Hello and some suggestions

Hi guys.

Just purchased CV, and it's a great program. I've been reading over the posts here, and I wanted to make a few comments.

1. Magic: The Gathering has a card called "Tormented Angel." Its casting cost is listed as 3W, but it's actually 2W.

2. Like others, I would appreciate the option of using a more standard background color, rather than just variations of blue. Specifically, having black text on a white background is easier for me to read.

3. When selecting a card/row, I would prefer for the entire row to be highlighted, rather than simply having the words change color. I've found that this makes it easier to navigate these sorts of interfaces.

4. Like others, I would prefer a live search option on a toolbar, ala Apple's iTunes. If this is not possible, I would appreciate if the quick search looked both "up" and "down," regardless of the position of the slider.

5. More keyboard shortcuts, and more standard implementations. Specifically, using "Ctrl-Q" for quick search is unintuitive, considering that the command is sometimes used to quit programs. Both Windows and most Win32 programs use "Ctrl-F" to search. Allowing users to customize the shortcuts could solve this problem.

6. Using an arrow as an icon to click to examine the sideboard is somewhat unintuitive. Why not just have a button that says "sideboard"? (It could change to "main deck" or whatever when you click it). As UI designers sometimes say, a word is worth a thousand pictures. You could follow this guideline by allowing an option to enable icon text, rather than just tooltips, which require scrubbing the icons in question.

7. Having an option (though I may have missed it) to specify fonts and font sizes would be very helpful for those of us with finicky font preferences or poor vision.

8. The "view card details" window is a fixed height, which means that I can't just click through my collection with ease. I have to frequently scroll to see the entire card text. Having a window that adjusted to the text length or allowed resizing by the user would be helpful.

9. The toolbar buttons are designed such that if I click near the button (but not on it), the button will depress but do nothing. This can be frustrating, and is not strictly necessary. Why not just have square buttons that take up the "depressible space" around the diamond buttons? The larger the targets, the easier it will be for users to manipulate them. Also, square buttons will make it easier to add text on or around the icons, as per my earlier suggestion.

10. I'm a Mac user, and so I have to run this program on VirtualPC. As I understand it, you have no plans to bring CV to the Mac, but I wanted to add my voice to those who have asked for a Mac version. Hopefully in the future there will be enough of a market to make a port feasible. I'd buy a second, full-priced license simply for the privilege.

Many thanks, keep up the good work.

Aldo


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Glad to have you aboard!

> 1. Magic: The Gathering has a card called "Tormented Angel." Its casting
cost is listed as 3W, but it's actually
> 2W.

Under the Help menu, there's an option called "Contact Data File Author."
Use that to send a typo report.

> 2. Like others, I would appreciate the option of using a more standard
background color, rather than just
> variations of blue. Specifically, having black text on a white background
is easier for me to read.

It's on the list of stuff to be done.

> 3. When selecting a card/row, I would prefer for the entire row to be
highlighted, rather than simply having the
> words change color. I've found that this makes it easier to navigate these
sorts of interfaces.

Rob?

> 4. Like others, I would prefer a live search option on a toolbar, ala
Apple's iTunes. If this is not possible, I would
> appreciate if the quick search looked both "up" and "down," regardless of
the position of the slider.

This has been noted.

> 5. More keyboard shortcuts, and more standard implementations.
Specifically, using "Ctrl-Q" for quick search is
> unintuitive, considering that the command is sometimes used to quit
programs. Both Windows and most Win32
> programs use "Ctrl-F" to search. Allowing users to customize the shortcuts
could solve this problem.

Rob?

> 6. Using an arrow as an icon to click to examine the sideboard is somewhat
unintuitive. Why not just have a
> button that says "sideboard"?

There are many games that use multiple decks. L5R has Starting, Fate, and
Dynasty. LotR has Starting, Adventure, and Deck. Rage has Pack, Sept, and
Combat. Rather than create buttons that have all of these different names,
and force programmers to use or create such buttons, we opted for the
graphic solution.

> 7. Having an option (though I may have missed it) to specify fonts and
font sizes would be very helpful for those
> of us with finicky font preferences or poor vision.

Rob?

> 8. The "view card details" window is a fixed height, which means that I
can't just click through my collection with
> ease. I have to frequently scroll to see the entire card text. Having a
window that adjusted to the text length or
> allowed resizing by the user would be helpful.

Noted, but another solution is to be more selective on what is classified as
"Info" in the View dialog. Personally, I try to keep Info selections to a
minimum.

> 9. The toolbar buttons are designed such that if I click near the button
(but not on it), the button will depress but
> do nothing.

Rob?

