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A CSS framework to recreate Windows 7 GUI

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Re: A CSS framework to recreate Windows 7 GUI

#41

Post by forgotmypw17 »

foxpurple wrote: post #32
superasn wrote: post #28

What I love about these old designs is how obvious everything is. You just can't miss the button or the tabs. Now after all this skeuomorphic design revolution it's so hard to tell, is it a button, text, link etc. It probably looks better but it is at the cost of extra thinking for the user.

This is such a hacker news comment. Somehow a group of people supposedly good at using computers struggle to work out what a button is while the average user seems to have no problems.

Non-techies have the same problems, they just aren't aware of what's happening and what the cause is. (Someone who often coaches/tutors/handholds people here.)

Re: A CSS framework to recreate Windows 7 GUI

#42

Post by _the_inflator »

foxpurple wrote: post #32
superasn wrote: post #28

What I love about these old designs is how obvious everything is. You just can't miss the button or the tabs. Now after all this skeuomorphic design revolution it's so hard to tell, is it a button, text, link etc. It probably looks better but it is at the cost of extra thinking for the user.

This is such a hacker news comment. Somehow a group of people supposedly good at using computers struggle to work out what a button is while the average user seems to have no problems.

Best comment for me. LOL

Yes, I agree with you. With smartphone sales skyrocketing the last thing you would assume is a bad user experience. Quite the opposite: how bad Windows 7 was.

This is computer history romance or different personal taste.

Re: A CSS framework to recreate Windows 7 GUI

#43

Post by forgotmypw17 »

hnlmorg wrote: post #38
antisthenes wrote: post #27

Earlier quoted context omitted.

There wasn't much to hate about SP3 Windows XP. It was a solid OS, limited mostly by lack of mainstream 64-bit version and hard capped at DirectX 9.0, meaning modern games no longer worked. Later on, lack of TRIM support for SSDs. Basically between SP3 release in 2008 and XP's end of support in 2014, you could have used a very stable OS if you didn't need to play the latest games or run the absolute latest hardware.

SP3 was pretty late in XP's life. Many of us remember the struggle with earlier versions of XP and longing for the good old days of Windows 2000.

By the time Windows XP was available, I'd already learned my lesson. Stayed with 2000 until SP3 was available. :)

Re: A CSS framework to recreate Windows 7 GUI

#44

Post by hughrr »

foxpurple wrote: post #32
superasn wrote: post #28

What I love about these old designs is how obvious everything is. You just can't miss the button or the tabs. Now after all this skeuomorphic design revolution it's so hard to tell, is it a button, text, link etc. It probably looks better but it is at the cost of extra thinking for the user.

This is such a hacker news comment. Somehow a group of people supposedly good at using computers struggle to work out what a button is while the average user seems to have no problems.

Have you sat with an average user? They have no idea what they are doing with these modern UIs. My mother with an iPhone is a fine example. Has no idea what to press or slide.

She could use windows 7 fine. Anything later, more difficult.

Re: A CSS framework to recreate Windows 7 GUI

#45

Post by hnlmorg »

eeegnu wrote: post #14
dqv wrote: post #12

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I've been feeling that way, but I can't tell if it's rational. Windows XP and 7 were the versions of the OS I used the most growing up. Nostalgia? Ever since Windows 8, the OS has felt a lot slower and the UI isn't consistent. I was running something the other day that needed privilege escalation and I had this realization that I would have no idea if a particular UI was cobbled-together-Microsoft-UI or if it was cob…

Windows 7 had a very professional feel to me that subsequent versions lack. Probably has to do with attempting to create a unified tablet / phone / desktop experience.

I don't want a unified tablet / phone / desktop experience. I want interfaces that are optimised for the device rather than optimised for encouraging vendor lock ins.

