I am starting to prefer comboboxes than textboxes
in [Visual Basic]
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From: MM on 24 Feb 2010 08:42 On Wed, 24 Feb 2010 11:41:29 -0000, "Dave O." <nobody(a)nowhere.com> wrote: > >"MM" <kylix_is(a)yahoo.co.uk> wrote in message >news:9af8o55p11vim37jegvipr8b180hn0aus1(a)4ax.com... > >> I'll bet y'all are now secretly trying my typomatic idea! (Innovators >> always have a hard time of it to begin with.... ;) >> >You arrogant twit, there has been variations of auto-complete (the correct >term) on combo boxes for pretty much as long as conbo boxes have existed. >An Innovator is not the same as a plagiarist. There's no issue with using >old ideas but don't pretend you invented it (unless you work for Apple where >such behaviour seems to be mandatory) Er, got out of the wrong side of the bed this morning, did you? You must have missed the smiley as well! MM
From: MM on 24 Feb 2010 08:56 On Wed, 24 Feb 2010 07:28:59 -0600, DanS <t.h.i.s.n.t.h.a.t(a)r.o.a.d.r.u.n.n.e.r.c.o.m> wrote: > >>>> Okay, but my last point still holds. I think maybe you're thinking >>>> that the user has to drop down the list every time and click on the >>>> value required, but this is not how it works with typomatic. With >>>> typomatic you type into the textbox portion exactly as if it were a >>>> real textbox. There are added benefits: you can hit End or Home and >>>> immediately jump to the highest or lowest permissible value. >>> >>>The problem I always have with a big dropdown box is what if I don't >>>know what I'm looking for ? >> >> If you don't know, how could you type it into to a textbox instead? > >That isn't the point, the point was very long drop-down boxes, not >extering text. Scrolling through 1000+ entries of which I'm not sure what >I need is a problem. You don't appear to understand how it works. The point is indeed about entering text. The user will see the default value in the textbox portion of the combobox and will either overtype it or drop the list down. You don't scroll through 1000+ entries, you simply type the value you want which you would have to do anyway if you were typing into a textbox, plus in the latter case you wouldn't have the benefit of bomb-proof code WITHOUT oodles of additional validation code. I am, of course, referring to how *my* comboboxes work with numeric ranges like 0 to 127, not some poorly designed version with dozens of "Africas" and "Europes" preceding the actual selections. >>>Even if I know I can enter text and it will autocomplete, I may have >>>no idea what's in there. >> >> Er, the range is clearly explained: 0 to 127, for example. It could >> hardly be more obvious. Mind you, I expect there are SOME people who, >> confronted with such an input requirement in software, would be typing >> things like: "Must buy some milk today" and then puzzling why the >> program keeps warning them. >> >>>Have you ever tried to set the timezone on a Linux box ? >> >> No. >> >>>Here's the latest drop-down list for that: >> >> [snipped] >> >> That is your example? Did it not occur to you that that list is poorly >> designed? > >My example ? Yes. That is one example. But why not stick with the actual example that I have now explained several times, namely a numeric range of either 0 to 127 or 0 to 3000, not find a completely different example that isn't pertinent anyway? >Poorly designed ? That's not up to me to decide. That is the official >list of accepted timezone names according to whatever body that controls >them.... http://www.twinsun.com/tz/tz-link.htm So I have a numeric dropdown list with the range 0 to 127 yet you are coming at me with "the official list of accepted timezone names", as if the poor design of the latter is automatically assumed for the former. >And....what the time zone selection combo box looks like in every Linux >distro. (sigh...) I am not using a time zone selection combobox, I am using a comboxbox with a simple numeric range of consecutive numbers. MM
From: Jeff Johnson on 24 Feb 2010 09:25 "MM" <kylix_is(a)yahoo.co.uk> wrote in message news:qti9o55mkee1r0m1lkt1bk4o3gli2mc42k(a)4ax.com... >>>>I admit it will be easier if the items are sorted, but it still becomes >>>>unmanageable very quickly if the user doesn't know to type and tries to >>>>scroll (required for freeform values) >>> >>> "doesn't know how to type" - how did they manage to boot the PC and >>> sign on? >> >>Not "doesn't know HOW to type," but rather "doesn't know TO type," i.e., >>"doesn't know he MAY type." Many people think the mouse is REQUIRED to use >>certain controls, sadly. > > "doesn't know TO type" - how does the user become a PC user, then? Or > do you envisage many thousands of PCs across the world sitting there > idling away while users sit in front of them, going: "Goodness me, I > really don't know what to do next!" You really won't accept that fact that in the specific case of COMBO BOXES (which IS what this is about, not the computer in general), some users don't understand that they can use they keyboard and instead think they MUST use the mouse? Really?
From: DanS on 24 Feb 2010 09:50 <SNIP> >>Poorly designed ? That's not up to me to decide. That is the official >>list of accepted timezone names according to whatever body that >>controls them.... http://www.twinsun.com/tz/tz-link.htm > > So I have a numeric dropdown list with the range 0 to 127 yet you are > coming at me with "the official list of accepted timezone names", as > if the poor design of the latter is automatically assumed for the > former. No, that was to show how bad of an idea a long drop-down box is. > >>And....what the time zone selection combo box looks like in every >>Linux distro. > > (sigh...) I am not using a time zone selection combobox, I am using a > comboxbox with a simple numeric range of consecutive numbers. Which I don't understand, unless you targeting 1st graders or something ? (Or if you want to avoid writing 5-7 lines of code to validate a simple number.)
From: Rick Raisley on 24 Feb 2010 11:06
"MM" <kylix_is(a)yahoo.co.uk> wrote in message news:ol17o55g0vthrarcvtpjcn2rt7u7sknrbd(a)4ax.com... >> >>There you go again, thinking like a programmer. <g> Most folks I watch >>don't even know they can tab between fields yet! > > They don't DESERVE to use my software! > I pose no such restriction on those who use my software. They get it if they purchase it, even if they don't deserve it or use it efficiently. I'm pretty happy with the result. ;-) -- Regards, Rick Raisley heavymetal-A-T-bellsouth-D-O-T-net |