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Posted to users@openoffice.apache.org by Oliver-Rainer Wittmann <or...@googlemail.com> on 2013/02/06 17:23:03 UTC
[improvement idea] "in-place" editing of Input Fields in Writer
Hi,
recently I got notice about our (from my point of view) very
user-unfriendly way for editing Input Fields in Writer.
Currently, you can not place the cursor into an Input Field which in
general is shown with a grey background when Menu View - Field Shading
is on. If you click on the Input Field, a modal dialog pops up. In this
dialog you can edit the Input Field's content. On confirmation of the
dialog the Input Field's content is changed in the text document. To
edit the next Input Field you need to click on it. There is also a
special key shortcut - namely Shift-Ctrl-F9. This key shortcut opens the
Input Field content editing dialog for the first field. This time the
dialog has a Next button by which you can confirm your change and switch
directly to the next Input Field. A Previous button is not available. By
Murphys law the dialog hides most of the time the Input Field in the
text document.
I have got the opinion that such an editing experience is bad,
especially, if the document is a form which makes use of a lot of Input
Fields to be filled by the user.
My idea is to be able to edit the Input Fields directly in the text
document's content together with some special handling. The special
handling which I had in mind is:
- Some special key handling to "travel" from Input Field to Input Field,
forward and backward. May be key Ctrl-Tab for forward movement and
Shift-Ctrl-Tab for backward movement.
- Feedback when the user "enters" (cursor inside Input Field) and
"leaves" (cursor outside Input Field) a Input Field. May be some
transparent overlay, similar to the selection overlay, when the cursor
is inside a Input Field.
- Even if the document is read-only, the editing of the Input Fields
should be possible when configured correspondingly.
What is your opinion about the current Input Field editing?
What is your feedback on my idea to improve the editing of Input Fields?
If I found time, I would like to implement such an improvement.
Unfortunately, I do not have the resources, now.
Everybody volunteering to help/to provide feedback on development, qa,
user experience, documentation, translation of possible new UI and the
new documentation is welcome.
Best regards, Oliver.
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RE: [improvement idea] "in-place" editing of Input Fields in Writer
Posted by "Dennis E. Hamilton" <de...@acm.org>.
-----Original Message-----
From: Oliver-Rainer Wittmann [mailto:orwittmann@googlemail.com]
Sent: Friday, February 15, 2013 00:32
To: dev@openoffice.apache.org; users@openoffice.apache.org
Subject: Re: [improvement idea] "in-place" editing of Input Fields in Writer
Hi,
On 15.02.2013 00:44, Dennis E. Hamilton wrote:
> That's odd. I created a <form:text-input> field and it showed me an entry
> window right in the document where I put it. I could then simply type
into
> the box that was part of my document. That is, in fact, what I expected.
>
Hm...
I do not know <form:text-input> - I did not find such an element in ODF 1.2.
Did you mean <form:text> or <form:formatted-text>?
> The description of <text:text-input> in ODF 1.2 is for a situation where
> users are prompted to make an entry.
ODF 1.2 says "A text input field is used in a user interface to prompt a
user to input text." But, it is not said, where the input has to take place.
>
> It sounds like you want to implement the text entry function of
> <text:text-input> the same as for <form:text-input> (but without the form
> features?).
>
Looking from your perspective I somehow agree.
I am currently just listening to certain customers having concerns
regarding our current UI experience.
Best regards, Oliver.
>
> - Dennis
>
>
> -----Original Message-----
> From: Oliver-Rainer Wittmann [mailto:orwittmann@googlemail.com]
> Sent: Thursday, February 14, 2013 01:50
> To: dev@openoffice.apache.org; users@openoffice.apache.org
> Subject: Re: [improvement idea] "in-place" editing of Input Fields in
Writer
>
> Hi Dennis,
>
> On 06.02.2013 19:35, Dennis E. Hamilton wrote:
>> For "real" input fields, (that is, form:text elements), direct entry
> works.
>>
>
> I am not sure what you mean by '"real" input fields'.
> I am talking about the fields which are inserted into a text document in
> AOO Writer by Menu Insert - Fields - Other - Functions - Input field.
> These Input Fields are represented in ODF by the <text:text-input>.
> For these Input Fields we have no "in-place" editing in AOO Writer - as
> I have described.
>
>> I assume that the case being discussed is for conventional field values
> that
>> someone wants to edit. (Like a page number or a date field in a footer.)
>> In those cases, I suppose direct entry might be useful. But there is
>> probably something needed to avoid accidental type-overs and to also warn
>> that other actions might later over-write the change. Allowing for that,
>> allowing type-over seems like a reasonable improvement.
>>
>
> No, I am not talking about these kind of fields.
>
> Best regards, Oliver.
>
>
> P.S.: Sorry for the long silence, again. I had got another viral flue
> which knocked me out the last days.
>
>> - Dennis
>>
>> -----Original Message-----
>> From: Oliver-Rainer Wittmann [mailto:orwittmann@googlemail.com]
>> Sent: Wednesday, February 06, 2013 08:23
>> To: dev@openoffice.apache.org; users@openoffice.apache.org
>> Subject: [improvement idea] "in-place" editing of Input Fields in Writer
>>
>> Hi,
>>
>> recently I got notice about our (from my point of view) very
>> user-unfriendly way for editing Input Fields in Writer.
>> Currently, you can not place the cursor into an Input Field which in
>> general is shown with a grey background when Menu View - Field Shading
>> is on. If you click on the Input Field, a modal dialog pops up. In this
>> dialog you can edit the Input Field's content. On confirmation of the
>> dialog the Input Field's content is changed in the text document. To
>> edit the next Input Field you need to click on it. There is also a
>> special key shortcut - namely Shift-Ctrl-F9. This key shortcut opens the
>> Input Field content editing dialog for the first field. This time the
>> dialog has a Next button by which you can confirm your change and switch
>> directly to the next Input Field. A Previous button is not available. By
>> Murphys law the dialog hides most of the time the Input Field in the
>> text document.
>>
>> I have got the opinion that such an editing experience is bad,
>> especially, if the document is a form which makes use of a lot of Input
>> Fields to be filled by the user.
>>
>> [ ... ]
>>
>
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RE: [improvement idea] "in-place" editing of Input Fields in Writer
Posted by "Dennis E. Hamilton" <de...@acm.org>.
-----Original Message-----
From: Oliver-Rainer Wittmann [mailto:orwittmann@googlemail.com]
Sent: Friday, February 15, 2013 00:32
To: dev@openoffice.apache.org; users@openoffice.apache.org
Subject: Re: [improvement idea] "in-place" editing of Input Fields in Writer
Hi,
On 15.02.2013 00:44, Dennis E. Hamilton wrote:
> That's odd. I created a <form:text-input> field and it showed me an entry
> window right in the document where I put it. I could then simply type
into
> the box that was part of my document. That is, in fact, what I expected.
>
Hm...
I do not know <form:text-input> - I did not find such an element in ODF 1.2.
Did you mean <form:text> or <form:formatted-text>?
