Re: web input model (was "Re: The web doesn't need...")

On Thu, Sep 10, 2015 at 11:55:25AM +0200, Piotr Koszuliński wrote:
> * Then we realised that *correctly* implementing selection movements in
> JavaScript is a job that only a few people could do. Handling RTL/LTR
> boundaries, touch devices (and other ways to control the selection),
> localisation, platform specific behaviours, complex layouts (multi-col,
> floats) and few other things that are currently hidden by browsers (e.g.
> the "x position" and "before/after soft line break"). We agreed that some
> of these internals need to be exposed, but we decided that browsers will
> implement selection control.

One of my frustrations with browsers, even outside of the editing
context, is that the selection produced by mouse-down-and-drag is
not very desirable or predictable.  It may have something to do with
floating content being selected unexpectedly.  (This is a problem in
PDF viewers, too, BTW.)  I think that these are the selection control
problems you refer to?

Not sure what you mean by the "x position" in this context?

It would be nice to have a CSS selector for before/after soft line
break.  Also, a *simple* way to query the break condition.  There is
already a complicated way! :-)

> >  These seem like desirable input-model capabilities for non-editing
> applications, too.
> 
> I hope the above explains a bit why we ended up with such a model (oriented
> around "editing"). I remember some voices at the beginning (about a year
> ago) that we could try to generalise these to cover other types of
> applications (like image/music editing software for instance – if that's
> what you meant), but I think that text editing is somehow special here.
> However, if I understood you correctly, you may be interested in
> http://www.w3.org/WAI/IndieUI/.

The designer of an editor's keyboard interaction has a choice of using
platform keyboard conventions, or creating an independent keyboard
convention.  Is the independent convention based on the labels on the
keys, or on the location of the keys?

For example, Macintosh convention is that Command-B is bold.  Perhaps
on another platform, Control-B is bold.  Most keyboards have a Control
key.  Non-Macintosh keyboards do not usually have a Command key.  Some
keyboards place keys with identical labels in different places.  What
is important to me as designer?  That approximately the same finger
movement produces the same result?  That striking the key with the same
label produces the same result?  Or consistency with the other software
on the browser's host machine?  It will depend on the expected users,
their goals and habits: do they use keyboard shortcuts?  Do they switch
keyboard or OS often?

Dave

-- 
David Young
dyoung@pobox.com    Urbana, IL    (217) 721-9981

Received on Thursday, 10 September 2015 18:13:50 UTC