Finder View Options HIG Abuse?
Posted August 5th, 2006 @ 07:34pm by Erik J. Barzeski
I was adjusting the icon view of my desktop today when I noticed some behavior that doesn't seem quite right. I typically keep things arranged by name (the last checkbox). The first checkbox is "Snap to grid." Checking the "Snap" checkbox dims (and de-selects) the "Keep arranged by" checkbox.
Shouldn't these two items radio buttons (along with a "none" option)? I understand the rationale for not wanting that oddly named third option, but technically speaking, is this yet another HIG "violation" (if you wish to assign such a strong word to something that ignores a guideline)?
FWIW, the HIG defines radio buttons as:
A radio button displays the setting of something in your application and is part of a group in which only one button can be on at a time. Use a group of radio buttons to choose among several options which are mutually exclusive.
That sounds about right, doesn't it?
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Posted 05 Aug 2006 at 8:06pm #
Apple not following the HIG on Mac OS X? I'm shocked! 😉
Posted 06 Aug 2006 at 1:39am #
Would it still need a radio button, if one choice was not mutually exclusive of the other, but actually inclusive? That is, "Keep Arranged by" includes the behavior of grid alignment, in the syntax of the word 'arrange'.
Not that that clarifies matters. The world is not always black and white, either/or.
Posted 06 Aug 2006 at 3:26pm #
But then you'd need a "None" radio button, right? For there are some that prefer to arrange their icons manually.