FC3 Usability Problems

Brian Fahrlander brian at fahrlander.net
Sun Jan 9 03:01:25 UTC 2005


On Sat, 2005-01-08 at 16:48 -0800, Per Nystrom wrote:

> >     I'm working from the base FC3; I see no drawers other than what I
> > put on myself...(which I don't) and the top and bottom bars are pretty
> > skimpy.  Did you do an upgrade, or a re-install?  Maybe there are old
> > settings clouding the issue?
> 
> Well, it's not obvious they're drawers, but that's how they function. 
> I'm talking about the top, left corner where you see a red hat (that no
> longer seems to do anything), and to the right of that the text
> "Applications", and to the right of that, the text "Actions".  When I
> click on either of these, I get menus similar to what used to spring
> from the red hat.
> 
> Fresh install plus yum update -- nothing else.  This is the default
> desktop that it gives me.

    Yeah, I suppose they work like drawers...without looking hokey.

> >     No such top-to-side transition was found here- did it this morning.
> > Thin panel at the top, thin panel on the side.
> 
> I'm pretty sure it's these text buttons in the panel that cause the
> super-fat panels on the side.  It can't resize the text, so it resizes
> everything else to match.

    Maybe it's a matter of what you have *in* the panel when it turns
the corner- like a name given it, that I don't give- that would explain
it.

> On a side note, I am told it is possible to revert to the FC2-style main
> menu where all you have is a red hat that actually does something.  But
> I don't think what we have now by default in FC3 is an improvement at
> all.

    Yeah, I liked the red hat menu as well, but newbies wouldn't know a
red hat from a red herring; maybe that's why they changed it, I don't
know.


> I'm not sure about your upgrade path, all I know is I copied my old
> .mozilla directory into the new installation, started Firefox, chose
> File->Import, and got...  nothing.  It's an empty dialog box with a
> disabled Back button, a Next button that's clickable but doesn't do
> anything, and a Cancel button (that does what's expected).

    Yeah, the only thing it wants to import is from Netscape or Mozilla;
fortunately I could save from Galeon->Mozilla, then from there to
Firefox.   I'm warming up to it now.  And I love the fact that 9-10% of
Windows people are using it now, too.  It's been bumpy, but I think it's
gonna settle down.

    I saved my /home parition between fresh installs too; I think we
used the same method, therefore.  The key is to put these settings into
Netscape/Mozilla so you can get'em out...and then get rid of all the
example bookmarks to make it comfortable.

    Hey- when you see the orange 'radar' looking icon on the lower right
of a page (like Slashdot) click it, and then bookmark it onto the
toolbar.  It's a nice, slick way to 'check' slashdot (etc.) without
having to go there.  Kinda nice, actually.

-- 
------------------------------------------------------------------------
Brian Fahrländer                 Christian, Conservative, and Technomad
Evansville, IN                                http://www.fahrlander.net 
ICQ: 5119262                                          AIM: WheelDweller
------------------------------------------------------------------------
-------------- next part --------------
A non-text attachment was scrubbed...
Name: signature.asc
Type: application/pgp-signature
Size: 189 bytes
Desc: This is a digitally signed message part
URL: <http://listman.redhat.com/archives/fedora-list/attachments/20050108/8d0f4f72/attachment-0001.sig>


More information about the fedora-list mailing list