Bug 139280

Summary: [LOCALHELP] Improve "Using Toolbars" help page
Product: LibreOffice Reporter: Ming Hua <ming.v.hua>
Component: DocumentationAssignee: Not Assigned <libreoffice-bugs>
Status: NEW ---    
Severity: normal CC: olivier.hallot, sdc.blanco
Priority: medium    
Version: unspecified   
Hardware: All   
OS: All   
See Also: https://bugs.documentfoundation.org/show_bug.cgi?id=139122
Whiteboard:
Crash report or crash signature: Regression By:

Description Ming Hua 2020-12-28 13:16:39 UTC 
As discussed in the Gerrit page of bug 139122 (https://gerrit.libreoffice.org/c/help/+/108297), the "Using Toolbars" help page is showing its age and needs improvement in many places.  This bug is for keeping record of some ideas in that discussion so that it's easier to refer to in future work.

Seth pointed out:

<start quote>

For example -- maybe the example with Font Color is wrong.  A dialog box opened, but it is not a toolbar in the sense that it can be docked (or shown with View - Toolbars), or locked.  (or maybe it IS supposed to be a toolbar and it is a bug -)  From the first point of view, the sentence should probably be deleted, from the "bug" point of view, then it should be left alone.

Also, afaict, only Font Color and Highlight Color work like this.  Maybe this point should appear at the end of this page, because it is not really about docking and locking toolbars, but a point about using some icons on a toolbar.

And the context menus are a little more tricky -- because it presupposes that it has not been unchecked in View - Toolbars.

<end quote>
Comment 1 Ming Hua 2020-12-28 13:33:35 UTC 
> For example -- maybe the example with Font Color is wrong.  A dialog box
> opened, but it is not a toolbar in the sense that it can be docked (or shown
> with View - Toolbars), or locked.  (or maybe it IS supposed to be a toolbar
> and it is a bug -)  From the first point of view, the sentence should
> probably be deleted, from the "bug" point of view, then it should be left
> alone.
> 
> Also, afaict, only Font Color and Highlight Color work like this.  Maybe
> this point should appear at the end of this page, because it is not really
> about docking and locking toolbars, but a point about using some icons on a
> toolbar.
I remember the days when these dropdown widgets from toolbar button all could be teared apart and form a floating window.  Now apparently only a minority of them still can.  I suspect the help page was written at a time when that was still the norm, and hasn't been updated along with UI changes all these years.

Now the dropdown widget for "Font Color" and "Highlight Color" can still be teared apart -- on Windows just drag the title "Font Color".  But you are right, they can't be docked or locked anymore, so probably shouldn't be called a toolbar.

I did find one dropdown widget that still fit the description: the dropdown from "Basic Shapes" button on the Standard toolbar.  It can be teared apart as a floating window/toolbar, then can be further docked or locked.  The name of the new toolbar is also "Basic Shapes", and it isn't listed in "View - Toolbars" menu, regardless its attached/floating/docked status.

Alas, consistent behavior is not LibreOffice toolbar's forte.

With all these said, this is definitely a minor detail about toolbar usage, and should not be mentioned in the opening paragraphs of the help page.  Future improvement should rewrite or move that part.
Comment 2 emma mackey 2021-03-23 07:38:12 UTC Comment hidden (spam)