153674 - Add per-tab reload button in association with bug 108938

Status: VERIFIED WONTFIX

(SeaMonkey :: Tabbed Browser, enhancement)

Description

[Joel Thornton]

Bug 108938 describes an enhancement to the tab bar which would add a close "X"
icon to the upper right of each tab, rather than having a global "X" at the far
right.

If bug 108938 is implemented, I suggest additionally adding a small reload button
below this "X" to facilitate per-tab reloading without requiring the user to
switch to the tab and hit Reload.  This could be a handy enhancement, which would
not take up any more screen real estate than 108938 would do.

In relation to bug 153673, if page/favicons were hidden on the tabs, the reload
icon would no longer be present in this case. To compliment this, the per-tab
reload button could animate in the same way the current reload animation does, to indicate a page reload was in progress for the tab. So clicking on the reload button would cause it to begin spinning.

Comment 1

[Joel Thornton]

Attachment: Conceptual example of a per-tab reload button

Comment 2

[timeless]

> mpt can we have per tab back and forward buttons?
> please?
> oh, and per tab home buttons
> and stop buttons
> and print buttons!
< and close buttons
< and ... minimize buttons!
> yes yes, we must have per tab minimze buttons
> ooh, how about per tab fullscreen?
we need to draw a line somewhere. perhaps the line should be drawn against close just because not drawing it against close results in requests like this

Comment 3

[Joel Thornton]

Granted; however I think reload is probably the second most-used function which
would have any real value for non-active tabs (and perhaps the only other
function).

Since (assuming bug 108938 is implemented) there would be some unused space below
the per-tab "X", it would make the most sense to put reload there. IMHO :)

Comment 4

[Quinn Yost (mythdraug)]

Any tab can be reloaded without giving it focus by right clicking the
tab and selecting "Reload tab". 

Not every function in an app needs to or should be accessible with 
a single click.

Comment 5

[Joel Thornton]

True enough. However, if there is space to put such a button there, and it doesn't
have a negative impact in some other way, I think it ought to be there.

The question of crowding -- not in terms of screen real estate, but as concerns
precision mousing and general UI aesthetics -- is a debatable issue with this RFE.
But outside of that, I don't see any reason to exclude something that would provide
enhanced functionality, if it has no significant negative impact on the rest of the
so-called "browsing experience". ;)

Comment 6

[Felix Miata]

If there is room for any other button below a close button on a tab, then the
tab is much too tall (as it is now), unnecessarily stealing space from the
reason why any browser exists. cf. bug 135457

Comment 7

[jag (Peter Annema)]

WONTFIX.

Comment 8

[timeless]

vrfy wont