> The description of <text:text-input> in ODF 1.2 is for a situation where
> users are prompted to make an entry.
ODF 1.2 says "A text input field is used in a user interface to prompt a
user to input text." But, it is not said, where the input has to take place.
>
> It sounds like you want to implement the text entry function of
> <text:text-input> the same as for <form:text-input> (but without the form
> features?).
>
Looking from your perspective I somehow agree.
I am currently just listening to certain customers having concerns
regarding our current UI experience.
Best regards, Oliver.
>
> - Dennis
>
>
> -----Original Message-----
> From: Oliver-Rainer Wittmann [mailto:orwittmann@googlemail.com]
> Sent: Thursday, February 14, 2013 01:50
> To: dev@openoffice.apache.org; users@openoffice.apache.org
> Subject: Re: [improvement idea] "in-place" editing of Input Fields in
Writer
>
> Hi Dennis,
>
> On 06.02.2013 19:35, Dennis E. Hamilton wrote:
>> For "real" input fields, (that is, form:text elements), direct entry
> works.
>>
>
> I am not sure what you mean by '"real" input fields'.
> I am talking about the fields which are inserted into a text document in
> AOO Writer by Menu Insert - Fields - Other - Functions - Input field.
> These Input Fields are represented in ODF by the <text:text-input>.
> For these Input Fields we have no "in-place" editing in AOO Writer - as
> I have described.
>
>> I assume that the case being discussed is for conventional field values
> that
>> someone wants to edit. (Like a page number or a date field in a footer.)
>> In those cases, I suppose direct entry might be useful. But there is
>> probably something needed to avoid accidental type-overs and to also warn
>> that other actions might later over-write the change. Allowing for that,
>> allowing type-over seems like a reasonable improvement.
>>
>
> No, I am not talking about these kind of fields.
>
> Best regards, Oliver.
>
>
> P.S.: Sorry for the long silence, again. I had got another viral flue
> which knocked me out the last days.
>
>> - Dennis
>>
>> -----Original Message-----
>> From: Oliver-Rainer Wittmann [mailto:orwittmann@googlemail.com]
>> Sent: Wednesday, February 06, 2013 08:23
>> To: dev@openoffice.apache.org; users@openoffice.apache.org
>> Subject: [improvement idea] "in-place" editing of Input Fields in Writer
>>
>> Hi,
>>
>> recently I got notice about our (from my point of view) very
>> user-unfriendly way for editing Input Fields in Writer.
>> Currently, you can not place the cursor into an Input Field which in
>> general is shown with a grey background when Menu View - Field Shading
>> is on. If you click on the Input Field, a modal dialog pops up. In this
>> dialog you can edit the Input Field's content. On confirmation of the
>> dialog the Input Field's content is changed in the text document. To
>> edit the next Input Field you need to click on it. There is also a
>> special key shortcut - namely Shift-Ctrl-F9. This key shortcut opens the
>> Input Field content editing dialog for the first field. This time the
>> dialog has a Next button by which you can confirm your change and switch
>> directly to the next Input Field. A Previous button is not available. By
>> Murphys law the dialog hides most of the time the Input Field in the
>> text document.
>>
>> I have got the opinion that such an editing experience is bad,
>> especially, if the document is a form which makes use of a lot of Input
>> Fields to be filled by the user.
>>
>> [ ... ]
>>
>
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Re: [improvement idea] "in-place" editing of Input Fields in Writer
Posted by Jürgen Schmidt <jo...@gmail.com>.
On 2/15/13 9:31 AM, Oliver-Rainer Wittmann wrote:
> Hi,
>
> On 15.02.2013 00:44, Dennis E. Hamilton wrote:
>> That's odd. I created a <form:text-input> field and it showed me an
>> entry
>> window right in the document where I put it. I could then simply type
>> into
>> the box that was part of my document. That is, in fact, what I expected.
>>
>
> Hm...
> I do not know <form:text-input> - I did not find such an element in ODF
> 1.2.
> Did you mean <form:text> or <form:formatted-text>?
>
>> The description of <text:text-input> in ODF 1.2 is for a situation where
>> users are prompted to make an entry.
>
> ODF 1.2 says "A text input field is used in a user interface to prompt a
> user to input text." But, it is not said, where the input has to take
> place.
>
>>
>> It sounds like you want to implement the text entry function of
>> <text:text-input> the same as for <form:text-input> (but without the form
>> features?).
>>
>
> Looking from your perspective I somehow agree.
>
> I am currently just listening to certain customers having concerns
> regarding our current UI experience.
I think exactly this is the point, the UX experience of this. IF you
don't see why I can only recommend to create a document with for example
3-5 input fields and try to edit them in a intuitive and productive way.
And try to navigate from one to the next field etc.
I believe you will see quite fast that the current behaviour is far from
usable and I have problems to accept that this was the intended
behaviour in the past.
Writing conform ODF is one point but an intuitive user interface is the
other one. How it is realized is something else and that is what we try
to figure out and what we are trying to improve.
For example I can think of a field with minimal size (say at least 4
spaces but this can be changed by the user) as placeholder and when the
user enters this field and start typing the size get adapted to the real
size of the input. A whatever key shortcut (TBD) allows to navigate to
the next input field.
For fields in general I can think of a new sidebar in the future where
the properties of a date field for example can be tweaked when the user
enters a date field and the context switched automatically. But hey I am
no UXC designer and I would let it up to other people who has a better
understanding of this to define such things. It's just an idea.
Juergen
>
>
> Best regards, Oliver.
>
>>
>> - Dennis
>>
>>
>> -----Original Message-----
>> From: Oliver-Rainer Wittmann [mailto:orwittmann@googlemail.com]
>> Sent: Thursday, February 14, 2013 01:50
>> To: dev@openoffice.apache.org; users@openoffice.apache.org
>> Subject: Re: [improvement idea] "in-place" editing of Input Fields in
>> Writer
>>
>> Hi Dennis,
>>
>> On 06.02.2013 19:35, Dennis E. Hamilton wrote:
>>> For "real" input fields, (that is, form:text elements), direct entry
>> works.
>>>
>>
>> I am not sure what you mean by '"real" input fields'.
>> I am talking about the fields which are inserted into a text document in
>> AOO Writer by Menu Insert - Fields - Other - Functions - Input field.
>> These Input Fields are represented in ODF by the <text:text-input>.
>> For these Input Fields we have no "in-place" editing in AOO Writer - as
>> I have described.
>>
>>> I assume that the case being discussed is for conventional field values
>> that
>>> someone wants to edit. (Like a page number or a date field in a
>>> footer.)
>>> In those cases, I suppose direct entry might be useful. But there is
>>> probably something needed to avoid accidental type-overs and to also
>>> warn
>>> that other actions might later over-write the change. Allowing for
>>> that,
>>> allowing type-over seems like a reasonable improvement.
>>>
>>
>> No, I am not talking about these kind of fields.
>>
>> Best regards, Oliver.
>>
>>
>> P.S.: Sorry for the long silence, again. I had got another viral flue
>> which knocked me out the last days.
