3 ms·
I'm not sure it's such a good idea to mess with modal dialogue boxes. From a usability perspective, it makes it harder to navigate, because it redefines known m
by troels 17y ago
I'm not sure it's such a good idea to mess with modal dialogue boxes. From a usability perspective, it makes it harder to navigate, because it redefines known metaphors. This is the same problem as when people use images instead of a `<button>` or `<submit>` element. From a technical perspective, it's a magnet for annoying interface bugs.
- wmeredith 17y agoThis. Forms online are where the rubber really meets the road in terms of online usability. It is a place where you have to make a really strong case aesthetics-wise to start showing users something unfamiliar. (Not saying that the case can't be made, just that it's a hard sell to usability-centered designers like me.)
- mcav 17y agoI really like being able to use Javascript's prompt() and alert() dialogs (when the case really calls for a popup, of course) for the reasons you describe. But it seems like some browser vendors are pushing to make them as cumbersome as possible. Internet Explorer, for instance, will alert the user with a security warning if you use prompt(), saying "This page wants to ask you for information from a script" or something like that. I've encountered quite a few people who think that's a bug in my site's code.
- troels 17y agoI know it isn't a direct answer to what you are asking for, but in general I think that modal interfaces should be used very sparingly, if at all. In most cases, you can construct the interface in a non-modal way, and you end up with a better user experience. It's not always easy, but I think it's usually the better solution.