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Re: One of the most exasperating GUI features

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Spiros Bousbouras <spibou@gmail.com> writes:

> On Wed, 02 Feb 2022 10:37:06 -0500
> Dan Espen <dan1espen@gmail.com> wrote:
>> Sylvia Else <sylvia@email.invalid> writes:
>> 
>> > The greyed out menu option.
>> >
>> > It's there. I want to select it, but it's disabled.
>> >
>> > Why?
>> >
>> > Presumably the program knows, but it doesn't let on. I'm meant to be
>> > able to guess what I have to do to enable it.
>> >
>> > In some software that I've developed, hovering over a greyed out menu
>> > option cause a tip to be displayed stating the reason it's greyed out.
>> >
>> > I wish that were standard practice. It would alleviate a major cause
>> > of baldness.
>> 
>> So, in your world there is no reason for a grayed out menu.
>
> I don't think that follows from Sylvia's post. I think her complaint is
> that no reason is displayed as to why the menu is greyed out.

I see, I think you are right.
I'm not quite sure of the best method a program could use to explain a
menu entry being gray though.

Maybe a tool tip that pops up while the entry is selected?  Still I'd
want the menu to indicate the choice is no good before someone tries to
use the entry.

Certainly, there won't be room in the menu for a message and I don't think removing
the option is the right choice.

-- 
Dan Espen

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Thread

One of the most exasperating GUI features Sylvia Else <sylvia@email.invalid> - 2022-01-23 19:58 +1100
  Re: One of the most exasperating GUI features Meredith Montgomery <mmontgomery@levado.to> - 2022-02-02 10:10 -0300
    Re: One of the most exasperating GUI features Ian McCall <ian@eruvia.org> - 2022-02-02 13:21 +0000
      Re: One of the most exasperating GUI features C Mercadal <mercadal@diablonet.net> - 2022-02-02 15:52 +0000
        Re: One of the most exasperating GUI features Ian McCall <ian@eruvia.org> - 2022-02-02 19:20 +0000
  Re: One of the most exasperating GUI features Anssi Saari <as@sci.fi> - 2022-02-02 16:00 +0200
  Re: One of the most exasperating GUI features Dan Espen <dan1espen@gmail.com> - 2022-02-02 10:37 -0500
    Re: One of the most exasperating GUI features Spiros Bousbouras <spibou@gmail.com> - 2022-02-02 16:07 +0000
      Re: One of the most exasperating GUI features Dan Espen <dan1espen@gmail.com> - 2022-02-02 12:40 -0500
        Re: One of the most exasperating GUI features not@telling.you.invalid (Computer Nerd Kev) - 2022-02-02 22:18 +0000
  Re: One of the most exasperating GUI features Sylvia Else <sylvia@email.invalid> - 2022-02-03 10:19 +1100
    Re: One of the most exasperating GUI features Rich <rich@example.invalid> - 2022-02-03 02:08 +0000

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