Discussions

PaoloM wrote:

Ahahahah

No, your idea about minwin and games was not bad at all, but I can't comment on proposals and ideas (for now).

Except, of course, for my deeply seated, almost primal, hatred for gradients

But gradients are very usefull, they show us in a very natural way on what we can click. By simulating a virtual "sunlight" that comes from above they are looking like real buttons.

But reflections on buttons on top of gradients are really a little bit too much, especially when the button text becomes hard to read.

jamie wrote:

i dont want a font manager (adobe / corel / fontminder etc)

I just want "yes to all"

* i also dont want a download manager.. just working, fast FTP (thats smart enough to resume - or continue a transfer.)

grumble! grumble!

Yes, with instant Internet we wouldn't need to manage downloads But seriously, I would like a download manager outside of IE, so that you can close the browser window while downloading a big file. What about progress bars in taskbar buttons (for downloads and every other thing we have to wait for)?

jamie wrote:

if i open the window colour slider - and make aero - red say (err pink )  then all the windows are pink.

so if you chose Windows Live UI - all the windows would be silvery blue.  if you chose xbox ui - they would be black. 

* im not saying every app has to be different... just the shell to get to the apps could be way more diverse

Maybe this will someday be possible. WPF moves in this direction by separating code from design just like HTML/CSS.

longzheng wrote:


http://www.istartedsomething.com/20071116/microsoft-iris-uix-framework-zune/

Yes, it was your blog post I was remembering. Thx.

Lloyd_Humph wrote:



So your problem is..?

I don't have a problem. I was talking about Jamie's concept and there seems to be no taskbar anymore or a replacement to show all open tasks.

BHpaddock wrote:




Err... isn't Zune 2.0 largely based on MCML (Media Center Mark-up Language)?

Hmm, could be. I thought I have read something else, that it was basen on a new framework. It feels "newer" than Vista Media Center

Lloyd_Humph wrote:



I've got a cool idea for this:

Yes, but the taskbar does this now.

Well, after a lot of discussions about our feature suggestions and what Vista should have been, what do you think is realistic we will see in 2009/2010 in the next version of Windows even if we don't known much about Seven and what has changed inside of Microsoft jet (beside of that Sinofsky is now the Windows-boss, a lot of people from the Office team are working on Seven, MinWin, multi-touch features...)?

What I think is realistic:

• IE8 (or 8.5) with a download manager and thumbnail previews on tabs the same way like in the taskbar (maybe also released before Seven)

• IE running in a virtual machine/sandbox

• new version of Media Center build on a new framework (like the new Zune software) with the old Messenger back from XP's Media Center, movie rentals, IPTV, arcade games

• modular OS with a small kernel and individually selectable components like the "Server roles" in Server 2008, maybe where you only have to buy what you choose to install: Windows Mail for just 4,99! (a little bit like what we have now with all the Vista versions and Anytime Upgrade)

• virtualisation of legacy Windows apps/games with maybe an integrated XP-core

• some WPF elements and animations all over the system, but not a complete WPF based shell

• new Sidebar using WPF, is resizable and loves Silverlight gadgets

• taskbar is really resizable, using WPF

• a new powerfull replacement for Flip 3D as a real taskbar alternative (heavy on the multi-touch support)

• system-wide multi-touch gestures

• less text in dialogs

• all control panels using the new style introduced with Vista

• no import font dialog

• and an improved ui quality (improved and more consistant look, less old icons, less glitches)

What do you think?

P.S. Sorry for my bad English...

jamie wrote:



Idea 3. Invisible taskbar - Search moved out of startmenu - centered
Again as mentioned: if MS is competing with google for real (from pcs to phones) they need the default main page UI to have search.  It cant go in center of wallpaper (as it would wreck the look of family photos) but it could go in the center of the - invisible - bar.

I think there are some really good ideas in that concept by simplify things but what I really like on the current concept of Windows is the always visible taskbar: it shows me always what I am working on, I don't have to do something to get a complete overview. That is different from what you get on a real desktop or even on Mac OS X. And another powerful idea is, that you can reach everything from a known place with just one click, even if you are working on something (full screen mode).

BTW, this is the first Win7 concept that really shows some great ideas and smart thinking (like that a "real" Flip 3D doesn't make sense on a 2D display )

But there are some issues /me thinks: instant search only would work if you are not in a different program (like Word or a browser), so the user always have to think "where is the cursor now? Can I type instantly or do I have to click/press something? In Vista it is easy: always press the Windows key! And how would you start an app without a keyboard (on a Tablet PC, phone...)?

Or what if I opened two images, with the bigger one on top. How could I reach the other image/window? Or where can I see how many images are open?

I really like Windows (Vista now) because it got the best ui concept. It's great to work in full screen mode and be able to see and reach all tasks over the task bar. Windows has the right features that I need (especially Media Center, Games, powerfull file management capabilities) and it works great.

Before I would switch to Mac OS, Apple should come up with a better solution for managing windows and apps. You can feel that the old Lisa kind of concept, the NextStep concepts like the Dock and the new features on top (like Exposé) didn't really match together.

Furthermore the Mac OS should support a better font rendering engine (it's sometimes hard to read text really fast), should support current Games and should have a powerfull integrated Media Center and Tablet PC functionality.

But maybe the biggest barrier for me to switch is the smugness of Apple. You can't really be critical, Apple users are kind of religious.