[Qgis-developer] Better options dialogs

[Matthias Kuhn]

Hi Larry,

What is the status of the vertical tabs? Do you still have a branch with 
them ready?

I noticed, that the new labelling dialog in the vector layer settings 
has two columns of tabs, which look a bit uncommon, and I'd see vertical 
tabs as a good replacement for either the first or the second level of 
tabs in this dialog.

Cheers,

Matthias

On 09/05/2012 09:10 PM, Larry Shaffer wrote:
> Hi,
>
> I've been working on reducing overall clutter and excess space, and
> trying to increase efficiency and extensibility, with options dialogs.
>
> Problems with current option dialogs' parent QTabWidget approach:
>
> * Tab widget uses unnecessary vertical space (bad for small screens).
> * Tab widget limits the use of reasonably needed tabs for option
> sections (avoiding tabs-within-tabs unfortunately trumps useability).
> * Horizontal parent tabs limit how many option sections can be offered
> (already too wide, without text truncation, on Mac).
> * Horizontal parent tabs dictate the width of the dialog, causing form
> layout elements to optically stretch too far apart.
>
>
> Possible solution: Move 'tabs' to simple list widget on left side of a
> splitter and have option sections loaded on right.
>
> I have done mockups for the app and vector layer options [0], which
> show the following advantages:
>
> * Vertical height is maximized without sacrificing layout of option
> section form elements (good for smaller screens).
> * Number of option sections is not graphically limited.
> * Number of option sections no longer dictates width of option section
> forms (forms look much better).
> * List item widget can have its splitter section collapsed to a set
> size to show only icons for sections.
> * Consistent look across platforms, with larger icons for sections.
> * More current 'look' for v 2.0 without too much work.
>
> Other than making the dialogs clearer and less cluttered IMHO, the
> full useability of the dialogs at smaller sizes helps the user see
> more map canvas when testing options with Apply.
>
> Any comments or suggestions?
>
> [0] https://www.dropbox.com/sh/yy0j3mmg4l4kw7x/Ar_S-eYqCv/qgis/options-dlgs?lst
>
> Regards,
>
> Larry
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