Linked by Thom Holwerda on Wed 7th Nov 2007 13:39 UTC
This is the fourth article in a series on common usability and graphical user interface related terms [part I | part II | part III]. On the internet, and especially in forum discussions like we all have here on OSNews, it is almost certain that in any given discussion, someone will most likely bring up usability and GUI related terms - things like spatial memory, widgets, consistency, Fitts' Law, and more. The aim of this series is to explain these terms, learn something about their origins, and finally rate their importance in the field of usability and (graphical) user interface design. In part IV today, we focus on 
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Member since:
2005-09-21
It's funny when people advocate a global menu bar based on Fitts law. Sure, with equal distances, and a knowledgeable user, and given the task is to access a menu, a menu bar on the edge of the screen is faster than one not on the edge. However there are a lot of confounding factors.
1. A local menu bar if often much closer to the mouse. For example, an IM window on the far right of the screen has a local menu bar very close to the application content, rather than across the screen. Also if you have two screens, you might have to move all the way across two screens to get to your menu. Hard to compare which is faster then.
2. Accessing a menu in an inactive app requires two actions with a global menu bar, activate and click.
3. The user must know they can click on the edge of the screen. I don't think I've ever seen a non-technical user take advantage of screen corners. New users precisely aim at these buttons just like any other button.
4. The assumption is that the menu is an important UI element to access. This is not true for myself, since I barely ever use the menu in any application. Putting the menu at the top steals that space from other widgets that could potentially go there (for me this is the minimize and close buttons of a mazimized application).
Usability is never as simple as a formula.