Firefox/Projects/Multiple Tab Selection/Design: Difference between revisions

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Firefox/Projects/Multiple Tab Selection/Design (view source)

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It has been over a [http://www.livinginternet.com/w/wa_browser_mult.htm#history decade] since tabs were introduced. Today, tabbed browsing has seen mainstream adoption, and having more than 20 or even 50 tabs open at once is a common occurrence. However, users rarely are working on that many separate tasks. Instead, tabs can be naturally grouped into their related tasks or categories.
It has been over a [http://www.livinginternet.com/w/wa_browser_mult.htm#history decade] since tabs were introduced. Today, tabbed browsing has seen mainstream adoption, and having more than 20 or even 50 tabs open at once is a common occurrence. However, users rarely are working on that many separate tasks. Instead, tabs can be naturally grouped into their related tasks or categories.


Without an existing built-in tab grouping mechanism, using multiple windows is the currently preferred method of separating groups of tabs. ([http://azarask.in/projects/tabcandy/ TabCandy] aims to provide this functionality in a future Firefox release.)
Without an existing built-in tab grouping mechanism, using multiple windows is the currently preferred method of separating groups of tabs. ([http://azarask.in/projects/tabcandy/ TabCandy] aims to solve this problem.) With multiple tab selection, we leverage the windowing system to provide useful functionality without breaking existing interactions. We also follow each operating system's selection paradigms when they make sense in the tab container context.


Firefox 3.5 shipped with a "tab tearing" feature that enables users to detach a tab to a new window or drag individual tabs between windows. However, there are many cases in which a user may have already opened multiple tabs that the user wants to move to a different window. Currently, this requires one click-and-drag per tab. As specified in this document, multiple tab selection would achieve this result with at most ''n'' clicks and 1 drag motion. The common case of selecting and dragging a range of tabs can be completed in at most 2 clicks and 1 drag.
Firefox 3.5 shipped with a "tab tearing" feature that enables users to detach a tab to a new window or drag individual tabs between windows. However, there are many cases in which a user may have already opened multiple tabs that the user wants to move to a different window. Currently, this requires one click-and-drag per tab. As specified in this document, multiple tab selection would achieve this result with at most ''n'' clicks and 1 drag motion. The common case of selecting and dragging a range of tabs can be completed in at most 2 clicks and 1 drag.


In the case where a user has opened many tabs but only wishes to keep a small of them, multiple tab selection enables the user to select that subset and then select 'Close other tabs' from the context menu of a selected tab. With the trend of increasing information overload, this feature helps make it easy for users to remain in control of their browsing experience.
In the case where a user has opened many tabs but only wishes to keep a small of them, multiple tab selection enables the user to select that subset and then select 'Close other tabs' from the context menu of a selected tab. With the trend of increasing information overload, this feature helps make it easy for users to remain in control of their browsing experience.
=== Terminology ===
* The "SELECTED tab" refers to the selected tab of a window that has its content displayed in the browser viewport. (To SELECT a tab is to set that tab as the SELECTED tab.)
* A "selected tab" refers a tab to which a "multiple tab action" would be applied.
=== Visual Design ===
* While only the SELECTED tab is selected, there are no multiple selection indicators.
* While more than one tab is selected, all selected tabs including the SELECTED tab have some indication of being part of the multiple selection.
* In Firefox 4, the visual indicator will be a glow that appears along the inside edge of the tab.
* In the future, indicators could include functional elements, such as a group close button.


=== Interaction Design ===
=== Interaction Design ===


Notes:
Notes:
* The "SELECTED tab" refers to the selected tab of a window that has its content displayed in the browser viewport. (To SELECT a tab is to set that tab as the SELECTED tab.)
* A "selected tab" refers a tab to which a "multiple tab action" would be applied.
* The SELECTED tab is, by default, selected and cannot be deselected.
* The SELECTED tab is, by default, selected and cannot be deselected.
** In other words, deselecting all tabs will still keep the SELECTED tab selected.
** In other words, deselecting all tabs will still keep the SELECTED tab selected.
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