Talk:Graphical user interface

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Contents 1 Overhaul Needed 2 Comments 2.1 GUI vs CLI 2.2 Whole Article 3 Link to The Skins Factory 4 Outlook 5 Mac OS X image 6 Look and Feel 7 UI Chrome 8 "Microsoft Built On" 9 Post-WIMP 10 XGL in "3D user interfaces" 11 PUI? 12 Evolution of graphic user interfaces 13 PUI section is to small 14 Windows screen shot 15 OS with GUI 16 The composition frightens me 17 Need addional software breakdown 18 What the...! 19 Screenshots of non-free software

[edit] Overhaul Needed

This page is currently in a very poor state. Rampant assumptions, no references, poor discussion of non-WIMP GUIs (there are dozens, if not hundreds), no critical analysis by experts, etc. This article needs to be completely revamped. I should also note that much of the terminology used is used vaguely or in a manner that is completely wrong. Important issues are ignored entirely. Sections are rambling and confusing. This is my first time writing something like this on a talk page here, but this is one of the poorest "major" articles I've seen on Wikipedia. -- John Nowak June 4th, 2006

I support the article overhaul. IMHO this should be coordinated with the main User interface article, both to avoid overlapping of the concepts described there and to provide an extension of them. Diego 08:27, 18 August 2006 (UTC)

An article skeleton has been proposed for a similar overhaul of the Spanish revision. I copy here the index, for coordinating the revision in both languages. Diego 09:30, 18 August 2006 (UTC)

• Index
• Introduction
• GUI History
  • Precursors
  • Xerox Alto and Xerox 8010
  • Lisa and Apple
  • Microsoft Windows
  • X Window System
  • CDE, Genome and KDE

• Elements of graphical user interfaces
  • Point devices
  • Menus
  • Windows
  • Icons-Pictograms
  • Widgets
    • Buttons
    • Radio buttons
    • Checkboxes
    • Sliders
      • Scrollbars
    • Tabs
• Navigation through visual space
  • Space management in 2D graphical user interfaces
    • Window managers & Desktops
      • Virtual desktops ****
    • Frame managers
  • 3D GUIs
  • Zooming User Interfaces
  • Hypertexts
    • The World Wide Web
• Transversal concerns in graphical user interfaces
  • Usability of GUIs
    • Modes
  • Information Visualization
    • Graphs
    • Tables

---

We should not confuse 'Graphical user interface' with 'WIMP interface', which is more specifically targeted towards mouse operated interaction. Graphical user interface is clearly scoped wider, and should discuss the visualization of front end interfaces. Jeroen van der Putten

Would you mind suggesting some improvements to the above article outline, to address the concerns that are specific to the Graphical component of a interface? (i.e. not regarding to pointing devices, hardware...) Diego 12:51, 8 September 2006 (UTC)

[edit] Comments

A question: I'm working on my SOC (type of seminary work). Are in this article informations, which I can use? Or is it completely wrong? --Drakonee 13 October 2006

designer out there who would like to explain his job in this article?

Nice screenshots, but why is the Mac screenshot the only one not showing any windows open? It's really not about the background image.

Anyone got some illustrative screenshots? -- AdamH 16:32, 19 Aug 2004 (UTC)

There's a lot in the History_of_the_GUI section --Phaze 16:31, 1 May 2005 (UTC)

I don't think anybody but the most curmudgeonly of CLI geeks uses "WIMP" as a synonym for GUI any more - That was the province of Microsoft fans before Windows become viable, after which they decided that GUIs were no longer wimpy. Pete 08:05, 10 Jun 2005 (UTC)

I still use WIMP for GUI... however, I don't use it as a play on an acronym. ;)... then again I may be a `CLI geek'. Is it necessary to have `or GUI, pronounced "gooey".' Personally I've never heard it said that way, and would have no clue what anyone was talking about if pronounced that way... I'm not sure if the author meant it as G-U-I, or really as "gooey"(like `glue is sticky and gooey')? Anyone know of any evidence or support either way?

