Subject: RE: lists stuff
From: Joaquin Cuenca Abela (cuenca@celium.net)
Date: Tue Nov 28 2000 - 05:39:43 CST
Martin wrote:
>
> On Mon, 27 Nov 2000, Joaquin Cuenca Abela wrote:
>
> > > The word dialog does not allow all the cool features we allow.
> >
> > Martin, I've double checked the word list's dialog, and I don't
> see what are
> > the features that we allow and that word doesn't allow. What are these
> > features?
> >
>
> OK maybe I do MS an injustice. Here is what we can do that I think MS
> cannot.
>
> 1. Show a preview of the current list in real time.
? The word's dialog box shows all the time a preview of the current list
> 2. Change the starting value of the list to any value you like.
??? Format->Lists and bullets (sorry, I have here a french version and I
don't know the english label of the items)
Select (for instance) the tab "Numbers", and select the preview with
1. ----
2. ----
3. ----
(which is pretty natural, because is the type of list that we want to
create) now, we want to customize the list because we want to start with a
special value (say, 4), so we click in the "Customize" button (which, again,
seems pretty natural) and you will see a spin button with the label
"Starting value" (or something like that), just pick the value "4", and you
will have a list that start with the value 4.
> 3. Change the text delimeters around each label to anything you like.
again, say that we want a list like (1)
select the preview with
1. ----
2. ----
3. ----
click in "Customize", and the first top label in the left edge ("Numeration
format", or something like that) shows
+--------------+
|1. |
+--------------+
(the 1 has a gray blackground, because you cann't change it in this label)
now, just erase the dot, and add a couple of '()'
+--------------+
|(1) |
+--------------+
and you have a list like
(1) ----
(2) ----
(3) ----
> 4. Change the text delimenters between levels of lists to anything you
> like.
choose a multilevel list in the lists dialog, click in "Customize", and
change whatever you want (the customize dialog of a multilevel list has a
lot of options)
> 5. Do instant updates to preview to reflect the changes theusers makes to
> their selection.
?? the preview of the dialog box that pops up when you select "Customize"
shows exactly that
>
> Can MS make lists elements like
>
> <<2>>--<3>.(i)
> <<2>>--<3>.(ii)
if you mean a list like
<<2>>--<3>.(i) first line
<<2>>--<3>.(ii) second line
<<2>>--<3>.(iii) third line
MS can do it very very easily... when you click in customize, select the top
left label (again), and change the contents from
i.
to
<<2>>--<3>.(i)
> We can rather easily. How useful is this level of flexibility? I don't
> know but Power Abi users can do it.
So, again, what are the problems with the MS list's dialog box? it seems to
me much more intuitive than our dialog. For instance, say that you want to
create a bulleted list, with some fancy symbol (not a bullet), in the MS
dialog box, you will see a serie of little previews with sexy symbols, just
pick your favorite one and it's all (you can even use a custom image like
symbol, and in abi you cann't (if I remember correctly))
In Abi you have to select your symbol from a drop menu, and you don't see
the symbol until you have selected it. You only can see the name of the
symbol, but the name of the symbol gives FAR less information than a preview
of the symbol, for instance, several days ago Mike sent an email just
wondering about what symbols were associated with each name:
<quote>
TRIANGLE_LIST Don't know what this should look like.
DIAMOND_LIST A8 ("Symbol" font)
STAR_LIST Don't know which of the stars to use.
IMPLIES_LIST Don't know what this should look like.
TICK_LIST Don't know what this should look like.
HAND_LIST If this is to be a hand with a finger pointing right, I've got
it at 0x46 in Wingdings.
HEART_LIST A9 ("Symbol" font)
</quote>
Cheers,
PS: The word dialog has some little flaws, but they are mostly
implementation errors. Their UI rocks.
-- Joaquin Cuenca Abela cuenca@celium.net
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