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Home Article Listing Palm webOS by O'Reilly - Chapter 1 Summary - Part 1 - webOS User Interface

Palm webOS by O'Reilly - Chapter 1 Summary - Part 1 - webOS User Interface

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Palm webOS by O'Reilly - Chapter 1 Summary - Part 1
webOS User Interface
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User Interface

Navigation

  • Based on gestures with optional extensions
  • Main gestures: tap, back, scroll [back motion made on dedicated gesture area]
  • Other gestures: pan, zoom, drag & drop, switch applications, switch views, search, filter lists, launch applications

Launcher

  • Upon webOS startup, there is a status bar at top of screen and quick launch bar at bottom
  • From launcher view, a search can be performed on contacts, installed applications, or web
  • Launched app becomes foreground; quick launch bar dismissed.
  • Status bar always visible except full-screen mode (can be requested by any app)  
  • All transitions in webOS are smooth

Card View  

  • Applications can have floating icons that open a sub menu, dialog, or alternate view.
  • Pressing center button at any time brings up card view, which displays applications as sequence of cards that can be scrolled through to switch to another application
  • Cards can be:
    • reordered  
    • thrown away (closes application)
  • quick launch bar appears while in card view  
  • multitasking=goodness because:
    • One activity may require multiple applications; e.g. writing an email and looking up information on the web; reading an urgent email that arrives as you are writing
    • Certain activities may be more efficiently done in parallel, e.g. writing several emails at once  

Notifications and the Dashboard  

  • When switching to new application, previous application continues to run as background application  
  • Background applications can:
    • get events
    • read/write data
    • access services
    • repaint themselves (i.e. update their interface with new information)  
  • Background apps can communicate with user through two types of notifications:
    • Popup - Non-modal dialogs - fixed heght with one button; disruptive - appropriate for time sensitive or urgent notifications - users are forced to take action but not immediately
    • Banner - Non-modal icon and single non-styled string of text; displayed in slow crawl along bottom of screen in "notification bar"; can leave behind summary icon in notification bar as reminder.  
  • Tapping notification bar brings up dashboard.
  • Dashboard lists summary of notifications and updates/mini UIs posted by background apps and headless apps [see headless apps, below]
  • Notification bar and Dashboard manage interruptions and events without disrupting current activities.
  • Headless applications run exclusively in dashboard; do not have card view; an example is a weather application.  [These would be similar to dashboard widgets in Mac OS X or sidebar gadgets in Vista.]

User Interface Principles

  • Principles/values that support enhanced user experience with webOS devices:
    • Physical metaphors: direct interaction with application objects and features, instant response to actions
    • Sense of place: Repeatable, reversible actions, stable object placement and visual transitions
    • Up-to-date data: Pushing/pulling the latest data so the user is never looking at stale data; managing on-device cached data for offline use
    • Fast and simple: All features should be designed for instant response; minimal learning curve and efficient for experienced users
    • Minimize steps for common functions: Frequently executed commands on-screen, less frequently in menus.
    • Don't block the user: Where possible, don't use modal controls
    • Consistency: Help the user learn quickly by utilizing consistent UI paradigms.<
  • Palm apps have always been built around direct interaction model: user touches screen to select, navigate, edit.
  • Palm webOS apps have significantly expanded vocabulary for interaction, but start at same place.

 Check back for Part 2 tomorrow!  Update: Posted.



 

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