Also, anyone know enough about Sun's http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Project_Looking_Glass enough to through something in. I'm not sure if it's a window manager or a full desktop GUI? Maybe someone with more knowledge can decide that. --Capi crimm 02:19, 12 Jun 2005 (UTC)

I've always heard it pronounced "gooey", but I suspect that the sort of mind that prefers a CLI also prefers spelling out acronyms!

As one who prefers a CLI, I've always spelled out GUI. Funny obrservation. --24.51.94.14 23:23, 6 August 2006 (UTC)

Thanks for the "Looking Glass" stuff - looks fascinating, but I haven't used it. Sounds like it's still in development? I also clicked on the Solaris link because I saw a copy of Solaris on a magazine cover disc the other day and had to look twice twice to see if it was fair dinkum! Pete 03:16, 12 Jun 2005 (UTC)

The "3D user interfaces" section mentions both; "Sun's Project Looking Glass" and "Project Looking Glass by Java", not very helpful at all. Who is running project looking glass? Sun directly or is it part of Java??? -- Anonymous

[edit] GUI vs CLI

what this section means??? this seems a war between GUI and CLI so... maybe this section needs an introduction with the history of Gui that replace CLI and then introduce the advantages and applications for each one (in order to see what GUI supported to the computers that were previously CLI and see the limits of GUI (where cli performs better))

-- Anonymous

from http://getpot.sourceforge.net/GUI-ism.txt Perspective worth mentioning ? The Threat of Graphical User Interfaces Explaining GUI-ism, its evil goals and its blind supporters, requires first of all a clarification of the term GUI. Second, it is discussed how certain people (so-called "GUI-ists") use GUIs to achieve their vicious goals. Once, this is clear we discuss how the modern society has to defend itself against the danger of GUI-ism. and so on...

No. Perspectives from anonymous authors that provide no backing for their statements is of course completely inappropriate for Wikipedia. --Ronz 16:37, 26 November 2006 (UTC)

Suggest criticism be added to this section about the lack of flexibility inherent in most implementations, such as "point-and-grunt", the replacing of language (eg. CLI) with the ability to merely point at objects and grunt activation requests. (eg. http://www.catb.org/~esr/writings/taouu/html/pr01.html) 60.240.13.216 12:34, 12 February 2007 (UTC)

Well, at least we have a source to cite. It's not much of a source though, since Raymond doesnt have any recognized expertise in usability that I'm aware of. I'd argue that he's not a reliable source on the topic of usability based upon the contents of his online book linked above - he's promoting heuristic-based testing (an approach that has been shown to be extremely ineffective), and he's promoting his own made-up heuristics that have never been shown to have any effectiveness at all. In comparison, I think that http://www.usability.gov/ offers detailed discussions of best practices in usability. (I am biased though, having worked on the first edition of their guidelines).--Ronz 04:44, 14 February 2007 (UTC)

[edit] Whole Article

This article is very messy and could use a rewrite, as the information found here on Wikipedia is usually reliable and this degrades the reputation

--Anonymous

Done! I've replaced the very long table of differences with a short paragraph explaining the most important difference: uncoverability versus efficiency. I've also added a link to my source ("Linux is not Windows") at the bottom of the page for those who want to know more, although the article also speaks of non-UI concerns and is definitely biased toward the CLI.

I'm afraid we have lost some very funny comparisons in the process, such as (paraphrased) "in GUI undo is possible, but in CLI redo is possible via scripts" and "as opposed to CLIs, modern GUIs utilize all the power of your powerful new hardware"... -- Gelisam 65.95.255.207 16:40, 13 November 2005 (UTC)

I have some issues with this line:

The GUI is usually WIMP-based, although occasionally other metaphors surface, such as Microsoft Bob, 3dwm or (partially) FSV.

