This is why links should never do things. When I click a link, I should go somewhere. When I submit a form, something should happen. Never make stuff happen when somebody clicks a link.
That's a blurry issue. What's a link to this page: http://www.google.ca/search?q=jim+blog Is it a link? The user would say so. Is it a call to an application passing in arguments? The developer would say so. Isn't it both? A lot of the time when you "do" something (button), you can be taken somewhere. A lot of the time when you what to go somewhere there is "setup" (doing) that has to be done. Usability isn't my area, I'll leave that to the UI person and let them use whatever they want. If they decide it looks better to put links in rather than 30 buttons, I'll go with that. ;-)
Bringing up search results is one thing, that's just presenting information. No information is being changed. Information is just being presented. Maybe 30 buttons don't look good, but there are ways to make it look good. Put icon images as form submits. That tends to make the buttons smaller yet still understandable. Using links is just not proper form (pardon the pun) when it comes to changing information.
The web guys are calling this "changing state". If you read the HTTP spec pendantically, then yes you should not "change state" on a GET. But the reality is that people do that. Nothing is preventing them from doing that. Google should have been more careful about the Real World, where people don't follow the spec to the letter. People just do whatever they *can* do (not necessarily "allowed" to do) to get the job done. Is this being evil? I'm not sure...
This is why links should never do things. When I click a link, I should go somewhere. When I submit a form, something should happen. Never make stuff happen when somebody clicks a link.
ReplyDeleteThat's a blurry issue.
ReplyDeleteWhat's a link to this page:
http://www.google.ca/search?q=jim+blog
Is it a link? The user would say so.
Is it a call to an application passing in arguments? The developer would say so.
Isn't it both?
A lot of the time when you "do" something (button), you can be taken somewhere. A lot of the time when you what to go somewhere there is "setup" (doing) that has to be done.
Usability isn't my area, I'll leave that to the UI person and let them use whatever they want. If they decide it looks better to put links in rather than 30 buttons, I'll go with that. ;-)
Bringing up search results is one thing, that's just presenting information. No information is being changed. Information is just being presented. Maybe 30 buttons don't look good, but there are ways to make it look good. Put icon images as form submits. That tends to make the buttons smaller yet still understandable. Using links is just not proper form (pardon the pun) when it comes to changing information.
ReplyDeleteThe web guys are calling this "changing state". If you read the HTTP spec pendantically, then yes you should not "change state" on a GET.
ReplyDeleteBut the reality is that people do that. Nothing is preventing them from doing that. Google should have been more careful about the Real World, where people don't follow the spec to the letter. People just do whatever they *can* do (not necessarily "allowed" to do) to get the job done.
Is this being evil? I'm not sure...