[Pidgin] #4986: automatic chat input field resizing should be optional, regression from 2.3

[Pidgin]

#4986: automatic chat input field resizing should be optional, regression from 2.3
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  Reporter:  swbrown       |       Owner:                   
      Type:  enhancement   |      Status:  reopened         
  Priority:  minor         |   Milestone:                   
 Component:  pidgin (gtk)  |     Version:  2.4.0            
Resolution:                |    Keywords:  chat input resize
   Pending:  0             |  
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Comment (by btm):

 Replying to [comment:184 deryni]:
 > Replying to [comment:177 btm]:
 > Adding options for things which serve no purpose is not worth it,
 regardless of cost. I am still unconvinced that given a properly
 functional auto-resizing entry area there is any reason to need a manual
 resizing option.

 I'd be happy if the auto-resize functionality started at four lines, then
 grew up to eight or so. But I feel like that's larger than the average
 user probably cares for, and preferences for min/max size seems like twice
 as many options as a manual option

 > All users believe themselves advanced users (who wants to believe they
 are stupid or that others are better then they are?). As to your comments
 about advanced preferences I direct you at large sections of
 http://pidgin.im/~elb/cgi-bin/pyblosxom.cgi/giving_back.html which covers
 the costs of preferences and how advanced preferences suffer from this
 more than others.

 I'd disagree, with some software I consider myself an advanced user, other
 software I do not. I'll forgo a lengthly example, but I'm sure there are
 many others like me in this regard. Who knows if they use pidgin or not.

 > As a specific aside about:config is a UI abomination and should not be
 duplicated or used as a basis for ideas. It is a horrible hack for a
 program with many too many options for its size; and further it is simply
 an excuse to toss in random option garbage without needing to consider
 even attempting to create a user interface for said options.

 I'd consider that a personal opinion, but since you're a pidgin
 contributor and I'm not, your disgust works as a "we won't do that", and
 I'm okay with whatever you will or won't do, because I <3 OSS. I
 personally love about:config, because I use firefox so much on daily basis
 the ability to tune the little bits that don't work well with me makes my
 day much less gloomy. Of course many of those bits don't deserve check
 boxes, as there would be pages of them in the end.

 > *Why* do you need manual control back? What about the auto-resizing (of
 the new 2.4.1 version, so minimum of two lines maximum of half the window
 and no zero-pixel bug) is unacceptable to you? Is there anything that
 could be done to it to make it acceptable to you?

 As I mentioned, I'd consider auto-size an improvement if I had four lines
 minimum. It's simply because the UI feels cramped at two lines. It's
 functionally adequate for me. It seems silly to complain about how it
 looks, but we are in bubble 2.0 are we're hiring "User Experience
 Designers" rather than "User Interface Designers" these days. I think if
 anyone considers it, they'll agree that how an interface feels to the user
 is pretty important (which I think is the UI argument for getting rid of
 options, because it makes the program -feel- complicated to the user)

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Ticket URL: <http://developer.pidgin.im/ticket/4986#comment:193>
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