>>
>>> - Dennis
>>>
>>> -----Original Message-----
>>> From: Oliver-Rainer Wittmann [mailto:orwittmann@googlemail.com]
>>> Sent: Wednesday, February 06, 2013 08:23
>>> To: dev@openoffice.apache.org; users@openoffice.apache.org
>>> Subject: [improvement idea] "in-place" editing of Input Fields in Writer
>>>
>>> Hi,
>>>
>>> recently I got notice about our (from my point of view) very
>>> user-unfriendly way for editing Input Fields in Writer.
>>> Currently, you can not place the cursor into an Input Field which in
>>> general is shown with a grey background when Menu View - Field Shading
>>> is on. If you click on the Input Field, a modal dialog pops up. In this
>>> dialog you can edit the Input Field's content. On confirmation of the
>>> dialog the Input Field's content is changed in the text document. To
>>> edit the next Input Field you need to click on it. There is also a
>>> special key shortcut - namely Shift-Ctrl-F9. This key shortcut opens the
>>> Input Field content editing dialog for the first field. This time the
>>> dialog has a Next button by which you can confirm your change and switch
>>> directly to the next Input Field. A Previous button is not available. By
>>> Murphys law the dialog hides most of the time the Input Field in the
>>> text document.
>>>
>>> I have got the opinion that such an editing experience is bad,
>>> especially, if the document is a form which makes use of a lot of Input
>>> Fields to be filled by the user.
>>>
>>> [ ... ]
>>>
>>
RE: [improvement idea] "in-place" editing of Input Fields in Writer
Posted by "Dennis E. Hamilton" <de...@acm.org>.
Yes, sorry. I meant <form:text>.
- Dennis
-----Original Message-----
From: Oliver-Rainer Wittmann [mailto:orwittmann@googlemail.com]
Sent: Friday, February 15, 2013 00:32
To: dev@openoffice.apache.org; users@openoffice.apache.org
Subject: Re: [improvement idea] "in-place" editing of Input Fields in Writer
Hi,
On 15.02.2013 00:44, Dennis E. Hamilton wrote:
> That's odd. I created a <form:text-input> field and it showed me an entry
> window right in the document where I put it. I could then simply type
into
> the box that was part of my document. That is, in fact, what I expected.
>
Hm...
I do not know <form:text-input> - I did not find such an element in ODF 1.2.
Did you mean <form:text> or <form:formatted-text>?
> The description of <text:text-input> in ODF 1.2 is for a situation where
> users are prompted to make an entry.
ODF 1.2 says "A text input field is used in a user interface to prompt a
user to input text." But, it is not said, where the input has to take place.
>
> It sounds like you want to implement the text entry function of
> <text:text-input> the same as for <form:text-input> (but without the form
> features?).
>
Looking from your perspective I somehow agree.
I am currently just listening to certain customers having concerns
regarding our current UI experience.
Best regards, Oliver.
>
> - Dennis
>
>
> -----Original Message-----
> From: Oliver-Rainer Wittmann [mailto:orwittmann@googlemail.com]
> Sent: Thursday, February 14, 2013 01:50
> To: dev@openoffice.apache.org; users@openoffice.apache.org
> Subject: Re: [improvement idea] "in-place" editing of Input Fields in
Writer
>
> Hi Dennis,
>
> On 06.02.2013 19:35, Dennis E. Hamilton wrote:
>> For "real" input fields, (that is, form:text elements), direct entry
> works.
>>
>
> I am not sure what you mean by '"real" input fields'.
> I am talking about the fields which are inserted into a text document in
> AOO Writer by Menu Insert - Fields - Other - Functions - Input field.
> These Input Fields are represented in ODF by the <text:text-input>.
> For these Input Fields we have no "in-place" editing in AOO Writer - as
> I have described.
>
>> I assume that the case being discussed is for conventional field values
> that
>> someone wants to edit. (Like a page number or a date field in a footer.)
>> In those cases, I suppose direct entry might be useful. But there is
>> probably something needed to avoid accidental type-overs and to also warn
>> that other actions might later over-write the change. Allowing for that,
>> allowing type-over seems like a reasonable improvement.
>>
>
> No, I am not talking about these kind of fields.
>
> Best regards, Oliver.
>
>
> P.S.: Sorry for the long silence, again. I had got another viral flue
> which knocked me out the last days.
>
>> - Dennis
>>
>> -----Original Message-----
>> From: Oliver-Rainer Wittmann [mailto:orwittmann@googlemail.com]
>> Sent: Wednesday, February 06, 2013 08:23
>> To: dev@openoffice.apache.org; users@openoffice.apache.org
>> Subject: [improvement idea] "in-place" editing of Input Fields in Writer
>>
>> Hi,
>>
>> recently I got notice about our (from my point of view) very
>> user-unfriendly way for editing Input Fields in Writer.
>> Currently, you can not place the cursor into an Input Field which in
>> general is shown with a grey background when Menu View - Field Shading
>> is on. If you click on the Input Field, a modal dialog pops up. In this
>> dialog you can edit the Input Field's content. On confirmation of the
>> dialog the Input Field's content is changed in the text document. To
>> edit the next Input Field you need to click on it. There is also a
>> special key shortcut - namely Shift-Ctrl-F9. This key shortcut opens the
>> Input Field content editing dialog for the first field. This time the
>> dialog has a Next button by which you can confirm your change and switch
>> directly to the next Input Field. A Previous button is not available. By
>> Murphys law the dialog hides most of the time the Input Field in the
>> text document.
>>
>> I have got the opinion that such an editing experience is bad,
>> especially, if the document is a form which makes use of a lot of Input
>> Fields to be filled by the user.
>>
>> [ ... ]
>>
>
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RE: [improvement idea] "in-place" editing of Input Fields in Writer
Posted by "Dennis E. Hamilton" <de...@acm.org>.
Yes, sorry. I meant <form:text>.
- Dennis
-----Original Message-----
From: Oliver-Rainer Wittmann [mailto:orwittmann@googlemail.com]
Sent: Friday, February 15, 2013 00:32
To: dev@openoffice.apache.org; users@openoffice.apache.org
Subject: Re: [improvement idea] "in-place" editing of Input Fields in Writer
Hi,
On 15.02.2013 00:44, Dennis E. Hamilton wrote:
> That's odd. I created a <form:text-input> field and it showed me an entry
> window right in the document where I put it. I could then simply type
into
> the box that was part of my document. That is, in fact, what I expected.
>
Hm...
I do not know <form:text-input> - I did not find such an element in ODF 1.2.
Did you mean <form:text> or <form:formatted-text>?
> The description of <text:text-input> in ODF 1.2 is for a situation where
> users are prompted to make an entry.
ODF 1.2 says "A text input field is used in a user interface to prompt a
user to input text." But, it is not said, where the input has to take place.
>
> It sounds like you want to implement the text entry function of
> <text:text-input> the same as for <form:text-input> (but without the form
> features?).
>
Looking from your perspective I somehow agree.
I am currently just listening to certain customers having concerns
regarding our current UI experience.
