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WRAP UP AND CONCLUSIONS Beware of pull-downs. Don't
use them indiscriminately because you'll sapper bomb your users with extra
VIMM work. If you are able to design a clear task flow, you can decide
on a decent alternative such as the context switch, controlled task panel,
or a classic hierarchical menu. These design alternatives may support
tasks that your organization uses a lot. If so, consider using these as
templates or guidelines in a standard.
Are there emotional issues surrounding pull-downs? Well, yes. Some developers
ask why we recommend hierarchical menus when we're in a GUI pull-down
world. We reply that we want to keep life simple for users. We can justify
a classical menu when the task flow uses linear sequences of screens plus
the "hub" concept. pull-downs are not
simple to users.
Meanwhile other developers may demand that pull-downs and icons carry
the major weight of navigation in the name of "object-oriented interface
design. In reply, we suggest that designers want to speed user comprehension
and minimize learning time by providing clear UI structures.
Thus, soul design seeks UI structures that
combine objects in manner that suggests a useful task flow or object relationship.
If we introduce these structures, then we
automatically move in the direction of the design alternatives illustrated
above.
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