I knew it..Pretty Interfaces are just slow

  • Thread starter Thread starter Dale White
  • Start date Start date
Justin said:
I just opened Outlook and it has all the underlines. So an app can turn
them on by choice.
Click to expand...

Mozilla has the shortcuts always underlined, but then that has its own
style anyway. Every other app I use only shows shortcuts when Alt is
pressed.
 
Justin said:
That's just it, you answered it right here. If they don't know about
Ctrl-C and Ctrl-V then why would they ever use an ALT shortcut? If XP
didn't teach them then nothing will :)


I thought you could? I'll have to look it up.
Click to expand...

I think in 2000 / XP it used to be in the Display properties, Appearance
tab, and click the Effects button. The options to control menu fading /
pop-up effects were in the same place. Neither of these options are
there in the equivalent place in Vista. I may be wrong about where they
used to be, but it was certainly somewhere from the display settings and
I think I've searched all the "Personalisation" section of Vista's
control panel. Maybe the options are around somewhere, but if so,
they've moved and I can't find them!

I would be perfectly happy with registry hacks if there's no GUI way -
I've done plenty of registry hacking (and manual fixing when things
break) in previous versions of Windows! It's just a question of knowing
where the keys are...
 
Justin said:
That's just it, you answered it right here. If they don't know about
Ctrl-C and Ctrl-V then why would they ever use an ALT shortcut? If XP
didn't teach them then nothing will :)


I thought you could? I'll have to look it up.
Click to expand...

Found it! :D
"Control Panel" > "Ease of Access Center" > "Make the keyboard easier to
use", check "Underline keyboard shortcuts and access keys"

So they acknowledge that this is easier to use than the default...?
 
Dale said:
My way is to run the Classic theme. Then under the System-Advance settings-
option, set it to best performance, instead of best Appearance
Click to expand...

While looking for something else, I've just found a way without
resorting to changing the entire theme:
"Control Panel" > "Ease of Access Center" > "Make the computer easier to
see", check "Turn off all unnecessary animations"
 
Mark said:
But if the shortcut keys are permanently displayed, I can be looking up
what letter I need while my fingers are moving towards the Alt key, or
even while I'm still typing before knowing that I'm about to need that
menu. By the time I press Alt, I already know what other letter I need!
That makes .5 seconds to hit Alt and .5 to hit the other letter - 1
second total. I'm still doing other useful work during the 3s taken to
look at the menu.

Anyway, is there any harm is having a check-box somewhere to change the
behaviour? Or even a registry setting if they want to de-clutter a
dialogue which only has 3 check-boxes on it anyway! (Maybe there is a
registry setting - if so, does anyone know what it is? Or maybe there is
still a check-box, but hidden somewhere else...) One of the first things
I've always done on Windows 2000 / XP install is turn this option back on!
Click to expand...

(Also described this in another post in this thread, but I feel it's
also appropriate to reply here too...)

Found it! :D
"Control Panel" > "Ease of Access Center" > "Make the keyboard easier to
use", check "Underline keyboard shortcuts and access keys"
 
Mark said:
I think in 2000 / XP it used to be in the Display properties, Appearance
tab, and click the Effects button. The options to control menu fading /
pop-up effects were in the same place. Neither of these options are
there in the equivalent place in Vista. I may be wrong about where they
used to be, but it was certainly somewhere from the display settings and
I think I've searched all the "Personalisation" section of Vista's
control panel. Maybe the options are around somewhere, but if so,
they've moved and I can't find them!
Click to expand...

To turn off menu fading:
"Control Panel" > "Ease of Access Center" > "Make the computer easier to
see", check "Turn off all unnecessary animations"

Although looking at the description of the same option linked under
"Make it easier to focus on tasks", that might also prevent programs
flashing the task bar when they want attention, which I don't really
want to turn off. Guess I'll see what happens next time an app wants
attention...

I haven't found an option to have pop-up menus instead of fading ones
(in case anyone else was wondering), but I don't care about that.

Why is it that in the last 2 versions of Windows (XP and now Vista), a
lot of options have been moved from where everyone knows them to be in
previous versions? Is this supposed to make things easier? Is the next
version of Windows going to move everything again?

