PATCH - HOME URL and profiles

[Dawit A.]

On Monday 20 September 2004 15:45, Waldo Bastian wrote:
> On Tuesday 21 September 2004 00:49, Datschge wrote:
> > > > IMHO this is going too far, and losing one of KDE's
> > > > greatest innovations.
> > >
> > > I don't care about innovation. I care about usability.
> >
> > Is spawning a new window instead reusing the current one better
> > usability (honest question)?
>
> That's indeed the key question.
>
> 1) Currently when you have the file-manager profile and you enter a http
> URL you stay with the file-manager profile.
> 2) One possibility is to change from the file-manager profile to the
> web-browser profile when that happens (let's call that "morphing")
> 3) The other possibility is to open such URL in a new window that operates
> with the web-browser profile.
>
> > There was a discussion about linking profiles to protocols before
> > already. When that were implemented, couldn't it work in a similar
> > fashion like the above mentioned MIME types embedding settings
> > allowing the users/distributors/sysadmins themselves to use the same
> > or different windows per protocol just like they can do per MIME type
> > already?
>
> Well, yes, you would need to have some sort of rule-set for when to switch
> to the other profile if you go for option 2) or 3) listed above.

I personally think #2 is a way to go, but there are some sticky issue that 
need to be addressed rather delicately. For example, when you say 
file-manager/web-browser profile are they going to be separate hard coded 
system profile(s) the user cannot modify ? Currently you can do whatever you 
want with those profiles including deleting them which of course cause 
headaches. Also does switching the profile imply that the user will get his 
views restored the way he configured the profile when the morphing takes 
place ? In that case what would happen to the URL (s)he typed ? Even the way 
one goes about determining how to associate protocols with profiles require a 
forethought.

BTW, for the record I like the way konqueror works right now. AFAIC the need 
for separation of file management and web browsing is superficial. People 
usually get accustomed to doing things one way and do not take it well when 
things do not work the way they were used to. What really needs fixing IMHO 
is the plethora of unnecessary options that are foisted upon the user when 
those options really do not make any sense for a particular mode or profile.

-- 
Regards,
Dawit A.
"Preach what you practice, practice what you preach"