looking for a few good ideas
  amongst the irregular verbiage

I Hate Knobs (II)

Sun, 27 May 2007 09:33    in Studio, Computers

This post continues a previous discussion. Click here for the first in the series.

Having complained about the state of standards in user interface widgets in virtual hardware (soft-synths and FX modules) in the world of digital audio workstations, I will offer a list of design attributes that I consider important when designing a UI:

  • Clarity: Facilitates a clear representation of the current value  of the control.
  • Color: Supports the use of color to enhance clarity while retaining compatibility with a high-contrast display mode.
  • State: Supports clear distinctions between the following states: Enabled vs. Disabled; Read-only vs. Editable.
  • Scalability: Supports resolution independence (it must be easily re-sizeable).
  • Behavior: Provision of sensible responses to both Mouse scroll wheel events and keyboard actions (shows when the control has focus).
  • Precision: Provides for high-precision value adjustments.

These go somewhat beyond the standards as laid out in documents from Apple  and Microsoft (for example), but I think there is some room for inovation here, especially in this area, and especially on the Windows platform. Next, I'll propose some additional "standard" UI controls and how they might be used in a theoretical peice of virtual hardware.

This discussion continues here.

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