• MS Bob, 3dwm and FSV are implementations using other gui metaphors
• explaining the other metaphors would be nice.
• I'm not sure if 3dwm and FSV need to be spelled out fully - on the one hand they're proper names of products/projects, on the other, they are acronyms.

-- Art

No.

[edit] Link to The Skins Factory

I feel this link is inappropriate for this page, as another user felt when TheSkinsFactory added it on Windows Media Player. It is not directly relevant to the abstract topic of graphical user interfaces. To date, links to their website are their only contributions.

I do feel that it may be appropriate to have a link at skin (computing). I will be adding other links there shortly to ensure that no undue bias towards one skin provider is present.

I wouldn't normally bother noting my reasons for this edit here, but I am an employee of Stardock, and so feel I should explain myself more fully. :-) GreenReaper 06:05, 23 October 2005 (UTC)

[edit] Outlook

What is with this section? "Research has brought back evidence that users who use application software for scripting and editing find it easier and more effective to make good use of GUIs (Graphical User Interfaces) rather than Command Lines." Um... No? I've actually found articles that state its easier to teach CLIs to people new to computers then it is GUIs. Also, since when is it more effective to use a GUI for scripting? "The "direct manipulation interface" term is usually not presented as an acronym." Then why mention it? Seriously, this section either needs major editing or deleting. --James 06:42, 27 January 2006 (UTC)

[edit] Mac OS X image

Why is the Mac OS X image set for deletion? Quote: The image above is proposed for deletion. LIllIi 23:26, 2 January 2007 (UTC)

[edit] Look and Feel

Anyone agree that they should be merged? --Brazucs 23:01, 22 March 2006 (UTC)

Yeah, Look And Feel seems pointless without GUI, and it makes no sense without it. The article should be streamlined into a subsection --JTAN 11:32, 29 March 2006 (BST)

No, I think LNF should remain separate because it can explain computer language preferences and CLI as well. Pascal has a different look and feel to C++, as do the similar 'more' and 'less' CLI programs. LNF can be given more depth as a separate entry without increasing the GUI. --- anonymous

Yes and no, at its current state, the LNF article is quite pointless without the GUI article, but if it was expanded on quite a bit, then it would be much more useful on its own. - Exelsiar

I second Excel. VJ Emsi 19:16, 30 April 2006 (UTC)

[edit] UI Chrome

The article UI Chrome was "merged" with this one - but this page makes no mention of the term. The redirect from UI Chrome is now not particularly helpful. DunxD

I took a stab at describing chrome. But I agree that a big overhaul is called for, and perhaps splitting chrome out. Is the previous contents of the UI Chrome article available? --NealMcB 22:00, 5 June 2006 (UTC)

I removed the link, since it redirected back to this page. I'm not a GUI designer, but in 10 years in the business I have not heard this term used. It is, however, very descriptive. Reminds me of the cars of the '50s. Wake 00:57, 29 October 2006 (UTC)

[edit] "Microsoft Built On"

This implies that they improves elements. They did not. The first version of Windows had less features than the Macintosh. --TrevorLSciAct 19:20, 22 June 2006 (UTC)

[edit] Post-WIMP

What do people mean by post-WIMP? What examples are there of GUIs that do not follow the WIMP paradigm? Theshibboleth 01:58, 24 July 2006 (UTC)

Web browsers, for instance. The browser application itself may reside in a windows (in some systems), but the browsing session is not based in windows and menus. Diego 07:48, 22 August 2006 (UTC)

[edit] XGL in "3D user interfaces"

What about XGL in "3D user interfaces"? (please sign with ~~~~)

What about the fact that 3D is a marketing ploy. I've never seen anything except a 2D screen. 3D graphics are projected in two dimensions onto a 2D screen. Wake 00:54, 29 October 2006 (UTC)

[edit] PUI?

