for history and rigth links for future we are 
> not using xupdf as freely as we could. 

Exactly.

> Asko's second idea was that this is only talking about different views.
> I don't want to buy that. xupdf for professionals and extended-xupdf with 
> tiptools could be a way to 'hide' metainformation to buoys for beginners. 
> Or what if there is small window which shows the bib entry? I hate 
> tiptools anyway.. 

What's tiptools? You mean tooltips?

I'm not sure where the bib information should be.

> > Or what would you like to see?
> 
> I think our revolutionary interface is what I want to see but is it 
> enough? Can we make it better, can't we? Is the left/rigth thing only for 
> cognitive map (helps memorizing things)? 

Yes, the difficult thing is saying what's better.

When is simpler and when is more complicated better.

The left/right thing is for helping people build a cognitive map of the space.

        Tuomas