Assistenten

An assistant is a secondary window that guides the user through an operation by breaking it into sequential steps. Assistants are useful for making complex operations less intimidating, as they restrict the information visible to the user at any given moment.

Because assistants provide a relatively small number of controls on the screen at any given time, they have sufficient space for inline documentation. Therefore, do not include a Help button in an assistant window. If you cannot make an operation sufficiently clear in an assistant without resorting to a Help button, you need to simplify it further.

Assistants do have major downsides. After using an assistant it is often hard to figure out where the individual settings aggregated into the assistant are stored. Often people will resort to re-running the assistant, re-entering many settings that they don't want to change.

Assistants are often used in situations where a better solution would be to simplify, or even better automate, the process. Before using an assistant to step people through a complex operation, consider if the operation can be fundamentally simplified so an assistant is unnecessary.

Fensterbefehle:

Close, Minimize/Unminimize, Roll-up/Unroll

3.7.1. Einführende Seite

The first page provides the user with the "big picture". Place the title of the assistant in the window's title bar and the assistant's title area, along with an optional picture. Beneath this, state the goal of the assistant, and, if it is not obvious, where the user can find the information the assistant will be asking for.

Titelformat:

Assistant Title

Knöpfe:

Cancel, Forward

Abbildung 3-25Beispiel für die erste Seite eines Assistenten

3.7.2. Content Pages

Content pages contain the actual settings of the assistant. Summarize the type of setting present on each content page in its title area. For example, Mail Server.

Titelformat:

Assistant Title - (Current Page of Total Pages)

Knöpfe:

Cancel, Back, Forward

3.7.3. Letzte Seite

Die letzte Seite sollte die vom Benutzer vorgenommenen Änderungen zusammenfassen und darüber informieren, wie diese später durch den Benutzer geändert werden können.

Titelformat:

Finish Assistant Title

Knöpfe:

Cancel, Back, Finish