What is a PUI? --holizz 19:52, 13 August 2006 (UTC)

Portable User Interface

[edit] Evolution of graphic user interfaces

Added some information to this section to reflect that the IBM Common User Access spec is the progenitor of the GUIs found in MS Windows, OS/2 and Unix. 64.171.162.77 11:02, 3 December 2006 (UTC)

[edit] PUI section is to small

I have never herd of PUI, the PUI section on Article is to little, and there should be a lot of more information on PUI, I have never herd of PUI before...Gumbos 20:30, 23 December 2006 (UTC)

[edit] Windows screen shot

This article has a Linux and Mac OSX screenshot. Why is there no Windows screen shot? I have a Mac, so I can't make one. I suspect someone has a windows computer out there... —The preceding unsigned comment was added by Nathan Dobson (talk • contribs) 03:37, 28 December 2006 (UTC).

Windows Screenshot Added.--Zeeboid 22:18, 30 January 2007 (UTC)

Windows screenshot added again, as it was removed earlier.--Zeeboid 21:13, 15 February 2007 (UTC)

[edit] OS with GUI

I have a slight beef with saying OS's like BSD and Linux (Unix) are "OS's with a gui". They use X Windows, which is an application that runs on the OS. The GUI is not part of the OS. AFAIK, Windows GUI has some hooks into the kernel, so it could be considered to be one with the GUI. Maybe the same for Mac. Wake 01:35, 11 January 2007 (UTC)

[edit] The composition frightens me

Hi, I'm KennyRogerz and I am your new Wikifriend :D Just got done creating my first two complete articles and revised this article (including this discussion page, I know it's just talk but the quality of the words makes me question the quality of the people..) so I kind of liked doing what everyone else has been doing here. Wikipedia is a great source of information we just have to make sure it's all credible and intelligent. Wikipedia is the future if you ask me! I might spend a couple hours just randomly learning stuff here so I'll go on fixing whatever I find to the best of my knowledge.

KennyRogerz - February 7, 2007

Note: Wikifriend is my term ^_^

[edit] Need addional software breakdown

Sorry to add more problems to the discussion but there is alot more that needs to be clarified and opened up here. Software is not just on PCs and MACs anymore there are types of software for example (shareware, freeware, etc.) that are downloadable from the internet.

So you also need to explain alot more that what this page is talking about, and I did not even get into the TCP/IP stack related layers of software that is only on routers and bridges etc. If your going to be an Encyclopedic reference, you have got to go through all the pain involved in explaining it all.

Akc9000akc9000 Al Costanzo

[edit] What the...!

I am a computer novice trying to simply understand a definition for this term. I am so confused now. This needs to be rewritten in plain language so that people can understand it. —The preceding unsigned comment was added by 128.184.138.7 (talk) 00:11, 6 March 2007 (UTC).

[edit] Screenshots of non-free software

I've removed the screenshots of Windows and OS X. This is VERY IMPORTANT for all editors to understand: Per Wikipedia's policy on Wikipedia:Fair use, we -cannot- use screenshots of non-free software when a free replacement is available. This is very clearly stated, and is not up for discussion. Our goal is to build an encyclopedia that is as free as possible, and that means using free text and free images. Screenshots of KDE, Gnome, and other free operating systems are acceptable, of course, because of the copyleft status of the contents of the images. -/- Warren 11:49, 20 March 2007 (UTC)

• First off, the GPL says nothing about screenshots of software under the GPL. A screenshot of an OS X desktop is fair use, and always has been. (If Wikipedia policy says otherwise, it's wrong.) Secondly, KDE and Gnome are not operating systems. Please refrain from making such strong statements with limited knowledge, especially the "of course" assumption that screenshots of Gnome are permissible because its open source software. - John Nowak 12:25 AM, March 23rd 2007 (EST)

• The GPL clearly does not cover program output (i.e. screenshots). A screenshot would either be "fair use" or would be copyrighted by the person who created it. 64.171.162.76 19:13, 28 March 2007 (UTC)