Also it wasn't Windows 7 that first attempted that. PDAs back in ~2000 ran Windows CE with a Windows 95 / NT4 era UI. That also wasn't well optimised for smaller screens touch screens, hence the requirement to use a stylus. Then what followed was Windows Mobile 6, which looked more like XP, and 6.5 that had a vista / 7 type home screen but with classical Windows widgets. It wasn't until Metro (Win 8 / Mobile 7) when Microsoft really united the look and feel of Windows across all their platforms again, Xbox included.

Personally for me, XP was the decline of Microsoft's professional shell design. Windows 2000 was when Microsoft peaked. It was free from fluff but still had some minor tweaks of visual flair. XP was ugly, Vista and 7's widgets were poorly optimised for screen estate. And there after everything has taken a massive step backwards in usability.

Re: A CSS framework to recreate Windows 7 GUI

#46

Post by hnlmorg »

forgotmypw17 wrote: post #43
hnlmorg wrote: post #38

Earlier quoted context omitted.

SP3 was pretty late in XP's life. Many of us remember the struggle with earlier versions of XP and longing for the good old days of Windows 2000.

By the time Windows XP was available, I'd already learned my lesson. Stayed with 2000 until SP3 was available. :)

That was only an issue with the DOS-bootstrapped versions. The NT line was a lot more reliable for early adopters. Or at least it was until XP came along. Which is another good reason why Microsoft peaked with Windows 2000.

Re: A CSS framework to recreate Windows 7 GUI

#47

Post by quietbritishjim »

mrighele wrote: post #35
foxpurple wrote: post #32

Earlier quoted context omitted.

This is such a hacker news comment. Somehow a group of people supposedly good at using computers struggle to work out what a button is while the average user seems to have no problems.

The average user has the same problems, but doesn't realize it is a UI problem or even think that he could be more productive. When he does he probably thinks that he is too stupid to use a computer.

A saw a really obvious instance of this recently, with an old lady trying to use a self checkout.

The machine asked which payment option you wanted: cash, credit card, voucher, etc. She selected cash. That brought you to a screen with a button in the middle allowing you to switch quickly to pay with card (to pay the remaining balance after you'd part paid with cash). The button text was "pay with card". The problem is, because it wasn't obvious that it was a button, she thought she had accidentally chosen the wrong option at the previous screen. She chose the "back" button at bottom and then selected "cash" again, but had the same problem. I saw her go through this cycle several times before asking for help.

A really obvious button style could well have avoided the problem.

Re: A CSS framework to recreate Windows 7 GUI

#48

Post by npteljes »

code_duck wrote: post #29
causality0 wrote: post #2

I'm beginning to have the feeling Windows 7 is the last Microsoft OS I'll ever feel good about installing.

I recall distrusting XP when it was new.

Because it was shit at launch. The nice stable OS we remember is the XP after its service packs.

Re: A CSS framework to recreate Windows 7 GUI

#49

Post by croes »

foxpurple wrote: post #32
superasn wrote: post #28

What I love about these old designs is how obvious everything is. You just can't miss the button or the tabs. Now after all this skeuomorphic design revolution it's so hard to tell, is it a button, text, link etc. It probably looks better but it is at the cost of extra thinking for the user.

This is such a hacker news comment. Somehow a group of people supposedly good at using computers struggle to work out what a button is while the average user seems to have no problems.

The average user didn't find it strange to click at "Start" to shutdown Windows.

Re: A CSS framework to recreate Windows 7 GUI

#50

Post by husarcik »

quietbritishjim wrote: post #47
mrighele wrote: post #35

Earlier quoted context omitted.

The average user has the same problems, but doesn't realize it is a UI problem or even think that he could be more productive. When he does he probably thinks that he is too stupid to use a computer.

A saw a really obvious instance of this recently, with an old lady trying to use a self checkout. The machine asked which payment option you wanted: cash, credit card, voucher, etc. She selected cash. That brought you to a screen with a button in the middle allowing you to switch quickly to pay with card (to pay the remaining balance after you'd part paid with cash). The button text was "pay with card". The problem i…

Sounds like they could have labeled it "pay with card instead".
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