Kaleb Michaud ([email protected]) and Glenn Hoetker
([email protected]) commented on the positioning of the Review
and Variables windows in Stata 8 for Windows.
There are two separate issues that were mentioned. I will first
address the reason that the Review and Variables windows now
always stay on top, as it is the basis for the second issue.
Stata 8 now has dialog boxes for all non-programming commands.
When we were designing these dialog boxes, we were faced with
deciding how users would be able to enter variable lists.
Our first thought was to use combobox or listbox controls that would
be populated with all variable names. For example, the -regress-
dialog box might have one list of variable names on which the
user could click to choose the dependent variable and another list
of variable names on which the user could click to choose the
independent variables.
We soon found that this solution would not work in the real world.
Stata users might have thousands of variables, and the time it would
take to populate a single listbox or combobox (let alone multiple ones)
on each dialog box as it was being displayed with all of those variable
names, along with the memory consumed by all of those names, was not
acceptable.
We realized we already had a list of all variables--the Variables
window. We decided to make variable fields in the dialog boxes simple
edit controls that, when receiving input focus from the user, would
become "targets" for the Variables window. Click in the dependent
variable field in the -regress- dialog box, and it is now the target
for the Variables window. Click on a variable in the Variables window,
and it will appear in the dependent variable field.
In a GUI system, some elements must be modal. What this means is
that they appear on top of everything else and must be filled in and
closed before anything else can be done in the application. Stata's
preferences are an example of this, as is a color chooser. Another
example is Stata 8's new expression builder.
Modal windows such as the expression builder block keyboard and mouse
actions from reaching any other part of Stata. But, when using the
expression builder, users need to be able to click on variables in
the Variables window.
The way to achieve this was to make the Variables window a "tool" or
"floating" window. You have probably seen such windows in other
applications. They always remain on top of all other windows in
that application and remain accessible even if you have something else
open in the application.
By making the Variables window a tool window, it became accessible
while the expression builder is open.
Now you know why the Variables window is always on top. It has to
be. The nice thing about making it a tool window is that, in Windows,
this also gives it the ability to move outside the main Stata window.
Since it is always on top, it can sometimes cover other Windows in
Stata, such as the dialog boxes for all of Stata's commands. So,
by default, we now align the Variables window (and Review window)
on the outside of the left edge of Stata 8's main window.
We also thought that users like the fact that when they move the main
Stata window on the screen, all of Stata's child windows move with it.
Thus, the Review and Variables windows remain "anchored" with respect
to the top left corner of Stata's overall window. Move Stata up, and
they move up. Move Stata to the left, and they move to the left.
Move Stata's left-most edge all the way to the left of the screen
(such as when maximizing Stata), and you will push the Review and
Variables windows off the left edge of the screen if they previously
were on the left side of Stata's left edge. I believe this is what
happened to Kaleb and Glenn.
As Glenn pointed out, the solution is to position the Review and
Variables windows to be where you want them with respect to the top
left corner of Stata's main window.
James Hassell pointed out that on small screens (800x600 or smaller),
Stata's default windowing may position these windows off the left edge
of the screen. We are changing the default windowing parameters in
Stata 8 to produce a smaller initial window only on such small screens,
which should prevent users from encountering this in the future.
--Alan
([email protected])
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