Best regards, Oliver.
>
> - Dennis
>
>
> -----Original Message-----
> From: Oliver-Rainer Wittmann [mailto:orwittmann@googlemail.com]
> Sent: Thursday, February 14, 2013 01:50
> To: dev@openoffice.apache.org; users@openoffice.apache.org
> Subject: Re: [improvement idea] "in-place" editing of Input Fields in
Writer
>
> Hi Dennis,
>
> On 06.02.2013 19:35, Dennis E. Hamilton wrote:
>> For "real" input fields, (that is, form:text elements), direct entry
> works.
>>
>
> I am not sure what you mean by '"real" input fields'.
> I am talking about the fields which are inserted into a text document in
> AOO Writer by Menu Insert - Fields - Other - Functions - Input field.
> These Input Fields are represented in ODF by the <text:text-input>.
> For these Input Fields we have no "in-place" editing in AOO Writer - as
> I have described.
>
>> I assume that the case being discussed is for conventional field values
> that
>> someone wants to edit. (Like a page number or a date field in a footer.)
>> In those cases, I suppose direct entry might be useful. But there is
>> probably something needed to avoid accidental type-overs and to also warn
>> that other actions might later over-write the change. Allowing for that,
>> allowing type-over seems like a reasonable improvement.
>>
>
> No, I am not talking about these kind of fields.
>
> Best regards, Oliver.
>
>
> P.S.: Sorry for the long silence, again. I had got another viral flue
> which knocked me out the last days.
>
>> - Dennis
>>
>> -----Original Message-----
>> From: Oliver-Rainer Wittmann [mailto:orwittmann@googlemail.com]
>> Sent: Wednesday, February 06, 2013 08:23
>> To: dev@openoffice.apache.org; users@openoffice.apache.org
>> Subject: [improvement idea] "in-place" editing of Input Fields in Writer
>>
>> Hi,
>>
>> recently I got notice about our (from my point of view) very
>> user-unfriendly way for editing Input Fields in Writer.
>> Currently, you can not place the cursor into an Input Field which in
>> general is shown with a grey background when Menu View - Field Shading
>> is on. If you click on the Input Field, a modal dialog pops up. In this
>> dialog you can edit the Input Field's content. On confirmation of the
>> dialog the Input Field's content is changed in the text document. To
>> edit the next Input Field you need to click on it. There is also a
>> special key shortcut - namely Shift-Ctrl-F9. This key shortcut opens the
>> Input Field content editing dialog for the first field. This time the
>> dialog has a Next button by which you can confirm your change and switch
>> directly to the next Input Field. A Previous button is not available. By
>> Murphys law the dialog hides most of the time the Input Field in the
>> text document.
>>
>> I have got the opinion that such an editing experience is bad,
>> especially, if the document is a form which makes use of a lot of Input
>> Fields to be filled by the user.
>>
>> [ ... ]
>>
>
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Re: [improvement idea] "in-place" editing of Input Fields in Writer
Posted by Oliver-Rainer Wittmann <or...@googlemail.com>.
Hi,
On 15.02.2013 00:44, Dennis E. Hamilton wrote:
> That's odd. I created a <form:text-input> field and it showed me an entry
> window right in the document where I put it. I could then simply type into
> the box that was part of my document. That is, in fact, what I expected.
>
Hm...
I do not know <form:text-input> - I did not find such an element in ODF 1.2.
Did you mean <form:text> or <form:formatted-text>?
> The description of <text:text-input> in ODF 1.2 is for a situation where
> users are prompted to make an entry.
ODF 1.2 says "A text input field is used in a user interface to prompt a
user to input text." But, it is not said, where the input has to take place.
>
> It sounds like you want to implement the text entry function of
> <text:text-input> the same as for <form:text-input> (but without the form
> features?).
>
Looking from your perspective I somehow agree.
I am currently just listening to certain customers having concerns
regarding our current UI experience.
Best regards, Oliver.
>
> - Dennis
>
>
> -----Original Message-----
> From: Oliver-Rainer Wittmann [mailto:orwittmann@googlemail.com]
> Sent: Thursday, February 14, 2013 01:50
> To: dev@openoffice.apache.org; users@openoffice.apache.org
> Subject: Re: [improvement idea] "in-place" editing of Input Fields in Writer
>
> Hi Dennis,
>
> On 06.02.2013 19:35, Dennis E. Hamilton wrote:
>> For "real" input fields, (that is, form:text elements), direct entry
> works.
>>
>
> I am not sure what you mean by '"real" input fields'.
> I am talking about the fields which are inserted into a text document in
> AOO Writer by Menu Insert - Fields - Other - Functions - Input field.
> These Input Fields are represented in ODF by the <text:text-input>.
> For these Input Fields we have no "in-place" editing in AOO Writer - as
> I have described.
>
>> I assume that the case being discussed is for conventional field values
> that
>> someone wants to edit. (Like a page number or a date field in a footer.)
>> In those cases, I suppose direct entry might be useful. But there is
>> probably something needed to avoid accidental type-overs and to also warn
>> that other actions might later over-write the change. Allowing for that,
>> allowing type-over seems like a reasonable improvement.
>>
>
> No, I am not talking about these kind of fields.
>
> Best regards, Oliver.
>
>
> P.S.: Sorry for the long silence, again. I had got another viral flue
> which knocked me out the last days.
>
>> - Dennis
>>
>> -----Original Message-----
>> From: Oliver-Rainer Wittmann [mailto:orwittmann@googlemail.com]
>> Sent: Wednesday, February 06, 2013 08:23
>> To: dev@openoffice.apache.org; users@openoffice.apache.org
>> Subject: [improvement idea] "in-place" editing of Input Fields in Writer
>>
>> Hi,
>>
>> recently I got notice about our (from my point of view) very
>> user-unfriendly way for editing Input Fields in Writer.
>> Currently, you can not place the cursor into an Input Field which in
>> general is shown with a grey background when Menu View - Field Shading
>> is on. If you click on the Input Field, a modal dialog pops up. In this
>> dialog you can edit the Input Field's content. On confirmation of the
>> dialog the Input Field's content is changed in the text document. To
>> edit the next Input Field you need to click on it. There is also a
>> special key shortcut - namely Shift-Ctrl-F9. This key shortcut opens the
>> Input Field content editing dialog for the first field. This time the
>> dialog has a Next button by which you can confirm your change and switch
>> directly to the next Input Field. A Previous button is not available. By
>> Murphys law the dialog hides most of the time the Input Field in the
>> text document.
>>
>> I have got the opinion that such an editing experience is bad,
>> especially, if the document is a form which makes use of a lot of Input
>> Fields to be filled by the user.
>>
>> [ ... ]
>>
>
Re: [improvement idea] "in-place" editing of Input Fields in Writer
Posted by Oliver-Rainer Wittmann <or...@googlemail.com>.
Hi,
On 15.02.2013 00:44, Dennis E. Hamilton wrote:
> That's odd. I created a <form:text-input> field and it showed me an entry
> window right in the document where I put it. I could then simply type into
> the box that was part of my document. That is, in fact, what I expected.
