Questions tagged [windows-os]
use this tag for questions related to Microsoft Operating System family.
159
questions
9
votes
4
answers
615
views
Why did older Windows installs delay before automatic restart?
Every time I need to install an older copy of Windows (today it's Server 2003 Enterprise), I run into the screen where the initial install phase completes and my machine needs to reboot.
The ...
- 193
7
votes
3
answers
278
views
Should we use Microsoft's feature names, or our own? "Autofilter" vs "Column filter"
Many Microsoft softwares, like the Office suite and the Windows Explorer, feature a type of column filter that they have dubbed the Autofilter.
It filters rows based on column content.
It adapts the ...
- 5,610
4
votes
2
answers
298
views
position-based application switching in traditional window managers
I have a related question on SU that is asking for any tools which apply this concept:
Suppose that I've got a perfectly reasonable set of two terminal windows, two web browsers, and one email ...
- 143
0
votes
3
answers
207
views
Why does MS Outlook Express store vital data inside a hidden folder? [closed]
Microsoft Outlook Express stores email files in a hidden data folder buried deep in the user's home folder. It makes it nearly impossible to selectively backup your data files unless you know exactly ...
- 181
32
votes
6
answers
15k
views
Delay on keystroke when search as you type
I'm deploying an instant search on my Windows app. At the first implementation, when the user types a key, the search engine makes a query and returns the results. I thought that that wasn't too ...
- 495
7
votes
3
answers
2k
views
Which button should get the focus at delete dialogs?
I thought that most destructive actions should be avoided from default actions. But when a delete dialog comes, I see that most Windows applications (even the OS), by default, set the focus at "...
- 495
23
votes
2
answers
3k
views
What happened to "What's this?" help?
"What's this?" help or context-sensitive help* used to be commonplace in Windows applications a few years ago. Dialog windows had an additional "?" button in the top right, that when clicked, gave you ...
- 402
172
votes
14
answers
29k
views
Do people really want to look at multiple windows at once?
I'm referring to Jakob Nielsen's alertbox from November 19, 2012. He complains about the lack of windows in Windows 8:
Lack of Multiple Windows = Memory Overload for Complex Tasks
One of the ...
- 2,986
3
votes
2
answers
195
views
Open the folder vs show in explorer?
In Windows, when a program offers to locate a file for you, it typically does so by opening an Explorer window pointing at the containing folder with the specific file highlighted. This gives you ...
- 1,137
6
votes
1
answer
396
views
Alert window, navigating to the right button
Working on both Windows and OSX, I have some habits on both.
In alert dialogs, there is a huge usability variance between both operating systems.
In the latter, you can either tap enter and have the ...
- 328
19
votes
6
answers
3k
views
Should yes/no dialogs also have a cancel?
I remember once reading an article that said whenever you present a messagebox with a Yes/No choice, you should always also provide a Cancel button, even if it does the same as No.
The rationale was ...
- 293
3
votes
3
answers
793
views
When to show a Selection Column in a data grid
I have a windows based desktop LOB application. In a multi step process a user is requested to select a SINGLE row on a datagrid. My question is? should or shouldnt I use a selection column to ...
- 742
1
vote
1
answer
1k
views
Web-safe fonts: do Apple devices ship with Arial?
Currently my font stack is "HelveticaNeue-Light","Helvetica Neue Light","Helvetica Neue",Helvetica,Arial,"Lucida Grande",sans-serif. The issue I'm having is that some of my images/buttons with text ...
- 121
2
votes
1
answer
171
views
How do I guide users to use the Windows program necessary for my Android app?
I have published a small Android App. It is a Remote Control for PowerPoint. The Software itself would work just fine, however I have a few small issues with my users. As you can imagine, a user has ...
- 21
6
votes
1
answer
486
views
Does Metro scale?
This question has bugged me for a while, I thought I might ask it.
In software, we say something "scales" if it's able to stay coherent and consistent over a long period of time, but more importantly,...
- 7,439
76
votes
4
answers
16k
views
Why did Microsoft make Windows 8 hard to Power Off?
I’ve been using Windows 8 for a couple of weeks and am certain the new operating system will work great on tablet (i.e. Microsoft Surface). On PC some say the best tile is the desktop tile, where you ...
- 54.9k
8
votes
1
answer
1k
views
Why is HideSelection the default on Windows?
I've always wondered why Windows controls have their HideSelection property set to true by default?
