[kde-guidelines] Discouraging use of custom widget replacements

[Thomas Pfeiffer]

On Tuesday 09 July 2013 18:17:17 Aurélien Gâteau wrote:
> > I placed it below "Behaviour" to not forget it. Actually, I'm not
> > convinced
> > that owner-drawn controls need to get rejected completely (I have KScreen
> > in mind). I would suggest to create a special page for non-standard
> > controls.
> I agree. Sometimes one need non-standard widgets, so having a HIG page for
> them makes a lot of sense. Some guidelines ideas from the top of my head:
> 
> * Do you really need a custom widget? Check whether an existing widget
> cannot be used instead
> 
> * Make sure your new widget:
> ** Resizes correctly
> ** Handles right-to-left setups
> ** Works well with different color schemes
> ** Looks as close to native as possible (use QStyle or QStylePainter to draw
> elements)
> ** Is based on an existing widget rather than a plain QWidget if possible
> 
> * If possible, consider making your widget reusable enough so that it can be
> integrated in standard widgets

I'd also strongly recommend consulting with the usability team (either this 
list or the kde-usability list, I'm not sure) before implementing a custom 
widget. There are some very good cases for new widgets, but I wouldn't like 
people who think they are good at interaction design - but maybe in fact are 
not -  design new widgets without help.