I think this kind of approach is a great idea, but this implementation has serious usability problems:
1) It displays messages at the top and bottom of the screen at the same time, fighting for your attention - and the less important message - the one at the bottom - is more eye-catching because of the animation. 2) It is much too eager to dismiss the message on mouse movement. Don't you naturally move the mouse around on a page as you look at it? I do. At least I use a TrackPoint, so it's easy to avoid inadvertent mouse movement. If you use a conventional mouse, it can be difficult to avoid any mouse movement after a click. I posted a more detailed reply in the comments on the Ajaxian article: http://ajaxian.com/archives/humanized-messages-library -Mike > From: Pyrolupus > > I'm thinking of this as a drop-in for alert() messages, and > we already have no say where alert() places its dialog. > Impromptu, mentioned earlier in this thread, does a great job > of improving the basic JavaScript dialogs, already, and I'm > thinking of supplementing those dialogs with these "Humanized > Messages" for items where waiting for user response is not desirable. > > I'm thinking that short, "positive" messages ("Comment Posted," > "Record Updated") would be a great candidate for > this--especially if the start location of the dialog was tied > somewhere close to the area where action occurred (submit > button, last text input, etc.). Errors, longer messages, and > items that are "more important" would continue to use the > alert()-esque dialogs (a la Impromtu). > > While the scenarios I describe above do not need the bouncy > "Log" tab, I again think this might be useful in a couple of > cases: An Ajax chat program, when "minimized," could pop up > the "Humanized" message and bounce the "chat log" in the > location where it is being kept. > > It has its uses, certainly. I like it. Just don't think of > it as the catch-all for alert()s and confirm()s, and I think > you'll begin to get some ideas on where you might use it. :) > > Pyro > > From: Michael Geary > > > > Ugh. Am I the only one who doesn't like this user interface at all? > > > > I click in the middle of the screen. A message appears up > > at the top - where I'm not looking - AND another bouncy > > message appears at the BOTTOM of the screen, so it tries > > to draw my eye in two directions at once. > > > > Then, when I finally notice the message at the top, I follow my > > natural instinct and move the mouse toward it - and it > > immediately disappears! > > > > Not user friendly.