Example (TreeView): http://msdn.microsoft.com/en-us//library/system.windows.forms.treeview....
- 181
3
votes
2
answers
453
views
List Selection mechanisms - OK to mix?
I have a window with multiple tabpages. On one tab, I have a set of controls designed to allow the user to "include" or "exclude" any of a set of pre-defined items from some consideration. You've seen ...
- 341
19
votes
4
answers
8k
views
Inactive State of buttons, to hide or not to hide...that is the question
On a windows based LOB application for data capturing. Is it better to hide a button completely when it is inactive, or simply show a disabled state for the button.
- 742
8
votes
2
answers
2k
views
What is the purpose behind mouse acceleration?
Windows XP enables it by default, I don't know about vista or 7, in Mac OS X you have to buy a shareware to remove both mouse acceleration AND accelerated scrolling.
Why are those things always ...
- 181
3
votes
1
answer
853
views
How can the Copy and Replace message box be improved?
I have a program (running on Windows) that I am developing that has a file and folder page as part of it that is effectively copying the Windows format. I allow users to copy, cut, paste, delete and ...
- 33
1
vote
1
answer
179
views
Why does in-line Label Edit in Windows Explorer have a delay?
When you open Windows Explorer, then select some file or folder, then click its file name, an inline label-edit will be invoked. But there is an intentional delay before the textbox is displayed. Why?
...
- 13
3
votes
3
answers
348
views
Why could "installing updates" not be listed as a distinct system restart reason in Windows Server?
When I install updates on Windows Server 2008 or Windows Server 2003 it often requires a system restart upon completion. When I use "Start"->"Restart" the dialog prompts me for a reason for the system ...
- 5,847
12
votes
1
answer
429
views
Applicability of Fitts law in expert user scenarios
Fitts law states that "the time required to rapidly move to a target area is a function of the distance to the target and the size of the target.".
Simply put, if user is about to click/tap/press a ...
- 4,473
5
votes
3
answers
585
views
Is it good UX that in Windows 7 & 8 the "windows" of the same application are automatically grouped into one button?
In Windows 7 and 8, all the windows of every application are by default automatically grouped into one icon on the taskbar. This happens even when there are two instances of the application running i....
- 161
2
votes
2
answers
253
views
Generate a list of resolutions for a new window
My program is a wrapper for Remote Desktop Connection which generates a ".rdp" file and launches the file through the normal program. I am trying to mimic Remote Desktop Connection's resolution slider ...
5
votes
1
answer
811
views
Why would number lock be disabled by default?
There was a time that number lock was enabled by default (at least in a Windows environment). Then, after an update one day, all the sudden the Number Lock is disabled. Why the change? What is it ...
- 167
9
votes
5
answers
1k
views
Are double tabs on the same level acceptable?
In my Windows application, I want to show the user some kind of map. The information displayed on this map can vary a lot, depending on filters set by the user. With these filters set, the user will ...
- 193
7
votes
2
answers
1k
views
UI suggestion: Where to place MoveUp/Down buttons
It is ugly but I can't find a better place to put Move-up and Down buttons. What is your suggestion?
Note: the ORDER of the items inside the spreadsheet is important to user and we save it. These ...
- 351
2
votes
1
answer
767
views
Should a FolderBrowserDialog be used over an OpenFolderDialog?
In developing applications where I need the user to select a folder, I've always favored the OpenFolderDialog because:
It looks like an OpenFileDialog
Allows the user to jump directly to the path (...
- 123
2
votes
1
answer
87
views
Display "Day entities" that contain Stuff, by day and by period
I have something like Things that happened this day that can be either of TypeA or TypeB.
I want to display Day items per period and also display inside each Day item some info about its TypeA's and ...
- 461
2
votes
1
answer
411
views
Folder picker: Some users want to preview contents of the folder but others find this confusing
In our Silverlight application we have a wizard that gives the users the ability to browse to a specific folder on the server and in a subsequent step select the specific files that they wish to ...
- 29
24
votes
3
answers
8k
views
Is there a visual glossary of (Windows) UI controls?
Some days it seems every member of my team calls each control by a different name. Is there a good resource, preferably with images, for what the official name of each control type is? I found a few ...
- 1,137
11
votes
4
answers
2k
views
Is it still preferred/acceptable to right-align the Help menu in Windows applications?