>
Hm...
I do not know <form:text-input> - I did not find such an element in ODF 1.2.
Did you mean <form:text> or <form:formatted-text>?
> The description of <text:text-input> in ODF 1.2 is for a situation where
> users are prompted to make an entry.
ODF 1.2 says "A text input field is used in a user interface to prompt a
user to input text." But, it is not said, where the input has to take place.
>
> It sounds like you want to implement the text entry function of
> <text:text-input> the same as for <form:text-input> (but without the form
> features?).
>
Looking from your perspective I somehow agree.
I am currently just listening to certain customers having concerns
regarding our current UI experience.
Best regards, Oliver.
>
> - Dennis
>
>
> -----Original Message-----
> From: Oliver-Rainer Wittmann [mailto:orwittmann@googlemail.com]
> Sent: Thursday, February 14, 2013 01:50
> To: dev@openoffice.apache.org; users@openoffice.apache.org
> Subject: Re: [improvement idea] "in-place" editing of Input Fields in Writer
>
> Hi Dennis,
>
> On 06.02.2013 19:35, Dennis E. Hamilton wrote:
>> For "real" input fields, (that is, form:text elements), direct entry
> works.
>>
>
> I am not sure what you mean by '"real" input fields'.
> I am talking about the fields which are inserted into a text document in
> AOO Writer by Menu Insert - Fields - Other - Functions - Input field.
> These Input Fields are represented in ODF by the <text:text-input>.
> For these Input Fields we have no "in-place" editing in AOO Writer - as
> I have described.
>
>> I assume that the case being discussed is for conventional field values
> that
>> someone wants to edit. (Like a page number or a date field in a footer.)
>> In those cases, I suppose direct entry might be useful. But there is
>> probably something needed to avoid accidental type-overs and to also warn
>> that other actions might later over-write the change. Allowing for that,
>> allowing type-over seems like a reasonable improvement.
>>
>
> No, I am not talking about these kind of fields.
>
> Best regards, Oliver.
>
>
> P.S.: Sorry for the long silence, again. I had got another viral flue
> which knocked me out the last days.
>
>> - Dennis
>>
>> -----Original Message-----
>> From: Oliver-Rainer Wittmann [mailto:orwittmann@googlemail.com]
>> Sent: Wednesday, February 06, 2013 08:23
>> To: dev@openoffice.apache.org; users@openoffice.apache.org
>> Subject: [improvement idea] "in-place" editing of Input Fields in Writer
>>
>> Hi,
>>
>> recently I got notice about our (from my point of view) very
>> user-unfriendly way for editing Input Fields in Writer.
>> Currently, you can not place the cursor into an Input Field which in
>> general is shown with a grey background when Menu View - Field Shading
>> is on. If you click on the Input Field, a modal dialog pops up. In this
>> dialog you can edit the Input Field's content. On confirmation of the
>> dialog the Input Field's content is changed in the text document. To
>> edit the next Input Field you need to click on it. There is also a
>> special key shortcut - namely Shift-Ctrl-F9. This key shortcut opens the
>> Input Field content editing dialog for the first field. This time the
>> dialog has a Next button by which you can confirm your change and switch
>> directly to the next Input Field. A Previous button is not available. By
>> Murphys law the dialog hides most of the time the Input Field in the
>> text document.
>>
>> I have got the opinion that such an editing experience is bad,
>> especially, if the document is a form which makes use of a lot of Input
>> Fields to be filled by the user.
>>
>> [ ... ]
>>
>
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RE: [improvement idea] "in-place" editing of Input Fields in Writer
Posted by "Dennis E. Hamilton" <de...@acm.org>.
That's odd. I created a <form:text-input> field and it showed me an entry
window right in the document where I put it. I could then simply type into
the box that was part of my document. That is, in fact, what I expected.
The description of <text:text-input> in ODF 1.2 is for a situation where
users are prompted to make an entry.
It sounds like you want to implement the text entry function of
<text:text-input> the same as for <form:text-input> (but without the form
features?).
- Dennis
-----Original Message-----
From: Oliver-Rainer Wittmann [mailto:orwittmann@googlemail.com]
Sent: Thursday, February 14, 2013 01:50
To: dev@openoffice.apache.org; users@openoffice.apache.org
Subject: Re: [improvement idea] "in-place" editing of Input Fields in Writer
Hi Dennis,
On 06.02.2013 19:35, Dennis E. Hamilton wrote:
> For "real" input fields, (that is, form:text elements), direct entry
works.
>
I am not sure what you mean by '"real" input fields'.
I am talking about the fields which are inserted into a text document in
AOO Writer by Menu Insert - Fields - Other - Functions - Input field.
These Input Fields are represented in ODF by the <text:text-input>.
For these Input Fields we have no "in-place" editing in AOO Writer - as
I have described.
> I assume that the case being discussed is for conventional field values
that
> someone wants to edit. (Like a page number or a date field in a footer.)
> In those cases, I suppose direct entry might be useful. But there is
> probably something needed to avoid accidental type-overs and to also warn
> that other actions might later over-write the change. Allowing for that,
> allowing type-over seems like a reasonable improvement.
>
No, I am not talking about these kind of fields.
Best regards, Oliver.
P.S.: Sorry for the long silence, again. I had got another viral flue
which knocked me out the last days.
> - Dennis
>
> -----Original Message-----
> From: Oliver-Rainer Wittmann [mailto:orwittmann@googlemail.com]
> Sent: Wednesday, February 06, 2013 08:23
> To: dev@openoffice.apache.org; users@openoffice.apache.org
> Subject: [improvement idea] "in-place" editing of Input Fields in Writer
>
> Hi,
>
> recently I got notice about our (from my point of view) very
> user-unfriendly way for editing Input Fields in Writer.
> Currently, you can not place the cursor into an Input Field which in
> general is shown with a grey background when Menu View - Field Shading
> is on. If you click on the Input Field, a modal dialog pops up. In this
> dialog you can edit the Input Field's content. On confirmation of the
> dialog the Input Field's content is changed in the text document. To
> edit the next Input Field you need to click on it. There is also a
> special key shortcut - namely Shift-Ctrl-F9. This key shortcut opens the
> Input Field content editing dialog for the first field. This time the
> dialog has a Next button by which you can confirm your change and switch
> directly to the next Input Field. A Previous button is not available. By
> Murphys law the dialog hides most of the time the Input Field in the
> text document.
>
> I have got the opinion that such an editing experience is bad,
> especially, if the document is a form which makes use of a lot of Input
> Fields to be filled by the user.
>
> [ ... ]
>
RE: [improvement idea] "in-place" editing of Input Fields in Writer
Posted by "Dennis E. Hamilton" <de...@acm.org>.
That's odd. I created a <form:text-input> field and it showed me an entry
window right in the document where I put it. I could then simply type into
the box that was part of my document. That is, in fact, what I expected.
The description of <text:text-input> in ODF 1.2 is for a situation where
users are prompted to make an entry.
