Switches around the world and broken metaphors [Was: Battery Monitor revamp]

[Marco Martin]

On Saturday 25 May 2013 14:32:29 Martin Graesslin wrote:
> > And this is clearly the case let's work around something we don't want to
> > fix. Switches are a clear improvement over checkboxes depending on the
> > context even my 60yo mom got it much quickier than a checkbox would be
> > able
> > to on my plasmoids.
> 
> And I would completely fail to use the switch. I have huge problems
> understanding those switches and I have not seen any implementation of the
> switch where I got which one is on and which one is off.

that's for me as well.
I have to spend a second or more every time to figure/remember if the "on" 
that is written on the switch (or being colored vs greyed, same thing) means 
"it's on now" or "it's an action, so it's telling me it becomes on if i click 
on it"
to me that slowing down is consistent, and that's what makes a broken 
paradigm. maybe is not like that for everybody (it may indeed depend from 
power switches in europe looking completely different). 
but i would like to see a real user test statistic prior to reevaluating them 
in any way.

on touch they became so universal that's probably fine (and interacting with 
it with touch is a bit more natural)

on the desktop they should really never be there (btw, in 4.11 on the desktop 
switch will look exactly like a checkbox)

and last, the use of one or another should not depend from the choice in the 
application, we have too many inconsistencies already without introducing new 
ones

Cheers,
Marco Martin