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Motif and CDE 2.1 Style Guide Reference

Object

Reference

Description

An object is an element that visually represents something having behavior, contents, or both, not solely revealed by the visual representation. Objects are often represented as icons, but may be represented in other ways as well, for example, as list items. Objects generally have pop-up menus associated with them and can be used as the source of drag-and-drop operations.

When to Use

Recommended
Use objects as part of an object-oriented methodology to allow users to most naturally perform a task.

Guidelines

Required
In the pop-up menu associated with an object, provide access to the actions the user will need to perform with the task.

Required
Make the default action of an object be the action the user is most likely to want to perform with the task.

Required
Allow a user to change the default action of an object.

Required
Make a default action open a window that displays a view of the object (showing its contents), present an accessible user interface, or both. This is not required if the object is best presented in a nonvisual medium (for example, it contains audio and its default action is Play).

Required
Allow an object to be named or otherwise identified uniquely within a scope that contains multiple objects.

Required
If the default action opens a view on an object, and the view is already open, use properties that the user can set to determine whether to do one of the following:

  1. Surface the view (recommended by default)

  2. Open a new view on the object

    3. Required
    When the user opens a view of an object, do not remove the icon from which the view was opened.

    Recommended
    When the user opens a view of an object, display in-use emphasis on the icon for the object. If multiple icons identify the same object, provide in-use emphasis on all of them.

    Recommended
    If an object can be viewed in multiple ways, allow the user to specify a default view for each object.

    Recommended
    Allow the user to open multiple windows, each of which displays a different view of an object.

    Recommended
    Allow the user to open multiple windows that contain the same view of an object.

    Recommended
    When the user opens a view of an object, and the object is currently in use, use properties that the user can set to determine when changes made in one view are visible in another view.

    Supplemental Related Topics

    For more information, see the Data Transfer, Drag and Drop Transfer, Icon, Pop-Up Menu, and View reference pages.

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