Tool bar

Source: CUA, Motif, Windows
Aliases: Control Bar (Windows)

A tool bar is a menu of buttons that represent commands, attributes, or states.

Use a Tool Bar when common commands for the application are better available in the main screen of the application (allow easier and quicker access to common commands).

The tool bar provides a quick way for users to get to frequently used commands. Keep this in mind when deciding what commands should be put in the tool bar.

Tool bar commands normally have a corresponding menu bar command. This is not always the case, just highly recommended.

Rules for usage

• A tool bar contains buttons, generally with graphics on them, sometimes with text.

• Provide a menu option for user configuration of the toolbar.

• Tool bars are positioned at the top of a window or vertically at the left. Group buttons according to function. If such a grouping is not possible, arrange buttons with equal spacing between them.

• For horizontal tool bars, begin the buttons at the left of the window. Leave space at the right if the buttons do not extend all the way across the window.

Types of tool bar buttons

Command buttons

are pressed, then pop back up to execute a command

State buttons

are the equivalent of a check box; they operate as a toggle and are used alone or with similar options in the group

Attribute buttons

are the equivalent of radio buttons; they appear in a group and are mutually exclusive

• The graphic used for the button should represent the function of the button. Show a text description of the button on the status line (point help) when the user points to the tool.

• Default action is a click. Users click a button to change a specified state, activate a command, or change an attribute.

• If a command, state, or attribute is not available, change the look of the button so that it is unavailable (dimmed or ``stippled'').

Localization

• We recommend that the same shortcut keys be used in all languages. Once the user learns the shortcut key, there is no need to relearn them if running the software in another language. Shortcut keys do not need to reflect characters present in the menu command.

• At localization time, the only shortcut keys which should be changed are those (if any) which use a key not available on the local country keyboard. Remember to keep shortcut keys unique throughout the application. Construction of shortcut keys for international keyboards should be taken from those known to be available on the major keyboards used in the target markets. In Europe, this includes the standard non-accented alphabetic character keys from a-z.

• Use of the numeric keys in these combination is less recommended as they are <Shift> characters on the French keyboard. However, if the keyboard is configured correctly, they can also be accessed without shifting, from the numeric keypad (the normal way that many French users would attempt to access them).

• Use of non-alpha-numeric keys should be limited as much as possible, as many of them do not appear on all keyboards and some, such as the full stop (period), are also <Shift> characters on the French keyboard.

• Depending on the language, the names of the activator keys for the accelerator combinations can be translated on screen although the key itself should not be changed (for example in German, <Ctrl> should become <Strg>, the German abbreviation for the Control key).