1646018 - Legacy Menu > View > Layout options missing in TB Menu (button) > View section

Status: RESOLVED WORKSFORME

(Thunderbird :: Toolbars and Tabs, defect)

Description

[Richard Leger]

Attachment: TB-Menu-View.png

In TB 78.0b1 (32-bit) and possibly previous recent beta versions, the Legacy Menu > View > Layout options seems to be missing from the TB Menu (button) > View section [where it would intuitively be expected]... see attached.

This currently prevent to adjust layout (e.g email preview pane position/disable) via the TB Menu (button). This may need to be corrected in light that the Legacy Menus (at the top of the window) may entirely disappear at some point (which is my understanding but I may be wrong).

indeed, there does not seem to be any other way available than the Legacy Menu > View > Layout to proceed such view layout change at the moment...

Comment 1

[Richard Marti (:Paenglab)]

This options are under Customize > Layout. It was already in TB 60 under Preferences > Layout.

Comment 2

[Richard Leger]

(In reply to Richard Marti (:Paenglab) from comment #1)

This options are under Customize > Layout. It was already in TB 60 under Preferences > Layout.

Thanks for the info, but would you please re-open this bug and consider further changes to the TB menu?

It is not because it is the case since 60.x version that it is the best way to handle it... especially in line of further changes that occurs in that menu... and UX improvement on going... personally I never used it this way because it is simply not reachable... At the moment I doubt anyone can find the option (or at least not easily without searching lengthily for it)...

The Customize entry make no sense in the TB menu and having Layout as sub-item make even less sense!

Looking for the option I know exist, I was not able to find it there (and I consider myself as an advance TB user), even knowing it could be somewhere inside the menu, simply because it does not make sense to me (other end-user around could not find the option either, no one looked in Customise entry!).

Why is it not set within View instead where it belongs? Wouldn't it make much more sense?!

You could remove the Layout entry parent item and just put the options directly available in the View menu options considering there are only few of them to reduce the level of imbrication...

Something like...

Menu > View
--------------
Classic <-- may find a different word for this type of you, classic not making any sense by itself...
Wide
Vertical
---
v Folder Pane <-- any folder options could be moved under Folders section eventually
v Folder Pane Columns <-- idem
v Message Pane F8 <-- this could be regroup with other Message options at the end of the list
---
Folders
---
Today Pane
Calendar >
Tasks >
---
Sort By
(...)
---
Message Source CTRL+U <-- the Message Pane entry could be moved prior that entry
Message Security Info

Please (re)consider this UX changes that shall be fairly simple to implement and would be much more intuitive...

The alternative could be to regroup all the Pane options together...

---
Today Pane
Folder Pane
Message Pane
etc...
---

Ideally I should not even have to go in the menu to change the message preview pane location or to disable/enable it... but that is another story :-)

Comment 3

[Alessandro Castellani [:aleca]]

Ideally I should not even have to go in the menu to change the message preview pane location or to disable/enable it... but that is another story :-)

I agree with this soooo much :D

We're trying to organize the menu items inside the Customize submenu that are related to general and "big" UI changes, and keep the View menu to handle "small" and specific UI changes, like small headers, sorting, etc.

The alternative could be to regroup all the Pane options together...

I like this proposal, and I think we should show these options directly on top in the Customize menu, without needing a Layout submenu.

The fact that the Manu Bar menu and the App Menu are drifting apart in terms of organization is not an issue.
The 2 menus are drastically different in terms of interface and usability, so they shouldn't mirror each other at all cost as our objective is to let user use one or another and not both at the same time.

I agree that some further organization and more thorough ordering is needed.

Comment 4

[Richard Leger]

(In reply to Alessandro Castellani (:aleca) from comment #3)

We're trying to organize the menu items inside the Customize submenu that are related to general and "big" UI changes, and keep the View menu to handle "small" and specific UI changes, like small headers, sorting, etc.

How do you distinguish big vs small UI changes?

From end-user point it does not make sense to separate "big" from "small" UI changes into two separate menus. All UI changes shall belong to the same menu, and "View" menu seem the natural/intuitive contender to hold all option items...

Also the word "Customize" does not translate into "big UI/View changes" by its meaning especially in regards of the already existing "View" menu entry... It translate more into "Options" which itself already exists as well... or else...bottom line: confusing!

Why not to higlight such separation (big vs small) within the View menu with big UI changes at the top and smaller one at the bottom while keeping them all available options in View menu...

It is hard to understand where and why such menu separation for View options came up in existance and it seems to me going against your own UI moto express in your recent presentatation to be feature oriented in an intuitive way...

The alternative could be to regroup all the Pane options together...

I like this proposal, and I think we should show these options directly on top in the Customize menu, without needing a Layout submenu.

Glad you like the idea to remove submenu and show directly the options... but again all shall be accessible in View menu.
Separating some UI changes options in a separate "Customize" menu is useless and counter productive... both "Customise" and "View" are used to proceed with UI/View changes...

The fact that the Manu Bar menu and the App Menu are drifting apart in terms of organization is not an issue.
The 2 menus are drastically different in terms of interface and usability, so they shouldn't mirror each other at all cost as our objective is to let user use one or another and not both at the same time.

I agree that some further organization and more thorough ordering is needed.

I am not trying to suggest to mirror the two menus at all cost, I am just highlihting that feature wise, accessibility wise and semantically wise, the Customise and View options shall belong in the same menu... because they are all related to UI changes...

By the way removing "Customize" menu entry would simplify the menu by reducing its size by one item, making it easier/faster to access options in the View where they belong naturally...

Please (re)consider...