[dev] [commits] Horde branch develop updated. 8b52fbc316c6846bb4ffd96c25a8ffcd9cbbe695

[Michael J Rubinsky]

Quoting Michael M Slusarz <slusarz at horde.org>:

> Quoting Michael J Rubinsky <mrubinsk at horde.org>:
>
>> Quoting Jan Schneider <jan at horde.org>:
>>
>>> Zitat von Michael M Slusarz <slusarz at horde.org>:
>>>
>>>> commit 98107745649a54da45c9846ca3881aa13a947ecd
>>>> Author: Michael M Slusarz <slusarz at horde.org>
>>>> Date:   Fri Aug 24 16:00:12 2012 -0600
>>>>
>>>>  Smartmobile navigation UI tweaks
>>>>
>>>>  Remove navigation buttons; swipe actions are sufficient.
>>>>  Fix message navigation in search mailbox.
>>>>
>>>> imp/js/smartmobile.js                      |   43  
>>>> ++++++---------------------
>>>> imp/templates/smartmobile/message.html.php |    4 --
>>>> 2 files changed, 10 insertions(+), 37 deletions(-)
>>>>
>>>> http://git.horde.org/horde-git/-/commit/98107745649a54da45c9846ca3881aa13a947ecd
>>>
>>> I'm not so sure. Technically, swipe is sufficient. But considering  
>>> that one of the goals of the smartmobile interface was to provide  
>>> users a usable interface if they point their mobile browsers to  
>>> the webmail address they are used to, it might be exactly those  
>>> unsophisticated users, that might have no idea how to navigate  
>>> between messages unless it's obvious to them.
>
> I figured there would be some blowback from this, but thinking about  
> this for several days, I believe this is the correct solution.   
> Looking at other mobile-like interfaces, I could not find another  
> that explicitly had navigation buttons like this.  Almost all mobile  
> apps assume that users understand the ability to pinch-zoom, swipe,  
> and long click at this point.
>
> A potential option would be to put floating arrows on either side of  
> the screen to indicate to the user that they can navigate.  But I'm  
> not sure if the benefit is worth the expense, given that I believe  
> that message-level navigation is not a frequently used option in the  
> smartmobile context.
>
> My usage pattern when using smartmobile view is to scan the mailbox  
> for new "interesting" messages to read, and then go read them one at  
> a time.  I am not interested in traversing the mailbox (and,  
> concurrently, all unseen messages) since I am not looking to  
> actively manage my mailbox using this interface, since it is  
> admittedly a bit clunky.  Smartmobile exists as a way to primarily  
> *read* emails on the go.  Advanced mail management actions just  
> confuse and hinder this goal.
>
>> I agree with Jan. I don't see any harm in leaving them in and it  
>> provides a small benefit for a subset of users.
>
> I disagree (obviously) and am looking to trim other features as  
> well.  Namely "Edit As New".  This is not a "core" feature and  
> arguably isn't useful at all on the smartmobile platform since it is  
> pretty much impossible (well, at least very difficult) to go through  
> and edit currently existing text.  Plus, most other mail clients  
> don't directly offer this as a core feature, or at least as a  
> visible core feature, so it can be confusing to most users.

I don't have a strong opinion as far as the "Edit As New" not being  
needed on mobile, but would tend to agree with Michael here.

> These extra buttons DO clutter up the available actions and make it  
> more difficult to select the proper button to click.  In the mobile  
> world, I believe that redundant UI needs to be eliminated - you  
> select the best UI method for the particular action and that's it.

I can understand your argument here, though I disagree. What about  
clients that don't have touch screens? I'm thinking specifically about  
BB here. E.g., on my wife's BB, the mobile interface is usable (though  
clunky) by navigating links via the trackball (or whatever BB calls  
it). Are we willing to force these devices to the minimal view just  
because we want to remove the navigation buttons?

> The goal of the smartmobile mail client (IMHO) is to be allowed to  
> view messages and be able to do quick, basic actions (Reply,  
> Forward, Delete, Spam).  It is not intended to be an application to  
> *manage* your mail account however.  Redirecting, Move, and Copy are  
> somewhat more advanced options and are of somewhat dubious value in  
> the smartmobile context.

I disagree here. I can see Redirect as being a vital action for  
corporate users. I can see Copy being unnecessary, but I wouldn't want  
to be without Move. If my normal workflow is to move an email out of  
my INBOX after I've read it, I want to be able to do this while I'm  
reading it, regardless of what interface I'm using.  I don't want to  
have to handle the same email in my INBOX twice. I use my mobile for  
managing my mail *far* more often than I use the desktop interface.  
Granted, I'm using either a native email client or the ActiveSync  
client on my phone to do it, but that doesn't mean it shouldn't be  
possible with the mobile web interface.

-- 
mike

The Horde Project (www.horde.org)
mrubinsk at horde.org
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