Path: utzoo!attcan!utgpu!jarvis.csri.toronto.edu!mailrus!iuvax!cica!gatech!udel!burdvax!dave
From: dave@PRC.Unisys.COM (David Lee Matuszek)
Newsgroups: comp.sys.mac.programmer
Subject: Re: was: The Great Standard Yes/No/...
Message-ID: <11491@burdvax.PRC.Unisys.COM>
Date: 18 Sep 89 16:28:40 GMT
References: <8909111739.AA10090@fs3.cs.rpi.edu> <15631@dartvax.Dartmouth.EDU> <1684@draken.nada.kth.se>
Organization: Unisys Corporation, Paoli Research Center; Paoli, PA
Lines: 51

In article <1684@draken.nada.kth.se> h+@nada.kth.se (Jon W{tte) writes:
>
>I have read about changing/not changing the Standard Alert for quite
>a while now, and I agree that you shall not change the well-known
>layout:
>
>	Save
>
>	Discard		Cancel
>
>But since so much happens when you use your modifier keys (i.e.
>rebuild desktop, launch DAs, inhibit MacsBug, MF or INITs, not
>to mention MS WORD or PageMaker...) why not let the user chose
>"save as" by holding any / a special modifier key while clicking
>"save as" ? You could even change the text of the button as soon
 ^^^^^^^^^  I assume you meant "save"?
>as the user depresses the modifier key, and change it back when
>(s)he releases it.

I've never learned to do any of those things.  Whenever I need to
rebuild the desktop, I have to look up the command sequence.  I use
MS Word for complex documents, and hate it; no one else in my family
will use it at all.

>I think I'll do this in my next program... Anyone got any strong
>arguments why I shouldn't ?

Sure, go ahead, if that's what you want.  Three suggestions,
though:

1.  Be sure to keep "Save As..." around on the standard menus, so
    that users can click "Cancel," then use "Save As...".

2.  Require two modifier keys, e.g. shift-option, to minimize
    the chances that someone will hit it by accident.

3.  Don't document it, or document it in an obscure place.  (This
    last is necessary for uniformity with other Mac programs. :-)

I think there is a large contingent of people such as myself who
have a very low opinion of command-key sequences and other hidden
features on the Macintosh.  If you really want them, fine, but
please remember to (1) provide all needed functionality to users
who do not want to memorize your command sequences, and (2) make
them sufficiently hard to hit by accident so they don't screw us
up.

-- Dave Matuszek (dave@prc.unisys.com)
-- Unisys Corp. / Paoli Research Center / PO Box 517 / Paoli PA  19301
-- Any resemblance between my opinions and those of my employer is improbable.
* 20th anniversary?  Yeah, but it's 17 years since the LAST man on the moon! *