> 10. I'm a Mac user, and so I have to run this program on VirtualPC. As I
understand it, you have no plans to
> bring CV to the Mac, but I wanted to add my voice to those who have asked
for a Mac version. Hopefully in the
> future there will be enough of a market to make a port feasible. I'd buy a
second, full-priced license simply for
> the privilege.

Primarily it's a matter of economics. If we find a Mac programmer who is
dedicated, trustworthy, and willing to work for a piece of the action, we'll
do a Mac version.


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--- In cardvault@yahoogroups.com, "Edward Bolme" <edward@b...> wrote:
> > 8. The "view card details" window is a fixed height, which means
that I
> can't just click through my collection with
> > ease. I have to frequently scroll to see the entire card text.
Having a
> window that adjusted to the text length or
> > allowed resizing by the user would be helpful.
>
> Noted, but another solution is to be more selective on what is
classified as
> "Info" in the View dialog. Personally, I try to keep Info
selections to a
> minimum.

Along these lines, Would it be possible to add a keyboard shortcut to
pop up the view card details box on the Manage Inventory screen?

John Schmidt


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[rob]

At 08:37 PM 4/4/2003 +0000, you wrote:
>3. When selecting a card/row, I would prefer for the entire row to be
>highlighted, rather than simply having the words change color. I've found
>that this makes it easier to navigate these sorts of interfaces.

This is one of those things that some people like and others don't. It's on
the todo list along with the different color schemes. Our first priority is
core functionality. Customizability of the UI is secondary to that, so some
of this stuff still hasn't made it in yet. But it's definitely on the todo
list!

>5. More keyboard shortcuts, and more standard implementations.
>Specifically, using "Ctrl-Q" for quick search is unintuitive, considering
>that the command is sometimes used to quit programs. Both Windows and most
>Win32 programs use "Ctrl-F" to search. Allowing users to customize the
>shortcuts could solve this problem.

<ctrl-Q> is only used to quit programs on the Mac, so it's only unintuitive
for Mac users. I never considered the Mac conventions, since CV is designed
specifically as a Windows application. As for <ctrl-F>, there are no real
"conventions" for searches, with the keyboard shortcut varying pretty
widely across all the applications that I use regularly. That being said,
I'll concur that <ctrl-F> is the convention used by a few of the more
common applications. In fact, that's why it WAS used for the "search"
mechanism within V1.0 of CV. In V1.0, the filter mechanism was the only
"search" mechanism available, and it includes full text searching options,
so it made perfect sense to assign <ctrl-F> to it. When the quick search
was added in V1.1, <ctrl-F> was already used for the filter mechanism, so
<ctrl-Q> was used as a match for the 'Q' in "Quick search".

>7. Having an option (though I may have missed it) to specify fonts and
>font sizes would be very helpful for those of us with finicky font
>preferences or poor vision.

This is on the todo list, but it is admittedly not very high on the list.
Providing this functionality entails quite a bit of work to ensure
everything in the UI properly adapts and adjusts to the new fonts and sizes
selected. For now, we're applying that effort to enhancing the core
functionality of the product. This is something that can be added a bit
down the line.

>9. The toolbar buttons are designed such that if I click near the button
>(but not on it), the button will depress but do nothing. This can be
>frustrating, and is not strictly necessary. Why not just have square
>buttons that take up the "depressible space" around the diamond buttons?
>The larger the targets, the easier it will be for users to manipulate
>them. Also, square buttons will make it easier to add text on or around
>the icons, as per my earlier suggestion.

The buttons currently use whatever mask is employed for the button graphic
as a mask for the mouse as well. Different people will argue this point in
opposite directions. Some believe there should be "slop" around the button
that triggers it, while others believe that only the "true" button region
should be recognized. There's no "right" answer here, so the goal is to
pick something that makes the most sense to the largest block of users. If
enough users comment on this (you're the first to do so), then it can be
changed. :-)

>10. I'm a Mac user, and so I have to run this program on VirtualPC. As I
>understand it, you have no plans to bring CV to the Mac, but I wanted to
>add my voice to those who have asked for a Mac version. Hopefully in the
>future there will be enough of a market to make a port feasible. I'd buy a
>second, full-priced license simply for the privilege.

As mentioned above, our first priority is to develop the core functionality
of CV to establish the product concretely. After that, we want to make the
product more configurable. If the popularity of CV grows and a native Mac
version has a sufficient market to justify the development effort, we could
definitely do so. We're a tiny company (4 people), so we just need to take
this one step at a time. :-)

Thanks for sharing your thoughts on what you think needs to be added to CV!
User feedback drives our priorities very heavily for what gets added in
each new release, so this is very helpful!

