RCP: 0.7.6, import form broken 'combo' widget for all OS
Version: TXM 0.7.6 current update (friday 26 september 2014)
The character ‘Encoding’, corpus ‘Language’ and ‘Font’ combo widgets of the TXT+CSV and XML/w+CSV import modules parameters form editor don’t display anything (don’t work).
The problem is reported on all OS:
- Windows 8.1
- Mac OS X
- Ubuntu 12.04
MD: I could not reproduce the bug with the TXT+CSV or XML/w modules. Tests done with TXM 0.7.6 (201409191440)
- Ubuntu 12.04
- Ubuntu 14.04
- Mac OS X 10.6
- Windows XP
New Diagnostic
The problem seems related to the ‘please select the source directory parameter before using the import parameters form widget’ TXM behavior/bug.
According to MD, IF you select the import source directory (widget at the beginning of the form) before using the UI widgets, the problem disapears.
The problem is that nothing in the UI prevents the user from using the widgets before selecting the source directory, so the user experience is that the import parameters form is buggy.
Current design is that some import parameters form UI widgets are displayed but not initialized and functional until a specific interaction has taken place in the window.
This behavior violates the UI principle that if you provide any UI widget to the user, you must consider that the user will want to use it (interact with it). The UI widget logics should not rely on an hypothetic user behavior.
(experience shows that a lot of TXM users try to play with any import parameters form widgets before selecting the source directory parameter value)
Solution 1
Initialize all UI widgets needing the source directory parameter to be set to disabled state until that parameter is set (the user understands that she can not use them).
Solution 2 (better)
- Show at first only the source directory parameter selection widget
- When that parameter is set, then display remaining parameters widgets
This solution is better because the user only interactions with a modal UI corresponding to the import parameters choice workflow.
Solution 3 (even better)
Initialize all UI widgets with coherent behavior with respect to the current state of the form.
In the context of the import parameters form:
- if a parameter needs another to be set before beeing editable, it must be disabled until the needed parameter is set
- if it doesn’t need any parameter to be set, it should be initialized with a coherent behavior
For instance, in the import parameters form, one could at least initialize the ‘Encoding’, corpus ‘Language’ and ‘Font’ combo menu widgets to conventionnal values and let the user play with them, even before selecting the source directory parameter.
To help the user with Solution 3, the import parameters form organisation can be changed, especially in the beginning/at the top: if ‘source directory’ parameter is needed first and then other parameters can be set, the form should explicitly ask for that parameter to be set first.
(from redmine: issue id 1020, created on 2014/09/27 by Serge Heiden)
- Relations:
- child #1037 (closed)
Activity
changed milestone to %TXM 0.7.7
Serge Heiden a écrit :
For instance, in the import parameters form, one could at least initialize the ‘Encoding’, corpus ‘Language’ and ‘Font’ combo menu widgets to conventionnal values and let the user play with them, even before selecting the source directory parameter.
We need to be careful though: if the user sets a language before opening a folder with a previously imported corpus where another langauge is chosen, it should be clear which setting overrides the other.(from redmine: written on 2014/10/09 by Alexey Lavrentev)
mentioned in issue #1037 (closed)
assigned to @mdecorde