It sounds like you want to implement the text entry function of
<text:text-input> the same as for <form:text-input> (but without the form
features?).
- Dennis
-----Original Message-----
From: Oliver-Rainer Wittmann [mailto:orwittmann@googlemail.com]
Sent: Thursday, February 14, 2013 01:50
To: dev@openoffice.apache.org; users@openoffice.apache.org
Subject: Re: [improvement idea] "in-place" editing of Input Fields in Writer
Hi Dennis,
On 06.02.2013 19:35, Dennis E. Hamilton wrote:
> For "real" input fields, (that is, form:text elements), direct entry
works.
>
I am not sure what you mean by '"real" input fields'.
I am talking about the fields which are inserted into a text document in
AOO Writer by Menu Insert - Fields - Other - Functions - Input field.
These Input Fields are represented in ODF by the <text:text-input>.
For these Input Fields we have no "in-place" editing in AOO Writer - as
I have described.
> I assume that the case being discussed is for conventional field values
that
> someone wants to edit. (Like a page number or a date field in a footer.)
> In those cases, I suppose direct entry might be useful. But there is
> probably something needed to avoid accidental type-overs and to also warn
> that other actions might later over-write the change. Allowing for that,
> allowing type-over seems like a reasonable improvement.
>
No, I am not talking about these kind of fields.
Best regards, Oliver.
P.S.: Sorry for the long silence, again. I had got another viral flue
which knocked me out the last days.
> - Dennis
>
> -----Original Message-----
> From: Oliver-Rainer Wittmann [mailto:orwittmann@googlemail.com]
> Sent: Wednesday, February 06, 2013 08:23
> To: dev@openoffice.apache.org; users@openoffice.apache.org
> Subject: [improvement idea] "in-place" editing of Input Fields in Writer
>
> Hi,
>
> recently I got notice about our (from my point of view) very
> user-unfriendly way for editing Input Fields in Writer.
> Currently, you can not place the cursor into an Input Field which in
> general is shown with a grey background when Menu View - Field Shading
> is on. If you click on the Input Field, a modal dialog pops up. In this
> dialog you can edit the Input Field's content. On confirmation of the
> dialog the Input Field's content is changed in the text document. To
> edit the next Input Field you need to click on it. There is also a
> special key shortcut - namely Shift-Ctrl-F9. This key shortcut opens the
> Input Field content editing dialog for the first field. This time the
> dialog has a Next button by which you can confirm your change and switch
> directly to the next Input Field. A Previous button is not available. By
> Murphys law the dialog hides most of the time the Input Field in the
> text document.
>
> I have got the opinion that such an editing experience is bad,
> especially, if the document is a form which makes use of a lot of Input
> Fields to be filled by the user.
>
> [ ... ]
>
---------------------------------------------------------------------
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Re: [improvement idea] "in-place" editing of Input Fields in Writer
Posted by Oliver-Rainer Wittmann <or...@googlemail.com>.
Hi Dennis,
On 06.02.2013 19:35, Dennis E. Hamilton wrote:
> For "real" input fields, (that is, form:text elements), direct entry works.
>
I am not sure what you mean by '"real" input fields'.
I am talking about the fields which are inserted into a text document in
AOO Writer by Menu Insert - Fields - Other - Functions - Input field.
These Input Fields are represented in ODF by the <text:text-input>.
For these Input Fields we have no "in-place" editing in AOO Writer - as
I have described.
> I assume that the case being discussed is for conventional field values that
> someone wants to edit. (Like a page number or a date field in a footer.)
> In those cases, I suppose direct entry might be useful. But there is
> probably something needed to avoid accidental type-overs and to also warn
> that other actions might later over-write the change. Allowing for that,
> allowing type-over seems like a reasonable improvement.
>
No, I am not talking about these kind of fields.
Best regards, Oliver.
P.S.: Sorry for the long silence, again. I had got another viral flue
which knocked me out the last days.
> - Dennis
>
> -----Original Message-----
> From: Oliver-Rainer Wittmann [mailto:orwittmann@googlemail.com]
> Sent: Wednesday, February 06, 2013 08:23
> To: dev@openoffice.apache.org; users@openoffice.apache.org
> Subject: [improvement idea] "in-place" editing of Input Fields in Writer
>
> Hi,
>
> recently I got notice about our (from my point of view) very
> user-unfriendly way for editing Input Fields in Writer.
> Currently, you can not place the cursor into an Input Field which in
> general is shown with a grey background when Menu View - Field Shading
> is on. If you click on the Input Field, a modal dialog pops up. In this
> dialog you can edit the Input Field's content. On confirmation of the
> dialog the Input Field's content is changed in the text document. To
> edit the next Input Field you need to click on it. There is also a
> special key shortcut - namely Shift-Ctrl-F9. This key shortcut opens the
> Input Field content editing dialog for the first field. This time the
> dialog has a Next button by which you can confirm your change and switch
> directly to the next Input Field. A Previous button is not available. By
> Murphys law the dialog hides most of the time the Input Field in the
> text document.
>
> I have got the opinion that such an editing experience is bad,
> especially, if the document is a form which makes use of a lot of Input
> Fields to be filled by the user.
>
> [ ... ]
>
---------------------------------------------------------------------
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Re: [improvement idea] "in-place" editing of Input Fields in Writer
Posted by Oliver-Rainer Wittmann <or...@googlemail.com>.
Hi Dennis,
On 06.02.2013 19:35, Dennis E. Hamilton wrote:
> For "real" input fields, (that is, form:text elements), direct entry works.
>
I am not sure what you mean by '"real" input fields'.
I am talking about the fields which are inserted into a text document in
AOO Writer by Menu Insert - Fields - Other - Functions - Input field.
These Input Fields are represented in ODF by the <text:text-input>.
For these Input Fields we have no "in-place" editing in AOO Writer - as
I have described.
> I assume that the case being discussed is for conventional field values that
> someone wants to edit. (Like a page number or a date field in a footer.)
> In those cases, I suppose direct entry might be useful. But there is
> probably something needed to avoid accidental type-overs and to also warn
> that other actions might later over-write the change. Allowing for that,
> allowing type-over seems like a reasonable improvement.
>
No, I am not talking about these kind of fields.
Best regards, Oliver.
P.S.: Sorry for the long silence, again. I had got another viral flue
which knocked me out the last days.
> - Dennis
>
> -----Original Message-----
> From: Oliver-Rainer Wittmann [mailto:orwittmann@googlemail.com]
> Sent: Wednesday, February 06, 2013 08:23
> To: dev@openoffice.apache.org; users@openoffice.apache.org
> Subject: [improvement idea] "in-place" editing of Input Fields in Writer
>
> Hi,
>
> recently I got notice about our (from my point of view) very
> user-unfriendly way for editing Input Fields in Writer.
