I’ve been evaluating the new OmniGraffle. One thing that impressed me was the user interface for the Inspectors (Palettes). It isn’t revolutionary, it’s just done refreshingly well. They’re a bit like the palettes in newer Macromedia products, but “seem” more sophisticated. Here is what I like about them:
- They can’t be placed off-screen.
- The little icons!
- There’s a satisfying snap when they dock together.
- You can see their access key commands.
Semi-related: Adobe seem to have lost the domain (adobefacts.com) which used to carry info on their tabbed palettes lawsuit against Macromedia. Doh! The original content from August 2000 is still in the Internet Archive.