Back when I first learned Windows GUI programming, it seemed very common to right-align the Help menu in applications.
It seems this is no longer the norm in all of the Windows applications I ...
- 221
7
votes
1
answer
390
views
Should filtering of data have an effect on the filter criteria as well?
My quesion is about filtering of data in a Windows desktop application.
I have a large amount of data coming from a database (> 900.000 records). The records are shown in a classic listcontrol (rows ...
- 17.3k
26
votes
5
answers
21k
views
Is there a Windows 8 desktop UI Guideline or HIG anywhere in the world? [duplicate]
And I don't mean Win 7 / Metro UI guidelines, I have them up the wazoo, but I've changed jobs and need to start looking at the new Windows 8 DESKTOP design. I know it takes a lot of cues from Metro on ...
- 261
4
votes
3
answers
4k
views
How to display a countdown timer?
I'm making a Pomodoro Timer to apply the Pomodoro Technique to my work. I need to display a countdown timer (count 25 minutes). Within 25 minutes I need to focus on my current task and try my best to ...
- 215
23
votes
5
answers
11k
views
Good alternatives for replacing multiple nested modal dialogs?
Having a mature and good-selling Windows desktop application, we are focusing on improving the user experience for the next release.
One thing that I try is to get rid of multiple nested modal dialog ...
- 2,959
50
votes
6
answers
5k
views
Should I provide feedback from a save button?
I'm currently in the process of developing a Windows Application which produces Word Documents.
In the program there is the ability to save your progress (different to the "Save as a Word ...
- 717
13
votes
2
answers
17k
views
Windows 8 Metro Design Examples / Guidelines [duplicate]
Possible Duplicate:
Where can I find style guide for metro UI for web applications?
Not a technical question about how to build an app (I'm just going to use DevExpress Tiles, mostly because I'm ...
Matt Peddlesden
5
votes
1
answer
258
views
Any recommendations on dealing with wizard screens with wildly different amounts of content?
I'm facing an issue with a wizard import system. The content of each screen in the wizard varies to the tune of creating white spaces as big as 300px by 300px. A stakeholder thinks this is too much ...
- 704
2
votes
2
answers
218
views
adding/removing/searching thousands of data
I have 2 tables : a contract table and a part table.
every contract has thousands of parts.
The user can select a contract and I display the thousands of related parts to the user using paging.
...
- 73
6
votes
3
answers
531
views
"File" for name of drop-down menu
In Windows mostly, a lot (most?) applications have a "File" drop-down menu, with things like "Exit", "Import/export settings", "Preferences", ...
Is "File" a blindly accepted standard/default? ...
- 2,163
8
votes
2
answers
2k
views
What's the best positioning strategy for dialog boxes?
In a Windows application, there are many options for determining the starting position of a dialog.
In the center of the application's main window
In the center of the screen where the application's ...
- 17.3k
3
votes
3
answers
377
views
Usability - Testing Windows applications under different settings
I'm testing a Windows application for usability. While I thought the application looked pretty usable at first, I tried the application using the "Large text" setting in Windows 7 and realised that ...
- 2,163
3
votes
2
answers
195
views
Intutitive way for user to navigate to a second window in application?
I have a 3D model of an aircraft in which the user uses to navigate to get to a specific parts. When the user hovers over a part the part is highlighted with a rectangle.
When the part is ...
- 183
3
votes
4
answers
2k
views
How to create realistic mockups? [closed]
I need to create a realistic mock-up for an app. Are there mockup tools to create mockups that look like a final app?
(Preferably for Mac OS Cocoa Apps, on any OS: Linux, Windows or Mac)
If not, ...
- 133
7
votes
1
answer
2k
views
Studies showing significant usability differences between Windows and Mac OS X?
Everybody has their pet gripes about one or the other, but I'm curious if there is any actual science showing that "The Windows Way" or "The Mac Way" is significantly better for some task.
Just to be ...
- 171
6
votes
4
answers
33k
views
Where can I find a gallery of WPF UI examples? [closed]
Does anyone know where I can find a gallery of UIs built with stock WPF controls?
I want to give my business partners examples of what can be (fairly easily) accomplished with the standard WPF ...
- 161
4
votes
6
answers
713
views
How can I improve the perceived performance of a desktop application?
We've build quite a 'large' and regrettably slow windows application for various financial planning business steps.
I'm currently trying to improve the performance of the application by slowly ...
- 316