[vox] XMMS - A rant about usability

[vox@lists.lugod.org]

Because *most* OSS projects are there to scrath an itch, not to do things 
like proper UI design or user feedback/usability testing.

This is one of the reasons the RH Bluecurve stuff impreses me...it 
actually gets a lot of apps to have certain baseline behaviours 
consistently.

z

On Wed, 12 Mar 2003, Bill Kendrick wrote:

> 
> Ok, I'm just going to rant for a moment to get it off my chest.
> 
> Why do people design software like XMMS to act the way it does?
> Why does it have to look and act different than the rest of my applications?
> 
> An example:  I just popped up the Playlist Editor window.  I have far more
> tracks loaded (not many, actually) than can be displayed at once, so I need
> to scroll up and down.
> 
> I went to grab the bottom of the window (like I can with all other windows
> under KDE 2.2) and stretch it down.  But no...  I can't.  Hell, the window
> doesn't even appear in my taskbar!  No way to maximize it, or even minimize it!
> 
> All it's got are "^" (window-shade) and "x" (close) widgets. >:^(
> 
> I could fit literally three playlist windows on top of each other
> vertically, but no... since it has to look cool and shiny and weird,
> I don't get that useful usability.
> 
> All I get is a really tiny cool looking window with fuzzy, hard-to-read
> buttons.  And a scrollbar.  :^)
> 
> 
> *sigh*
> 
> Can anyone recommend another player that's media-wise as functional as XMMS,
> but usability wise as functional as, oh, I dunno... at least a frickin' Xterm?
> :^)
> 
> Thanks!
> 
>