Perhaps there should be a "Make the computer easier to use" section,
with an option to "put everything back in its proper place" ;o) (before
anyone crucifies me for that... yes, I know "proper place" is a matter
of personal opinion, and very probably different for a completely new
user than one used to previous versions of Windows!)
 
Justin said:
Why do you keep changing your name?

Maybe it's because these apps are also intended for XP?
Click to expand...

I was trying to figure out a highlighting problem, where I was posting, but
Winmail or OE6 wasn't showing me all of my posts hightlighted. So I labeled
one LV32, for Laptop Vista 32, I also have a V64 on some and then under XP,
I just use my plain name. Turns out, I had two different typeos in LV32 and
V64, which is why I didn't get them highlighted

That XP theory says good, but it doesn't explain why programs like
SmartTerm, FTP Pro don't have it. Since they are pre-XP releases. Unless
it's just something Microsoft did special.
 
Mark Bourne said:
Found it! :D
"Control Panel" > "Ease of Access Center" > "Make the keyboard easier to
use", check "Underline keyboard shortcuts and access keys"

So they acknowledge that this is easier to use than the default...?
Click to expand...

1 Gold Star for Mark ! That's mildly funny as well. So I guess the French
Guy was right Aero has more friction and you have to choose to make your
computer easier to use.

Classic !
 
Dale White said:
1 Gold Star for Mark ! That's mildly funny as well. So I guess the French
Guy was right Aero has more friction and you have to choose to make your
computer easier to use.

Classic !
Click to expand...

Um...NO. That setting has absolutely nothing to do with Aero. Try again :)

I just turned it on to see what it would look like in WM and I agree with
the majority. I hate it. I turned it right back off. It' a complete eye
sore and in some menus it actually distracts from the verbiage. So I guess
that would be MORE FRICTION.

Another way to look at it - Once you hit ALT to look up the underlines, you
learn them. You don't need to see them again. If you do need them then
they're a split second away. So, ultimately what's the point of having them
on 100% of the time if you really only need to see them .0001% of the time.
Add the fact that the average person doesn't even use them and you have a
very good reason to turn them off.
 
Justin said:
Um...NO. That setting has absolutely nothing to do with Aero. Try
again :)

I just turned it on to see what it would look like in WM and I agree
with the majority. I hate it. I turned it right back off. It' a
complete eye sore and in some menus it actually distracts from the
verbiage. So I guess that would be MORE FRICTION.
Click to expand...

I prefer it on, but that's just my preference. I have no objection to
the default being off if that's what the majority prefer, and I agree
that it probably does look cleaner without the underlines for people who
don't use the keyboard shortcuts. My objection was that I couldn't find
any way to turn it on, and was beginning to think that maybe it was no
longer an option. I just found it mildly amusing, given the context of
this thread, that I eventually found the setting grouped with others
intended to make the computer "easier to use".
Another way to look at it - Once you hit ALT to look up the underlines,
you learn them. You don't need to see them again. If you do need them
then they're a split second away. So, ultimately what's the point of
having them on 100% of the time if you really only need to see them
.0001% of the time.
Click to expand...

That's certainly true for frequently used menus in frequently used
programs. But since having them there doesn't bother me, it makes the
less frequently used menus / programs quicker to use when I do use them.
Add the fact that the average person doesn't even
use them and you have a very good reason to turn them off.
Click to expand...

I'd agree that's a very good reason for the default to be off, which has
been the case since Windows 2000/XP. Now that I've found a way to turn
them on in Vista, I have no problem with that. My main problem is that a
lot settings keep getting moved about in each successive version of
Windows, making the switch more difficult! That's not a complaint
specific to Vista - the same applies to Windows XP, and is one reason I
never used that at home.
 
I just found it mildly amusing, given the context of this thread, that I
eventually found the setting grouped with others intended to make the
computer "easier to use".
Click to expand...

Not to quibble but I think EOA is supposed to make it "easier to access"
(i.e., for people with disabilities). While I suppose one could look at it
that way, I don't see why it was pulled from the Effects menu either.

FWIW I prefer the underlines on by default... well I *think* I do. I just
realized I rarely use the things.
 
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