[Gimp-developer] no image open spec...

[peter sikking]

Sven wrote:

> Merge toolbox and image menus
>
>    It would be very nice if we could get this done for 2.6. It  
> would be
>    a major user-visible change and as such it would give a clear sign
>    that GIMP is moving. What's needed here is a mockup that shows how
>    GIMP should look like with no image window open. And a  
> specification
>    that tells us what should happen when the first image is opened,  
> what
>    happens for the second image, what happens when the last image is
>    closed.


Purely due to the infectious enthusiasm of Martin on the irc,
I have given that a start:

<http://gui.gimp.org/index.php/No_image_open_specification>

so far so good.

After having defined what definitely not should be in that window,
the question remains what actually can.

I think now that the tip-of-the-day idea can get really old really fast,
even if the tips are super and exactly what you need. To see them
10–100 times a day is too much, even though I do build in a slider to
set the alpha of the whole tip thing.

So after rereading the section in the spec about no gimmicks (please  
do):

<http://gui.gimp.org/index.php/No_image_open_specification#no_gimmicks>

here are some ideas I have for this window:

1) one of our designers (jimmac, garrett) makes a really nice, soothing,
non-distracting, GIMP value improving wallpaper to show there;

2) like 1), but we ship with a whole series; GIMP shuffles through the
series, shows a different one every time;

3) we have a repository of really nice, soothing, non-distracting, GIMP
value improving wallpapers on gimp.org. When internet-connected, GIMP  
gets
some new ones from the repository, ditches some others, shuffles like  
in 2).
Users contribute new wallpapers, we weed out the crap.

The 3 ideas above add a joy-of-use component to GIMP, not a gimmick.

Another fundamental idea is:

4) a plugin system for this window; we ship a standard, good one like
above. If somebody really insists he or she wants to see a file
open dialog every time or the 10 last edited pictures (both not very
good ideas to force upon one million users) then let them write a plugin
to do that.

and oh, note that the slider to set the alpha of what goes on in that
window will be there anyway...

     --ps

         founder + principal interaction architect
             man + machine interface works

         http://mmiworks.net/blog : on interaction architecture