> Currently, you can not place the cursor into an Input Field which in
> general is shown with a grey background when Menu View - Field Shading
> is on. If you click on the Input Field, a modal dialog pops up. In this
> dialog you can edit the Input Field's content. On confirmation of the
> dialog the Input Field's content is changed in the text document. To
> edit the next Input Field you need to click on it. There is also a
> special key shortcut - namely Shift-Ctrl-F9. This key shortcut opens the
> Input Field content editing dialog for the first field. This time the
> dialog has a Next button by which you can confirm your change and switch
> directly to the next Input Field. A Previous button is not available. By
> Murphys law the dialog hides most of the time the Input Field in the
> text document.
>
> I have got the opinion that such an editing experience is bad,
> especially, if the document is a form which makes use of a lot of Input
> Fields to be filled by the user.
>
> [ ... ]
>
RE: [improvement idea] "in-place" editing of Input Fields in Writer
Posted by "Dennis E. Hamilton" <or...@apache.org>.
For "real" input fields, (that is, form:text elements), direct entry works.
I assume that the case being discussed is for conventional field values that
someone wants to edit. (Like a page number or a date field in a footer.)
In those cases, I suppose direct entry might be useful. But there is
probably something needed to avoid accidental type-overs and to also warn
that other actions might later over-write the change. Allowing for that,
allowing type-over seems like a reasonable improvement.
- Dennis
-----Original Message-----
From: Oliver-Rainer Wittmann [mailto:orwittmann@googlemail.com]
Sent: Wednesday, February 06, 2013 08:23
To: dev@openoffice.apache.org; users@openoffice.apache.org
Subject: [improvement idea] "in-place" editing of Input Fields in Writer
Hi,
recently I got notice about our (from my point of view) very
user-unfriendly way for editing Input Fields in Writer.
Currently, you can not place the cursor into an Input Field which in
general is shown with a grey background when Menu View - Field Shading
is on. If you click on the Input Field, a modal dialog pops up. In this
dialog you can edit the Input Field's content. On confirmation of the
dialog the Input Field's content is changed in the text document. To
edit the next Input Field you need to click on it. There is also a
special key shortcut - namely Shift-Ctrl-F9. This key shortcut opens the
Input Field content editing dialog for the first field. This time the
dialog has a Next button by which you can confirm your change and switch
directly to the next Input Field. A Previous button is not available. By
Murphys law the dialog hides most of the time the Input Field in the
text document.
I have got the opinion that such an editing experience is bad,
especially, if the document is a form which makes use of a lot of Input
Fields to be filled by the user.
[ ... ]
---------------------------------------------------------------------
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RE: [improvement idea] "in-place" editing of Input Fields in Writer
Posted by "Dennis E. Hamilton" <or...@apache.org>.
For "real" input fields, (that is, form:text elements), direct entry works.
I assume that the case being discussed is for conventional field values that
someone wants to edit. (Like a page number or a date field in a footer.)
In those cases, I suppose direct entry might be useful. But there is
probably something needed to avoid accidental type-overs and to also warn
that other actions might later over-write the change. Allowing for that,
allowing type-over seems like a reasonable improvement.
- Dennis
-----Original Message-----
From: Oliver-Rainer Wittmann [mailto:orwittmann@googlemail.com]
Sent: Wednesday, February 06, 2013 08:23
To: dev@openoffice.apache.org; users@openoffice.apache.org
Subject: [improvement idea] "in-place" editing of Input Fields in Writer
Hi,
recently I got notice about our (from my point of view) very
user-unfriendly way for editing Input Fields in Writer.
Currently, you can not place the cursor into an Input Field which in
general is shown with a grey background when Menu View - Field Shading
is on. If you click on the Input Field, a modal dialog pops up. In this
dialog you can edit the Input Field's content. On confirmation of the
dialog the Input Field's content is changed in the text document. To
edit the next Input Field you need to click on it. There is also a
special key shortcut - namely Shift-Ctrl-F9. This key shortcut opens the
Input Field content editing dialog for the first field. This time the
dialog has a Next button by which you can confirm your change and switch
directly to the next Input Field. A Previous button is not available. By
Murphys law the dialog hides most of the time the Input Field in the
text document.
I have got the opinion that such an editing experience is bad,
especially, if the document is a form which makes use of a lot of Input
Fields to be filled by the user.
[ ... ]
Re: [improvement idea] "in-place" editing of Input Fields in Writer
Posted by Oliver-Rainer Wittmann <or...@googlemail.com>.
Hi,
On 06.02.2013 17:39, Regina Henschel wrote:
> Oliver-Rainer Wittmann schrieb:
>> Hi,
>>
>> recently I got notice about our (from my point of view) very
>> user-unfriendly way for editing Input Fields in Writer.
>> Currently, you can not place the cursor into an Input Field which in
>> general is shown with a grey background when Menu View - Field Shading
>> is on. If you click on the Input Field, a modal dialog pops up. In this
>> dialog you can edit the Input Field's content. On confirmation of the
>> dialog the Input Field's content is changed in the text document. To
>> edit the next Input Field you need to click on it. There is also a
>> special key shortcut - namely Shift-Ctrl-F9. This key shortcut opens the
>> Input Field content editing dialog for the first field. This time the
>> dialog has a Next button by which you can confirm your change and switch
>> directly to the next Input Field. A Previous button is not available. By
>> Murphys law the dialog hides most of the time the Input Field in the
>> text document.
>>
>> I have got the opinion that such an editing experience is bad,
>> especially, if the document is a form which makes use of a lot of Input
>> Fields to be filled by the user.
>
> See issue https://issues.apache.org/ooo/show_bug.cgi?id=33737.
>
Thank you Regina for the link to the issue.
I am remembering this work as I was partly involved, but I did not had
the issue number at hand.
I my local environment, I tried this work and experienced the one or the
other issue. This work relies on an ODF enhancement which was proposed
to the OASIS ODF TC - the technical committee at OASIS which works on
the OpenDocument file format standard -, but was not driven to bring it
into the standard. The proposed ODF enhancement is also much more than
just changing the editing capabilities of Input Fields. There is also an
UI missing to insert such "new" fields. Thus, currently my preference is
not to follow this approach for this proposed improvement.
Best regards, Oliver.
P.S.: Sorry for the long silence, again. I had got another viral flue
which knocked me out the last days.
Re: [improvement idea] "in-place" editing of Input Fields in Writer
Posted by Regina Henschel <rb...@t-online.de>.
Oliver-Rainer Wittmann schrieb:
> Hi,
>
> recently I got notice about our (from my point of view) very
> user-unfriendly way for editing Input Fields in Writer.
> Currently, you can not place the cursor into an Input Field which in
> general is shown with a grey background when Menu View - Field Shading
> is on. If you click on the Input Field, a modal dialog pops up. In this
> dialog you can edit the Input Field's content. On confirmation of the
> dialog the Input Field's content is changed in the text document. To
> edit the next Input Field you need to click on it. There is also a
> special key shortcut - namely Shift-Ctrl-F9. This key shortcut opens the
> Input Field content editing dialog for the first field. This time the
> dialog has a Next button by which you can confirm your change and switch
> directly to the next Input Field. A Previous button is not available. By
> Murphys law the dialog hides most of the time the Input Field in the
> text document.
