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I'm simply baffled that you're nitpicking little things like those, and then jumping to the conclusion that wrapping a browser widget is the best way to display

I'm simply baffled that you're nitpicking little things like those, and then jumping to the conclusion that wrapping a browser widget is the best way to display a GUI in an end user application. HTML/CSS UIs you're suggesting are notorious for using ugly, non-standard, completely hacked up widgets with ridiculous styling that don't fit in with the rest of the system. Furthermore none of your nitpicks are due to wxWidgets itself and are mostly due to the application developer making usability choices (i.e. using customized buttons, grouping toolbar buttons using color, etc.) or simple mistakes (like forgetting to turn off the grid view header).

moron4hire 11y ago
As I said before I know they haven't built these programs themselves, so it's not necessarily their fault that these developers have gone with the everything-and-the-kitchen-sink style of UI design. But they also chose to feature these particular projects, so someone there thinks these are good examples, which does not speak well towards their commitment to enabling good design. And they aren't little things. Replacing standard buttons in some cases but not others confuses the user as to what elements are actually interactive. Not using the layouts that the operating system vendor recommends for different types of applications confuses users as to where to expect to find things. Using your own, janky set of icons without text labels confuses users as to which buttons do what. I mean, have you even used KiCAD? It's an absolute abomination of UX. You know how programmers have a reputation for being bad at design? You know how programmers have a reputation for "not having any common sense"? This is why.
- mark-r 11y ago
  I think it's the influence of the web that has allowed these deviations from standard to flourish in a way that they couldn't have 20 years ago. When every widget on a web page is new and unknown, you just learn to deal with it. Certainly you can find bad design both on native apps and on the web.
- jlarocco 11y ago
  The point is, using a silly web UI in a browser widget, as you suggested, makes the problem worse. TBH your argument sounds like a designer trying to justify being a designer. No real users are "confused" by any of the things you've nitpicked about. You're conjuring up some uber-stupid theoretical user as a strawman. But feel free prove me wrong by finding real people on the web complaining that they're confused by those issues.
  - deleted 11y ago
    [deleted]

moron4hire 11y ago

As I said before I know they haven't built these programs themselves, so it's not necessarily their fault that these developers have gone with the everything-and-the-kitchen-sink style of UI design. But they also chose to feature these particular projects, so someone there thinks these are good examples, which does not speak well towards their commitment to enabling good design. And they aren't little things. Replacing standard buttons in some cases but not others confuses the user as to what elements are actually interactive. Not using the layouts that the operating system vendor recommends for different types of applications confuses users as to where to expect to find things. Using your own, janky set of icons without text labels confuses users as to which buttons do what. I mean, have you even used KiCAD? It's an absolute abomination of UX. You know how programmers have a reputation for being bad at design? You know how programmers have a reputation for "not having any common sense"? This is why.

mark-r 11y ago
I think it's the influence of the web that has allowed these deviations from standard to flourish in a way that they couldn't have 20 years ago. When every widget on a web page is new and unknown, you just learn to deal with it. Certainly you can find bad design both on native apps and on the web.
jlarocco 11y ago
The point is, using a silly web UI in a browser widget, as you suggested, makes the problem worse. TBH your argument sounds like a designer trying to justify being a designer. No real users are "confused" by any of the things you've nitpicked about. You're conjuring up some uber-stupid theoretical user as a strawman. But feel free prove me wrong by finding real people on the web complaining that they're confused by those issues.
- deleted 11y ago
  [deleted]