[Phpwm] Icons

[Aypok]

Hi,

> But a lot of the ones I have been looking at simply don't seem to be very
> intuitive compared with just having a text link, in that to get anything
> half decent looking they either have to be big or have a bit of text
> alongside them anyway to say what they are going to do.

Not true; you could make use of the 'title' attribute. For example:

<img src='public/images/delete.png' alt='Delete' title='Delete' />

That way, when the user hovers their mouse pointer over the image, a
tool-tip will pop up and display the text set in the title.

An alternative would be to have a key/legend, which shows the user which
icons relate to which sections/actions/etc.

If you're having to resort to large images, look for icons designed by
other artists. Good looking yet small icons do exist.

> The fact they might
> look pretty compared with a text link seems to be the only point in their
> favour.

It depends on the design of the site. You can get some small images
(16x16 or 32x32) which not only look nice but save space. A 16x16 image
of a red 'X' takes up less space than the word 'Delete'.

> Just wondered what other people do for this sort of thing - Keep it a bit
> utilitarian but highly functional or prettify it and slow it all down a bit?

Slow it down? We don't all have 300 baud modems these days. As long as
you keep image use to a sane level, no-one will notice the images
downloading.

Small icons are great - I use them wherever I can. They take up less
space and make everything look nicer. It's surprising how much nicer
pages and pages of text look if you just replace a few links with
images.


Aypok...

-- 
"'Bastardman!' The Chief cries as we slip into a parking space outside
the station with the grace and ease of a car accident. Which in fact it
was..." - BOFH