On Wed, 2006-07-19 at 19:35 +0200, Andre Klapper wrote: > hej hej, > > can anyone please clarify the usage of the terms "remove" vs "delete" > with regard to dialogs and buttons? i've searched the archives (yes, via > google ;-) and took a look into the HIG but could not find anything. > (i'd like to fix http://bugzilla.gnome.org/show_bug.cgi?id=307443 , > that's why i ask.)
The HIG defers to the Documentation Style Guide for terminology recommendations: http://developer.gnome.org/documents/style-guide/gnome-glossary-user-actions.html As Calum said in comment #10, "delete" is for permanent actions, while "remove" is for things that could be re-added. You remove an applet from the panel, for instance, because you can put it back on the panel easily. This is, perhaps, not a clear-cut case. You can certainly add your account back by entering all the information anew. Then again, you can add back a file by entering all its contents from memory. I would tend to use "delete" only when actual user data is being lost, not just some configuration stuff. In the case of removing/deleting an account, I'd be worried that "delete" would carry the implication that the downloaded mail would disappear. With POP, that doesn't happen. With IMAP, the mail will disappear, but it's not really deleted. It's still on a server somewhere. Ultimately, if no real user data is lost, then I'd say remove. -- Shaun _______________________________________________ Usability mailing list [email protected] http://mail.gnome.org/mailman/listinfo/usability
