Firefox 29 and the dumb idea that, ..... 1

[ChrisHirst]

everybody should have their tabs in the position that makes least sense.


To get them back now needs a 'plugin'

https://support.mozilla.org/en-US/kb/how-to-make-new-firefox-look-like-old-firefox

Chris.

Indifference will be the downfall of mankind, but who cares?
Time flies like an arrow, however, fruit flies like a banana.
Webmaster Forum

 

[feherke]

Hi
Thank you for the helpful tip.

( Actually, I consider it a five-bulb

tip. )


Feherke.
feherke.ga

 

[goombawaho]

I just got hit by this update today. Wow - I'm not enthused very much. But I'm going to resist using the "old plugin" because when I see it on other computers, I'll need to be comfortable using it.

"Living tomorrow is everyone's sorrow.
Modern man's daydreams have turned into nightmares.

 

[ChrisHirst]

Install it on the other computers as well, the 'owner' may thank you for it

Being immediately above the page it is display is surely the obvious place to display the tabs, I have yet to see a 'tab list' on a web page that doesn't have have the content immediately below the tab and a 'Rolodex' (which tabs emulate) would be pretty useless if the 'tabs' were on the lid!

The fact that they had a plugin ready to roll, suggest that they already knew one was going to be needed when they rolled out the v29 update. I know they have been working up to the point where they could deploy the "Australis" layout for a couple of years, first there was a View -> Tabs on top on|off menu option, then that got relegated to an about:config setting of browser.TabsOnTop finally, we get no choice, instead we are forced use a 'plugin' to make things work in a way that is actually intuitive.
Yes 'change' is inevitable but changes that make things more awkward and/or less instinctive are really not the way forward.

Chris.

Indifference will be the downfall of mankind, but who cares?
Time flies like an arrow, however, fruit flies like a banana.
Webmaster Forum

 

[goombawaho]

Perhaps they followed lessons first pioneered by Microsoft when designing Windows 8. Give the people what they DON'T want but what you want them to have.

"Living tomorrow is everyone's sorrow.
Modern man's daydreams have turned into nightmares.

 

[feherke]

Hi

Being immediately above the page it is display is surely the obvious place to display the tabs, I have yet to see a 'tab list' on a web page that doesn't have have the content immediately below the tab and a 'Rolodex' (which tabs emulate) would be pretty useless if the 'tabs' were on the lid!

That is the logic part.

But there is the ergonomic part too :
[ol]
[li]While browsing, most of the time my mouse pointer is in the document area.[/li]
[li]I click the tabs more frequently than I click the location bar.[/li]
[/ol]
From these two I feel that putting the more frequently clicked control closer to the mouse pointer is also obvious.


Feherke.
feherke.ga

 

[goombawaho]

I miss the forward/back arrow placement from before. Also, where is the stop and refresh buttons? Gone?

"Living tomorrow is everyone's sorrow.
Modern man's daydreams have turned into nightmares.

 

[feherke]

Hi

Also, where is the stop and refresh buttons?

Are not inside the location bar, at its right end ? ( Not sure. Thanks to Classic Theme Restorer Add-on page I now have the original buttons back. )


Feherke.
feherke.ga

 

[guitarzan]

goombawaho: The forward arrow now appears only when you have a site to go "forward" to. In 28, the forward arrow would have been disabled if there was no site to go forward to.. now it is gone unless you go "back" one page. And I believe the stop/refresh buttons work the same as 28 did.

I can't really understand the reasoning behind most of the interface changes, other than to be more like Chrome. Why was that important? If I preferred Chrome, I would stopped using Firefox long ago.

 

[strongm]

>what you want them to have

Famously, when asked how much market research was conducted to guide Apple in its incredible string of new product successes, Steve Jobs responded, "None. It isn't the consumers' job to know what they want.

 

[ChrisHirst]

I keep saying the same kind of thing to my son during our exchange of views on web development. I keep pointing out to him that clients don't know what they want until they have it, then they realise it wasn't actually what they wanted anyway. The problem with this forced change is a bit like "puppy-dogging", I suppose we are fortunate it wasn't M$ though, THEY would have probably made everybody who missed the feature buy a whole new operating system just to get it back.





Chris.

Indifference will be the downfall of mankind, but who cares?
Time flies like an arrow, however, fruit flies like a banana.
Webmaster Forum