I'm just looking on some general input on what makes a GUI user friendly. I've been struggling with this concept a bit and I have decided it is one of the most important features in a program, be it a game or application. My reasoning behind this is mostly based on the fact that its the only way(excluding non GUI applications of course) that the user can utilize the application or play the game.
So question to all of you out there who are willing to give me some feedback. What makes a GUI good? Ease of use? Responsiveness? Keyboard shortcuts? Looks?
ID:152420
 Nov 3 2006, 8:34 pm
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Nov 3 2006, 9:15 pm
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Bandock
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Normally, it makes tasks easier. Sometimes, however, it can make tasks harder or unnecessarily complicated.
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Ease of use,organized,looks and ofcourse that it works
I sugest playing some GUI intensive games, RTSes mainly and this is some guess since i havent even tryed the game but 'Wargames' from Byond might be GUI intensive also so i sugest to check how he did it and work your way out to your own thought of what a GUI means Good luck | |
DoOmBringer wrote:
What makes a GUI good? Customization is key, hands down. When the developer fudges the GUI into a way that doesn't suit my tastes (and they can't suit everyone's tastes with a single GUI), I like the ability to change it into a friendly setting. This is one of the good things about Firefox: they decided to make a lot of changes in Firefox 2 to the interface, but basically all of them can be changed around. Even your common console RPG typically allows some form of customization, be it the ability to change your menus' window colors, styles, etc. Hiead | |
It has to be a balance of uniqueness and familarity. If a player hasn't got any prior knowledge or experience of using a similar interface then it'll take ages to get into the game. On the other hand, it has to be different enough to prevent boredom- it has to interest the player and fit the style and feel of the program or game.
Think strategy games like Age of Empires 1, 2, Rise of Nations, Civilisation - even stuff like Command and Conquer. They all have a similar theme, similar buttons/icons, similar layout- a player can instantly recognise and use the interface because they can relate it to past experience. However all of the game's interfaces are unique. | |
Intuitiveness is priority number one in interface design. Priority number two is making the most important functions the most easily accessible while still making the least important functions accessible within three or so actions.
Intuitiveness often mandates redundancy: for instance, to pick up or drop an item, you might be able to double-click on it when in "Get" mode, use the "get" verb, and click-and-drag it to your inventory panel. Just ensure that there is consistency and no ambiguity -- for instance, Space Station 13 lost it here: a double-click can mean "attack" or it can mean "assist" and it's difficult to tell which is which with some items! Accessibility is another critical aspect of interface design. The most important actions should take one action at most, two at most if there are a lot of them. If it takes any more, you will get frequent complaints about the lack of useability of your interface. User interface design is a very big aspect of software development in the industry; there are people earning US$60,000+ per year who concentrate specifically on improving the user intuitiveness of the programs for which they're on the development team. Don't expect to get it perfect the first time. The important thing is to do your best. =) | |
I'd like to say HUD, but do not crowd it with verbs or border the entire window. This should only be used for convenience. If you don't have many statistics, show them on the HUD and update them only when you need to. Statpanels refresh every .8 seconds.
Also, make some keyboard macros. Again, this should be for convenience. It's often a good idea to place a Help verb or Options verb to F1-F4 because it's easy to remember and a great deal of programs already do this. Everything else can be done through the command line, otherwise known as the pink bar. It is useful for chat commands. If you need to use verbs and statpanels, use them. I'm just giving friendly little suggestions. Just make sure that if you do use macros, their aren't so many to remember. | |