>
> I have got the opinion that such an editing experience is bad,
> especially, if the document is a form which makes use of a lot of Input
> Fields to be filled by the user.
See issue https://issues.apache.org/ooo/show_bug.cgi?id=33737.
Kind regards
Regina
Re: [improvement idea] "in-place" editing of Input Fields in Writer
Posted by Oliver-Rainer Wittmann <or...@googlemail.com>.
Hi,
On 06.02.2013 19:17, James Plante wrote:
> Oliver, You can get much of the behavior you desire by defining User
> Fields instead of Input Fields. They have the added benefit of being
> global. In other words, if you change one at the end of the document,
> and that same field appears at the beginning, BOTH fields change if
> you edit either one of them. The only thing User Fields won't offer
> you is the editing if the doc is read-only.
>
Thanks for the feedback.
Yes, the User Fields do have a different UI which is a little better,
but also does not allow "in-place" editing.
From my point of view User Fields and Input Fields have both its
feature set which are both useful under certain user scenarios.
Input Fields are especially uses in forms - as I have learned from
certain customers - which are sent to a user and needs to be filled.
These fields are also used when corresponding Microsoft Word documents
are imported.
> Why would you want to traverse all the input fields? OpenOffice, of
> course, does that automatically when you have Input fields in a
> template. You complain that you cannot back up to the previous field.
> But if you've made a mistake in the previous field, just click in
> that field when you've finished all of them, and make your
> correction. Although I find that to be my preferred way of making
> corrections, your requirements may differ. Perhaps you could write a
> macro to list all the fields and allow you to change their contents
> in a dialog?
>
Yes, the current UI works, but it does not seem to match all the user's
expectations, especially if the user is migrating from Microsoft Word.
Do not get me wrong, I do not want to clone an UI from another
application, but I am currently listening to some user's concerns
regarding our current UI.
Best regards, Oliver.
P.S.: Sorry for the long silence, again. I had got another viral flue
which knocked me out the last days.
> Regards,
>
> Jim
>
> On Feb 6, 2013, at 10:23 AM, Oliver-Rainer Wittmann
> <or...@googlemail.com> wrote:
>
>> Hi,
>>
>> recently I got notice about our (from my point of view) very
>> user-unfriendly way for editing Input Fields in Writer. Currently,
>> you can not place the cursor into an Input Field which in general
>> is shown with a grey background when Menu View - Field Shading is
>> on. If you click on the Input Field, a modal dialog pops up. In
>> this dialog you can edit the Input Field's content. On confirmation
>> of the dialog the Input Field's content is changed in the text
>> document. To edit the next Input Field you need to click on it.
>> There is also a special key shortcut - namely Shift-Ctrl-F9. This
>> key shortcut opens the Input Field content editing dialog for the
>> first field. This time the dialog has a Next button by which you
>> can confirm your change and switch directly to the next Input
>> Field. A Previous button is not available. By Murphys law the
>> dialog hides most of the time the Input Field in the text
>> document.
>>
>> I have got the opinion that such an editing experience is bad,
>> especially, if the document is a form which makes use of a lot of
>> Input Fields to be filled by the user.
>>
>> My idea is to be able to edit the Input Fields directly in the text
>> document's content together with some special handling. The special
>> handling which I had in mind is: - Some special key handling to
>> "travel" from Input Field to Input Field, forward and backward. May
>> be key Ctrl-Tab for forward movement and Shift-Ctrl-Tab for
>> backward movement. - Feedback when the user "enters" (cursor inside
>> Input Field) and "leaves" (cursor outside Input Field) a Input
>> Field. May be some transparent overlay, similar to the selection
>> overlay, when the cursor is inside a Input Field. - Even if the
>> document is read-only, the editing of the Input Fields should be
>> possible when configured correspondingly.
>>
>> What is your opinion about the current Input Field editing? What is
>> your feedback on my idea to improve the editing of Input Fields?
>>
>> If I found time, I would like to implement such an improvement.
>> Unfortunately, I do not have the resources, now.
>>
>> Everybody volunteering to help/to provide feedback on development,
>> qa, user experience, documentation, translation of possible new UI
>> and the new documentation is welcome.
>>
>>
>> Best regards, Oliver.
>>
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Re: [improvement idea] "in-place" editing of Input Fields in Writer
Posted by James Plante <ji...@me.com>.
Oliver,
You can get much of the behavior you desire by defining User Fields instead of Input Fields. They have the added benefit of being global. In other words, if you change one at the end of the document, and that same field appears at the beginning, BOTH fields change if you edit either one of them. The only thing User Fields won't offer you is the editing if the doc is read-only.
Why would you want to traverse all the input fields? OpenOffice, of course, does that automatically when you have Input fields in a template. You complain that you cannot back up to the previous field. But if you've made a mistake in the previous field, just click in that field when you've finished all of them, and make your correction. Although I find that to be my preferred way of making corrections, your requirements may differ. Perhaps you could write a macro to list all the fields and allow you to change their contents in a dialog?
Regards,
Jim
On Feb 6, 2013, at 10:23 AM, Oliver-Rainer Wittmann <or...@googlemail.com> wrote:
> Hi,
>
> recently I got notice about our (from my point of view) very user-unfriendly way for editing Input Fields in Writer.
> Currently, you can not place the cursor into an Input Field which in general is shown with a grey background when Menu View - Field Shading is on. If you click on the Input Field, a modal dialog pops up. In this dialog you can edit the Input Field's content. On confirmation of the dialog the Input Field's content is changed in the text document. To edit the next Input Field you need to click on it. There is also a special key shortcut - namely Shift-Ctrl-F9. This key shortcut opens the Input Field content editing dialog for the first field. This time the dialog has a Next button by which you can confirm your change and switch directly to the next Input Field. A Previous button is not available. By Murphys law the dialog hides most of the time the Input Field in the text document.
>
> I have got the opinion that such an editing experience is bad, especially, if the document is a form which makes use of a lot of Input Fields to be filled by the user.
>
> My idea is to be able to edit the Input Fields directly in the text document's content together with some special handling. The special handling which I had in mind is:
> - Some special key handling to "travel" from Input Field to Input Field, forward and backward. May be key Ctrl-Tab for forward movement and Shift-Ctrl-Tab for backward movement.
> - Feedback when the user "enters" (cursor inside Input Field) and "leaves" (cursor outside Input Field) a Input Field. May be some transparent overlay, similar to the selection overlay, when the cursor is inside a Input Field.
> - Even if the document is read-only, the editing of the Input Fields should be possible when configured correspondingly.
>
> What is your opinion about the current Input Field editing?
> What is your feedback on my idea to improve the editing of Input Fields?
>
> If I found time, I would like to implement such an improvement.
> Unfortunately, I do not have the resources, now.
>
> Everybody volunteering to help/to provide feedback on development, qa, user experience, documentation, translation of possible new UI and the new documentation is welcome.
>
>
> Best regards, Oliver.
>
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> To unsubscribe, e-mail: users-unsubscribe@openoffice.apache.org
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>
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