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Author Topic: Better UI needed ...  (Read 9408 times)

Anonymous

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Better UI needed ...
« on: January 18, 2004, 06:03:16 pm »
Why does the IDE consists of several floating windows (source view, inspector bar, form, main form) ? It's much better if all these components are inside one form (like in regular applications). This makes work a lot easier in multimonitor systems and is also generally clearer. It's not too late to change this.

kalwados

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Re: Better UI needed ...
« Reply #1 on: January 19, 2004, 08:08:42 am »
Quote from: "Anonymous"
Why does the IDE consists of several floating windows (source view, inspector bar, form, main form) ? It's much better if all these components are inside one form (like in regular applications). This makes work a lot easier in multimonitor systems and is also generally clearer. It's not too late to change this.


The IDE and the UI design is borrowed from Delphi/Kylix. If you work with Delphi on Windows, you can use Lazarus on Linux without problems. It is a great UI and easy to use! Even the menu items are almost equal!

With Delphi 8, Borland switched to a new UI similar to MS Visual Studio, but many Delphi developers complain about that: You can not see both code and form at the same time (for example). You can not see the form in whole without scrolling.  

The multimonitor support you mentioned is easier to realize with the current UI: Show form designer on first monitor, and code editor on 2nd monitor. If both designer and editor were part of same form, how to display on multi monitors?

Since the Lazarus component library still doesn't support docking (see roadmap[1]), changing the UI by putting all designer windows into one form would be a one-way road. Once the docking has been implemented, you would be able to arrange the IDE forms as you like.

Achim
[1] http://www.lazarus.freepascal.org/modules.php?op=modload&name=Roadmap&file=index

Anonymous

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Better UI needed ...
« Reply #2 on: January 19, 2004, 11:40:33 am »
I do use Delphi. I think the best way would be beside these two (D7 vs D8 UI). What about a MDI style (that's made from scratch to perform well in speed, visual and usability) user interface ?

Anonymous

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Better UI needed ...
« Reply #3 on: January 19, 2004, 11:09:04 pm »
There's no MDI support in gtk. Theres also no native docking widget either (gtk2.4 is rumoured to have one bit it will not be of use to gtk1)

I would favour integrating some of the windows with splitters to reduce screen clutter. It would be good to attach top toolbar, code editor, code explorer and message view all together (leave project and object inspectors as separate windows).  Message view should have tabs at the bottom for other related windows like the debug windows (just like in anjuta2)

Anonymous

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Better UI needed ...
« Reply #4 on: January 22, 2004, 02:07:27 pm »
There won't have to be MDI support. It can be created by your own (MDI in Delphi is also basically just done by allowing TForm (that is nothing else than a TWinControl) to create itself on another form)...

neli

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Better UI needed ...
« Reply #5 on: January 24, 2004, 10:43:00 am »
Hmm, in that case the window manager has to draw window border around window which is in another window. Is this possible?

 

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