Thanks again,
Rob

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Rob Bowes (rob@wolflair.com) (559) 658-6995
Lone Wolf Development www.wolflair.com


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[rob]

I've added this to the todo list.....

-Rob

At 11:03 AM 4/6/2003 +0000, you wrote:
>Along these lines, Would it be possible to add a keyboard shortcut to
>pop up the view card details box on the Manage Inventory screen?


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Rob Bowes (rob@wolflair.com) (559) 658-6995
Lone Wolf Development www.wolflair.com


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How about support for a wheel mouse. They are becomming very common, and I am
very used to using the wheel in other applications to scroll up and down a
listbox. I find it jarring that such support is not available in CV.

--- Rob Bowes <rob@wolflair.com> wrote:
> I've added this to the todo list.....
>
> -Rob
>
> At 11:03 AM 4/6/2003 +0000, you wrote:
> >Along these lines, Would it be possible to add a keyboard shortcut to
> >pop up the view card details box on the Manage Inventory screen?
>
>
> ---------------------------------------------------------------------------
> Rob Bowes (rob@wolflair.com) (559) 658-6995
> Lone Wolf Development www.wolflair.com
>
>
>
> To unsubscribe from this group, send an email to:
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>
>
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> Your use of Yahoo! Groups is subject to http://docs.yahoo.com/info/terms/
>
>


=====
---

Kuni Tetsu
Clan War rules guy
Moderator of ClanWar-l

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[rob]

This one is definitely on the list - HIGH on the remaining list.
Unfortunately, it's not nearly as easy to add as it may first appear. We're
talking on the order of multiple days to add mouse wheel support throughout
CV. That's a sufficient chunk of time to equate to a LOT of other features.
If it was a no-brainer, it would already have been added. :-)

-Rob

At 09:13 AM 4/7/2003 -0700, you wrote:
>How about support for a wheel mouse. They are becomming very common, and I am
>very used to using the wheel in other applications to scroll up and down a
>listbox. I find it jarring that such support is not available in CV.


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Rob Bowes (rob@wolflair.com) (559) 658-6995
Lone Wolf Development www.wolflair.com


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Thanks for the reply Rob.

As for the Windows-related shortcuts, I realize I got them wrong. It's been a while since I've used Windows regularly, and I managed to conflate some Mac features. Arg. But hey, if it makes you feel better, I'm running VirtualPC *just* to use Card Vault.

> The buttons currently use whatever mask is employed for the button graphic
> as a mask for the mouse as well. Different people will argue this point in
> opposite directions. Some believe there should be "slop" around the button
> that triggers it, while others believe that only the "true" button region
> should be recognized. There's no "right" answer here, so the goal is to
> pick something that makes the most sense to the largest block of users. If
> enough users comment on this (you're the first to do so), then it can be
> changed. :-)

I recognize that the issue of *triggering* the button is up for grabs. But the issue of whether the button should depress and *do nothing* is what I was asking about. I can click around the button (but not on it) and the button will depress and produce *no effect.* It's possible you're addressing this but I'm misunderstanding you. Can you clarify your comments here?

BTW, I do appreciate you and Ed taking the time out of your day to answer our questions.

Thanks,

Aldo


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> I recognize that the issue of *triggering* the button is up for grabs. But
the issue of whether the button should depress and *do nothing* is what I
was asking about. I can click around the button (but not on it) and the
button will depress and produce *no effect.* It's possible you're addressing
this but I'm misunderstanding you. Can you clarify your comments here?
>
> BTW, I do appreciate you and Ed taking the time out of your day to answer
our questions.

I'll echo this observation, sir. It is most noticable when you have View
Card Details up and you press exactly in the center of one of the triangles.
It depresses, nothing happens.




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[rob]

At 05:57 AM 4/8/2003 +0000, you wrote:
>As for the Windows-related shortcuts, I realize I got them wrong. It's
>been a while since I've used Windows regularly, and I managed to conflate
>some Mac features. Arg. But hey, if it makes you feel better, I'm running
>VirtualPC *just* to use Card Vault.

That's gratifying. :->

>I recognize that the issue of *triggering* the button is up for grabs. But
>the issue of whether the button should depress and *do nothing* is what I
>was asking about. I can click around the button (but not on it) and the
>button will depress and produce *no effect.* It's possible you're
>addressing this but I'm misunderstanding you. Can you clarify your
>comments here?

Ah! I just tried it for myself and now I understand. I'm sure I've noticed
that behavior before, but it never occurred when I wasn't 100% focused on
testing out some new feature of CV, so it didn't register in my brain as a
bug. That's definitely a bug, and it's now been logged as such for correction.

Thanks, Rob

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Rob Bowes (rob@wolflair.com) (559) 658-6995
Lone Wolf Development www.wolflair.com


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