Description
An object is an element that visually represents something
having behavior, contents, or both, not solely revealed by the visual
representation. Objects are often represented as icons, but may
be represented in other ways as well, for example, as list items.
Objects generally have pop-up menus associated with them and can
be used as the source of drag-and-drop operations.
When to Use
- Recommended
Use objects as part of an object-oriented methodology
to allow users to most naturally perform a task.
Guidelines
- Required
In the pop-up menu associated with an object, provide
access to the actions the user will need to perform with the task.
- Required
Make the default action of an object be the action
the user is most likely to want to perform with the task.
- Required
Allow a user to change the default action of an
object.
- Required
Make a default action open a window that displays
a view of the object (showing its contents), present an accessible
user interface, or both. This is not required if the object is best
presented in a nonvisual medium (for example, it contains audio
and its default action is Play).
- Required
Allow an object to be named or otherwise identified
uniquely within a scope that contains multiple objects.
- Required
If the default action opens a view on an object,
and the view is already open, use properties that the user can set
to determine whether to do one of the following:
Surface the view (recommended by default)
Open a new view on the object
- Required
When the user opens a view of an object, do not
remove the icon from which the view was opened.
- Recommended
When the user opens a view of an object, display
in-use emphasis on the icon for the object. If multiple icons identify
the same object, provide in-use emphasis on all of them.
- Recommended
If an object can be viewed in multiple ways, allow
the user to specify a default view for each object.
- Recommended
Allow the user to open multiple windows, each of
which displays a different view of an object.
- Recommended
Allow the user to open multiple windows that contain
the same view of an object.
- Recommended
When the user opens a view of an object, and the
object is currently in use, use properties that the user can set
to determine when changes made in one view are visible in another
view.
Supplemental Related Topics
For more information, see the Data
Transfer, Drag-and-Drop Transfer,
Icon, Pop-Up Menu (Menu Type),
and View reference pages.
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