Tabs, Usability & Updates
And the winner of the tab faceoff is … the traditional tabs.
There seemed to be an even amount of support for both tab styles (with a slight edge to the more modern-looking tabs), but when it came down to it I decided to go with the traditional tabs because…
- They are defined within OS X. At first glance, the user knows that they are tabs, and also what to expect when clicking on them. Right now it seems like every Mac developer has their own interpretation of what a more modern tab style should look like, and until Apple steps in and makes this style a part of the OS, it is probably best to use the default tabs in this situation.
- They don’t blend in. One of the things I (and others) liked best about the modern tabs was also one of their biggest drawbacks - they blend in too much. While the style of the modern tabs blended in well with the rest of the application window, they didn’t stand out enough to let the user know that they were tabs. So from a strictly visual perspective the modern tabs might have been the winner, but they just didn’t get the job done usability-wise.
- They scale better. The modern tabs look great in a smaller window size but, since the user can now resize the main application window, the tabs look strange stretched out across the screen. Because the traditional tabs keep the same width regardless of the window size, they don’t have this problem.
Just a little insight into some of the seemly minor decisions that I hope will make the upcoming release of Color Schemer Studio OSX 1.5 even easier to use and get the job done right.
Beta testing is wrapping up and, as long as there are no major unforeseen issues or surprises, check back next week to grab the upgrade!