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Bug 656957 - Change Password / Enable User account dialog interaction
Change Password / Enable User account dialog interaction
Status: RESOLVED DUPLICATE of bug 689344
Product: gnome-control-center
Classification: Core
Component: User Accounts
3.0.x
Other Linux
: Normal normal
: ---
Assigned To: Control-Center Maintainers
Control-Center Maintainers
: 655913 679746 (view as bug list)
Depends on:
Blocks:
 
 
Reported: 2011-08-20 14:57 UTC by Hylke Bons
Modified: 2013-04-19 15:55 UTC
See Also:
GNOME target: ---
GNOME version: ---


Attachments
current dialog (60.26 KB, image/png)
2011-08-20 14:57 UTC, Hylke Bons
Details
sketch (853.67 KB, image/png)
2011-08-20 14:58 UTC, Hylke Bons
Details
user accounts mockup (140.17 KB, image/png)
2012-07-11 14:26 UTC, Allan Day
Details

Description Hylke Bons 2011-08-20 14:57:42 UTC
Created attachment 194292 [details]
current dialog

I ran into the User Accounts panel today as I needed to create a new account for testing, but I was confused by the dialog and had a hard time using it.

First off, a new account needs to be enabled. How to do this is not very discoverable (clicking the password field). It only shows that it can be interacted with on mouse hover, so it's not touch friendly either.

I don't know why the reason why this was done this way. Perhaps to reduce clutter? With this problem in mind it probably makes sense to rethink the widgets used (and perhaps use comboboxes or and Edit button/link instead?)

The most confusing thing for me was the dialog to enable the account (first attachment).  It uses a combobox in a very strange way. Usually they're used to select a fixed value, not an action. It just feels awkward, and the grammar and context is giving me a hard time parsing what will happen. I've attached a sketch that uses radiobuttons instead. I feel that it explains the options better. Also I've added a lightswitch to enable/disable the account.
Comment 1 Hylke Bons 2011-08-20 14:58:39 UTC
Created attachment 194293 [details]
sketch
Comment 2 Allan Day 2011-08-20 15:30:39 UTC
Agreed: having to enable an account after it has been created could trip users up.

I also agree that the action combobox is an usual way to use this kind of widget.

Can we incorporate Hylke's design into the first account creation dialog? That way we could avoid having to enable the account after it has been created.
Comment 3 Allan Day 2011-08-20 16:04:14 UTC
A couple of string suggestions:

'Use a password' > 'Set user password now'

'Don't use a password' > 'Allow user to log in without a password'
Comment 4 Matthias Clasen 2011-08-23 04:30:50 UTC
The reason we create accounts in a disabled state is that we don't set up the password on the account creation dialog. If we would not disable the account initially, there would be a window where it would be freely available, without a password.
Comment 5 Allan Day 2011-08-23 09:14:11 UTC
(In reply to comment #4)
> The reason we create accounts in a disabled state is that we don't set up the
> password on the account creation dialog. If we would not disable the account
> initially, there would be a window where it would be freely available, without
> a password.

Is there a reason why password creation could not be added to the account creation dialog?
Comment 6 Matthias Clasen 2011-09-01 22:13:55 UTC
*** Bug 655913 has been marked as a duplicate of this bug. ***
Comment 7 Sebastien Bacher 2012-07-11 13:07:11 UTC
*** Bug 679746 has been marked as a duplicate of this bug. ***
Comment 8 Allan Day 2012-07-11 14:26:16 UTC
Created attachment 218560 [details]
user accounts mockup

Here's a mockup of how the user accounts panel could work with a single-step account creation process.
Comment 9 Hylke Bons 2012-07-11 14:37:01 UTC
(In reply to comment #8)
> Created an attachment (id=218560) [details]
> user accounts mockup
> 
> Here's a mockup of how the user accounts panel could work with a single-step
> account creation process.

I like it. Some small nitpicks: 

- "Change Password" needs an ellepsis character.
- It's not entirely clear that the thin bar is a password strength indicator
- Why have "Show password" together with two password fields? On the web the checkbox is mostly there to simplify the form. Having two fields and the checkbox seem like two ways to check the same thing and makes the form more complex.
- Password strength hint seems a bit disconnected from the bar and the first field you type in.
- Would be nice if a suggested username got filled in whilst typing into the Full Name field.
- "login" -> "log in"?
Comment 10 Matthias Clasen 2012-07-11 16:33:38 UTC
We need to ask for the old password when setting a new one. Thats the way pam works.
Comment 11 Matthias Clasen 2012-07-11 21:30:25 UTC
As was pointed out, this really only affects changing your _own_ password
Comment 12 Allan Day 2012-07-12 13:41:47 UTC
I've updated and elaborated the mockups based on this feedback. You can find them on the wiki, along with some notes:

https://live.gnome.org/Design/SystemSettings/UserAccounts#Update_Proposal

Please feel free to give further feedback here, if required.
Comment 13 Allan Day 2013-04-19 15:55:30 UTC

*** This bug has been marked as a duplicate of bug 689344 ***