Vista - WLM an improvement?

I wonder if anyone else is "squawking" about the fact that WLM seems to have
dropped the standard toolbar which included things like the red arrow for
Delete, the Go Back arrow, and the Send/Receive icon? I find that I really
miss those shortcuts.

I don't consider deleting these items to be progress in developing the
product. I wonder if anyone else is not pleased and if Microsoft is
listening? If there was a good reason for deleting them, I wonder if anyone
from MS has stated it? It might make the bitter pill easier to swallow if we
knew a reason.

Tom

"Tom Brown" <NoSpam@xxxxxx> wrote in message
news:ehXP1cxgJHA.4880@xxxxxxI'm gong to stick my oar in here and say my piece, that's been
festering for weeks. It's been a hard week, so if I'm a bit cranky,
forgive me.
First, Tom: look back over the posts since 7 January. Most of them
have been about what you're complaining about.

Now, my view FWIW. I find the iconless layout much more visually
satisfying than its predecessor. It has taught me that it's the
position of the icon rather than its appearance that I rely on for
navigation. I'm still hitting the one for Calendar when I want
Contacts; I curse, click the red X to go back - and the app
disappears. This variance in window function is to my mind a much
bigger fault than the lack of icons - to the point where I wish that
the nine remaining ones were taken away, too.

With no icons, my screen is workmanlike and uncluttered. Colours
don't bother me at all - I just select Black so that everything
except highlighted folders and scrollbars is either grey or white.

Admittedly, I use keyboard shortcuts a lot, but not exclusively. If
I learn a new one, I'll probably use it. I work on a laptop, so it's
not so far from keyboard to touchpad, and this probably makes a
difference. But the idea of using a mouse to click a Delete button
when I have a perfectly functional one on my keyboard is foreign to
me. Similarly, I always use the spacebar to read posts and Ctrl-U to
move between unread ones. My only gripe here is that I have not yet
worked out which bit of the UI is going to be in focus after doing
something. I end up just hitting Tab whenever Ctrl-U or the spacebar
doesn't do what I expect it to do.

The program font - SegoeUI - I find particularly unlovely, so much
so that I have removed it from my fonts folder. Now everything
displays uniformly in Arial - not terribly pretty either, but very
workmanlike. My default font for reading is Arial Unicode, which I
find very easy on the eye.

So, for if I had the choice, I'd have the UI totally icon-free.

The screenshot shows what my workspace normally looks like.
--
Noel

The thing is, all people are different and have different preferences.
Instead of removing functionality, the toolbar should have been made easier
to customize. 3 options would be nice (like other programs have) with: Text
only, Text + Icons, and Icon only. Even standard Windows Mail with Vista has
three options plus options for Small & Large Icons.

And Tom yes, I just upgraded to the new load last night with these changes
and it is bugging the life out of me ;-).

D

I suggested to Microsoft to remove the "Delete" text from the "X" delete
button, since most people by now know/knew what icon does/did (I guess) but
Microsoft instead decided to remove the icon! LOL

I didn't like the new, icon-less toolbar, especially when it first came out,
but in using it, I've gotten used to it. From time to time I do hit the
wrong button -- well, LABEL -- but it's been less so now than before.

I'm using XP and the visual differences between an all-icon toolbar in XP to
an all-text toolbar in WLM (and other Windows Live programs) is very
noticeable but when I look at screenshots of Windows 7 with all-text
toolbars, I somehow, for some reason, like it :-)

Sterling

"Tom Brown" <NoSpam@xxxxxx> wrote in message
news:ehXP1cxgJHA.4880@xxxxxx

"Sterling" wrote:
Well for me, the new layout id just plain inefficient use of space. Icons
with tooltips are the way to go man ;-). Hover over the delete and forward
labels...really useful having the tooltip be the same as the button
label...same thing for previous and next buttons in a message. Icons attract
your eye better (at least mine) and the tooltip can help those that don't
know what a big red X is for.

D

Actually, I would think they could do it just like the have done for YEARS
in a mainstream programs like Office (Word and Excel, etc.). They give you
the option to either have it or not. In Word, if I go to View>Toolbars and
either select (or not) Standard or Formatting, I can get the look I prefer.
I don't like being forced (and paying for it) to accept something that is
not comfortable for me.

I wonder if they are planning on deleting the option to have or not have a
Standard Toolbars in Office? Unfortunately, they are making it easier and
easier to look at products other than Microsoft.

Tom



"Sterling" <Sterling@xxxxxx> wrote in message
news:uUX2OoygJHA.1184@xxxxxx

"Don" <Don@xxxxxx> wrote in message
news:30391246-79C7-4C43-873C-81E0E9BEF247@xxxxxxOh I'm all about icons (I hate it when IE removes favicons 'cause 1- I like
'em and 2- I use them to ID sites) and I'm with ya on both accounts. I am
used to the all-text toolbar, but I don't like it, at least not in XP. My XP
toolbars are set to only icons, and all-text toolbar's text label takes up
space. And lets not forget the visual when you enable the Menu bar -- two
bars of nothing but text!

I guess the "X" is better because I can tell my mom to click on the red X in
the toolbar and she'll know which I am referring to, rather than telling her
in Spanish a word that I don't know what it is. I don't know what "Delete"
is in Spanish :-)

Sterling

I like using Microsoft's products. I don't know if I'd call myself a
"fanboy" but I am kind of an enthusiast, especially when it comes to
Windows. I do look at other products when Microsoft doesn't quite deliever
the goods, but for the most part, I first look at what Microsoft has to
offer.

This our way or go somewhere else (Re: Thunderbird) way of WLM I don't like.
At least an option would be good but I don't think Microsoft will do that
when it comes to the toolbar. I have noticed in some Windows 7 screenshots
that when you click on a Word document, the Open label displays the Word
icon.

Sterling

"Tom Brown" <NoSpam@xxxxxx> wrote in message
news:eXy5QIzgJHA.4220@xxxxxx

"Don" <Don@xxxxxx> wrote in message
news:30391246-79C7-4C43-873C-81E0E9BEF247@xxxxxxI never used the red X, so I don't even have Delete on my Toolbar.
I right click, Delete.
--
Ronald Sommer

"Sterling" <Sterling@xxxxxx> wrote in message
news:eLyW8dzgJHA.1252@xxxxxx"Suprimir". ("Borrar" es un sinónimo.)

Saludos,

Earle