"Spatial" mode?

[Eric Dunbar]

> > Analogies are two a penny.  Since you can't get change from a penny:
> >
> > I have a drawer in my desk.  I open the drawer.  I no longer see the
> > drawer.  Why?  It's still there, but now I'm looking in it; not
> > standing at the other side of the room looking at the drawer and trying
> > to see its contents (although I could be, but I find this more useful).
> > I take out a book and open it.  I'm not trying to see the desk the
> > drawer and the book, and the page, I'm trying to read the book, so I see
> > the page.  Spatial is a little like lifting out the drawer, setting it
> > on my desk, taking out the book, opening it, and setting it next to the
> > drawer.  It hasn't done anything very different, except unnecessarily
> > reproduced real world clutter.

> > If my computer kept my desk clean for me I would be happy.  It can
> > help keep my screen clean though.

Truer words haven't been written (or am I mangling a saying?).

> Very well written.  I agree wholeheartedly.  If I was presented with
> evidence that new users found it easier, I would be more compelled to
> tolerate it (until I change it to Browser bahavior, of course.)
> However, all I ever hear people say in favor of it is the drawer
> analogy, which I do not find compelling.
> 
> Why must a computer work like a drawer anyway?  I have heard several
> explanations, but I still find Browser mode easier to navigate and
> more intuitive.  Admittedly, I have used Windows for years, but I was
> very happy when I found that I could change Win95's default
> multi-window behavior, because it made Explorer much more comfortable
> to use.  Both Microsoft and Apple used to use a multi-window approach,
> and both now use a browser-style approach.  There is a reason for
> this: the users liked the latter better.  The user will have to learn
> the browser-style method anyway because this is how the internet is
> organized.  Why shouldn't this knowledge also be applicable to their
> local files?
> 
> That said, I am glad Gnome offers the spatial option for those who
> prefer it.  I fully support them in using that mode if they like it.

The fact that Apple _INTRODUCED_ it into OS X, after 15 years of not
having it is a testament to the effectiveness of the "browser" mode
(looking inside the book in the drawer in the desk, and not taking the
book out of the drawer out of the desk). But, for a new user (and for
old dogs alike - there are times that I go to "spatial" browsing
because I *want* to leave a trail of open windows) the "spatial" mode
of removing the drawer from the desk is conceptually a much easier
concept to grasp! Being able to switch between the modes at the drop
of the hat is important since each of the modes have advantages (if
Nautilus wants to copy someone who's done it right (Nautilus hasn't
yet) look at Apple (I haven't played with XP enough to know its layout
like the back of my hand so I don't know if MS has improved file
management).