[rkward-devel] Usability: Reading CSV

[jan]

Dear RKWard Devs,

Since I was recently working again more with RKWard (analysing usability
data…), here are some usability problems I found. I tired to estimate
how hard they are to fix, so one could focus on the most effective fixes.

I split them in different mails, so that the issues stay separated.

1) Reading CSV Data
===========

First row as col names (easy/medium difficulty fix)
--------------------------------------------------------------

It took me a long time until I found how to get the first row as column
name. Assumed reason: The checkbox for the option (nicely put on the
first tab!) is somewhat squeezed between other elements. On Linux it
looks like it is part of "quick options", on Mac this impression is even
more extreme, since it resides in some darker-colored box.

Violated Heuristics: Usability, Standards (all other options have some
sort of headline)

Proposed Fix: Give it a space on its own (an own line) and/or a headline


Aside there are several smaller issues I found.

Wordings (Easy fix)
--------------------------

a) In "Column names in first row" (1st tab) it is unclear if the first
row is the CSV’s or the resulting data.frame. (Suggestion: "Use first
line as column names" (?))
b) "Default": On the second tab there are many "Defaults", but it is
unclear what this default is.
c) "Edit Object" (1st tab, save to options): This seems to open the
object after import in the table view, but it suggests it somehow
directly changes some object (like a mixin or an overwrite...)
(Suggestion: "Open after Import" or "View after import")

Active/Inactive Fields (Medium)
-----------------------------------------

Depended on other fields, some radiobutton options are active or
inactive. Sometimes it is hard to follow why, and the many inactive
options irritate
Possible fix: Using Dropdowns (?) like in RStudio’s import

Preview (Difficult)
-----------------------
This is probably hard to implement but a preview of the first 5 or so
imported lines would be great (also RStudio inspired)

Flow: Call the file selector (easy to medium)
----------------------------------------------------------
Before any option makes any sense, I file needs to be loaded. So
flow-wise it would make sense to open the file picker right away. It
also would match user expectations, since it is standard in many other
applications.




Kind Regards,
 Jan