mockup for user information interface

[Máirín Duffy]

Hi Mark,

Mark wrote:
> i don`t really know where to place this mockup besides on the gnome bug 
> report (and as a feature there).

Welcome to the group!

For GNOME interface concerns/proposals, you may want to try one of the 
upstream GNOME lists such as the gnome-usability list. This list is for 
developing Fedora artwork. It's not really for interface design other 
than that specifically for the Fedora project (eg our website and 
Fedora-specific tools.) For GNOME, interface design is better addressed 
upstream within the GNOME project (and for other non-Fedora specific 
software applications upstream with their respective projects.)

> oke.. IF the mockup gets ever in gnome itself or in fedore you can throw 
> away this:
> http://img471.imageshack.us/my.php?image=screenshot2jg7.png
> 
> this is my mockup:
> http://img405.imageshack.us/my.php?image=linuxpersonalinfomockupql1.png 
> <http://img405.imageshack.us/my.php?image=linuxpersonalinfomockupql1.png>

What are the advantages of your mockup over the current (and 
HIG-compliant [1]) screen? What issues are you trying to address / goals 
are you trying to accomplish?

For example, because the form fields in your mockup don't have labels 
with shortcut keys. Will a visually-impaired user be able to target 
specific form fields without label shortcut keys?

> And some additional information:
> First the rounded image that you see in that window. my idea is that 
> when you click on it the browse thing will come up and than you can 
> choose a image than the image will be placed there INSIDE that rounded 
> image. kinda like the vista and XP images.

Currently when you select an avatar in the GNOME 'About Me' dialog, it 
is displayed in the preview window, the behavior it seems you're 
seeking? So what improvement does this have to offer?

> the text fields are all meant to have a light grey color and when you 
> click on it they have a dark grey color. the DEFAULT text (Username, 
> Password, etc) will be gone once you click on it. if you click out the 
> textbox without entering anything the default text will come back.

This isn't standard form behavior (it's important to try to be 
consistent across applications on the desktop so users get used to the 
conventions) and as previously mentioned will likely cause accessibility 
problems.

> IF you enter a text and than click out the new text should be light 
> grey. than when you click the box again (the one that now contains any 
> text but the default stuff) won`t get cleaned once you click it wut your 
> pointer will just be at the end of the text or where you clicked. the 
> text won`t be deleted because it isn`t the default stuff.

If the text appears light grey by default, don't you think that would 
send a visual cue (by convention) to users that the text is immutable 
(when it is mutable) ?

> The window that you see doesn`t really exist. it`s all photoshopping.

I recommend the Gimp and Inkscape. If you design for Fedora you should 
use Fedora to do it, no? :) If you need help setting these up or using 
them feel free to ask here!

> Everything that i describe here and in the image is possible with html + 
> css + javascript so it MUST be possible to do this in c/c++/python 
> coding. i just don`t have any knowledge of any of those languages 
> (c/c++/python) so i can`t make it.

I am sure it is possible somehow but I am not so sure this mockup is 
really an improvement over the existing screen, possibly a step 
backwards for our friends who rely on accessibility support. I would be 
interested to hear what goals you have / issues you are trying to 
address with this mockup though as it's not clear to me. Maybe there are 
better, more compliant ways of addressing them?

> i`m hoping to get some feedback on this and perhaps someone here that is 
> willing to put this in Fedora 7 or even in the new gnome version :D

Hope this feedback helps. Even though I do not agree with the changes 
you have made in this mockup, it is clear that you are quite good at 
working with graphics tools so I hope you will stick around and are 
willing to learn more about interface design!

~m

[1] http://developer.gnome.org/projects/gup/hig/