Making Tabs Fit Fitt's Law

7. April 2010, 17:02:03

Reclining Buddha

Fitt's Law is about making use of the fact that the edge of the Window is very quick to point to. If the tabs can be selected by clicking on the tab at the very top edge of the window, it is quicker than having to click precisely somewhere on the tab. The top edge has, in effect, infinite height.

I succeeded in getting my edited version of the DTA skin to behave like this, but when I tried to do the same for my Opera Glasses Skin it didn't work. Setting top and bottom margins to zero for both active (selected) and background tabs (tab button skin) didn't have the desired effect. Can any skin experts tell me why this skin is not working as intended?

The skin is fixed and updated now.

Skins Tips Buttons Backup Security User Scripts Language Forums
Browser JS Changelogs Opera Next Dragonfly Bugs FTP
My Website Opera Review My Fonts IrfanView Search Downloads
Opera 11.64 on Windows 7 64-bit • AMD A10-6800K, 8 Gbyte RAM specs

Rules of Conduct and Posting Rules • Please Don't Shout • Editing Posts • Opera Config Links

7. April 2010, 17:06:30

Tamil

:-(|)

Posts: 115322

Opera Glasses Skin link is wrong.

Opera FAQs, Tips, Tricks & Tweaks | @limaT

7. April 2010, 17:24:56

Pesala

Reclining Buddha

Posts: 27327

Thanks. I fixed the link.

Skins Tips Buttons Backup Security User Scripts Language Forums
Browser JS Changelogs Opera Next Dragonfly Bugs FTP
My Website Opera Review My Fonts IrfanView Search Downloads
Opera 11.64 on Windows 7 64-bit • AMD A10-6800K, 8 Gbyte RAM specs

Rules of Conduct and Posting Rules • Please Don't Shout • Editing Posts • Opera Config Links

7. April 2010, 18:20:55

maskokot

Posts: 115

This is what you need to change:

[Pagebar Transparent Skin]
Padding Top = -3

-3 is maybe too much try it yourself.

Opera 10.60b1 (3422)

Google Translate with Opera

7. April 2010, 18:25:24

Pesala

Reclining Buddha

Posts: 27327

Originally posted by maskokot:

-3 is maybe too much try it yourself.

Thanks. A value of -1 was enough.

Skins Tips Buttons Backup Security User Scripts Language Forums
Browser JS Changelogs Opera Next Dragonfly Bugs FTP
My Website Opera Review My Fonts IrfanView Search Downloads
Opera 11.64 on Windows 7 64-bit • AMD A10-6800K, 8 Gbyte RAM specs

Rules of Conduct and Posting Rules • Please Don't Shout • Editing Posts • Opera Config Links

7. April 2010, 18:41:51

maskokot

Posts: 115

You're welcome

I use this skin tweak myself.

Opera 10.60b1 (3422)

Google Translate with Opera

8. April 2010, 11:12:23

Z1-AV69

Posts: 266

In Opera:Config is the setting "Chrome Integration Drag Area Maximized" with a default setting "1". This is the reason you need to set the margin to -1.

In my skins I use a margin top of "0" to give users best control about that Fitts Law thing. It can make sense to have 1px titlebar left for window tasks. The thoughts of the Opera devs about that make sense, but the standard_skins setting of margin top = 1 is simply wrong (since you can't set "Chrome Integration Drag Area Maximized" to -1).
If the skin uses "0", the user can control the behavior perfectly with the "Chrome Integration Drag Area Maximized" setting. The setting there will be exactly the height of the remaining titlebar if the skin uses "0".

MyOpera blog

8. April 2010, 11:44:06

Pesala

Reclining Buddha

Posts: 27327

I already had Chrome Integration Drag Area set to 0, but the skin did not work as intended with padding top = 0. Changing the padding top to -1 seems to be the only solution. Anyway, since the default setting for chrome drag area maximized is 1, the skin should be designed for the default setting.

Skins Tips Buttons Backup Security User Scripts Language Forums
Browser JS Changelogs Opera Next Dragonfly Bugs FTP
My Website Opera Review My Fonts IrfanView Search Downloads
Opera 11.64 on Windows 7 64-bit • AMD A10-6800K, 8 Gbyte RAM specs

Rules of Conduct and Posting Rules • Please Don't Shout • Editing Posts • Opera Config Links

10. April 2010, 10:57:00

Pesala

Reclining Buddha

Posts: 27327

Still one more related problem to resolve — with the Close button at top right. This also need to fit Fitt's law, but I cannot find the right section to edit. [Caption Button Skin] is what I have tried.

Skins Tips Buttons Backup Security User Scripts Language Forums
Browser JS Changelogs Opera Next Dragonfly Bugs FTP
My Website Opera Review My Fonts IrfanView Search Downloads
Opera 11.64 on Windows 7 64-bit • AMD A10-6800K, 8 Gbyte RAM specs

Rules of Conduct and Posting Rules • Please Don't Shout • Editing Posts • Opera Config Links

11. April 2010, 09:06:24

Pesala

Reclining Buddha

Posts: 27327

I have updated my Opera Classic Skin with the same features as the Opera Glasses skin. It uses the original 22 pixel icons, mixed with 32 pixel external program icons for use on the Status Bar with 32 pixel Link and Unite icons too.

Skins Tips Buttons Backup Security User Scripts Language Forums
Browser JS Changelogs Opera Next Dragonfly Bugs FTP
My Website Opera Review My Fonts IrfanView Search Downloads
Opera 11.64 on Windows 7 64-bit • AMD A10-6800K, 8 Gbyte RAM specs

Rules of Conduct and Posting Rules • Please Don't Shout • Editing Posts • Opera Config Links

11. April 2010, 09:36:42

triplezero

Posts: 7

I always have had my tabs in Opera at the bottom of the screen. When Opera is maximized, the tabs go all the way to the bottom edge of the screen.

This is the easiest and quickest way to make use of Fitts's law.

I always had it this way because IIRC some ancient version of Opera (5 or 6?) had the tabs at the bottom, and only in the version where they changed a lot of things to match Firefox (kb shortcuts, mostly. good move IMO), they also put the tabs on top by default.

Ever since then first thing I did was customize the tabs back to the bottom

Not that I knew anything about Fitts's law until a week or 2 ago, I just did it because I was stuck in my ways. Good to know that there's actually a rational reason to do this

11. April 2010, 10:08:51

Pesala

Reclining Buddha

Posts: 27327

If you have your Windows taskbar (on autohide) at the bottom and your tabs at the bottom, then it wouldn't help you to have the tabs extend to the edge of the Window, because the taskbar would pop up. I have long used the taskbar on the top with autohide, but I am trying it on the left now to see if I can get used to that. I have always had my panels on the right, next to the scroll bar, and with the toggle strip on.

Skins Tips Buttons Backup Security User Scripts Language Forums
Browser JS Changelogs Opera Next Dragonfly Bugs FTP
My Website Opera Review My Fonts IrfanView Search Downloads
Opera 11.64 on Windows 7 64-bit • AMD A10-6800K, 8 Gbyte RAM specs

Rules of Conduct and Posting Rules • Please Don't Shout • Editing Posts • Opera Config Links