WISH: Definition Update Warning

Hi David,

Would it be possible if Panels are set to Stream Contents that there is a warning at the time of opening the definition that gives you the option to Lock the Solver.

I have had a few instances where a text file was created by me in a definition and then another user has modified that file in some way. Then at a point in the future I have opened the definition and overwritten their mods before realizing my mistake in not locking the solver before opening.

It would be nice also to have the warning for components from third party plug-ins like gHowl's Spreadsheet Writer, or even if the timer was enabled.

Replies to This Discussion

Permalink Reply by David Rutten on May 16, 2013 at 5:54am

Tricky. One thing to realise is that a question which is asked every time you open a file (or frequently asked at any rate) will very soon be ignored. Clicking OK or Cancel becomes second nature and you just do it without thinking. It is therefore not a good solution to warn people about potential loss of data.

One of the maxims of UX design I really like is "Do not ask for permission, ask for forgiveness". In other words; don't make the user decide, but make it possible for the user to undo.

For example instead of overwriting files I could move the old ones into the recycle bin or some other safe location somewhere. Or if there's a file that that would be overwritten, rename it instead of overwriting it.

Does that sound like a good idea?

David Rutten

david@mcneel.com

Poprad, Slovakia

Permalink Reply by Danny Boyes on May 16, 2013 at 6:04am