Re: NSPanel should not close on command-W

FROM : Quincey Morris
DATE : Mon Jun 23 20:06:54 2008

On Jun 23, 2008, at 09:01, Georg Seifert wrote:

> I do a graphic program and most users are used to the behavior of 
> adobe apps. There palettes have a close button but do not react on 
> command-w.
>
> For me it is more logical that all windows with a "big" title bar 
> react on keyboard close commands and all panels with a "small" title 
> bar not.


Well, keep in mind that there's a lot of criticism of Adobe for going 
their own way with interface design. But if you want to tie your canoe 
to Adobe's ship ... :)

A change of your terms of reference might solve things without a lot 
of hacky code.

You have a program that has palettes (not "windows", from the user 
perspective) that the user wants to be able to hide or show (not 
"close" or "open", from the user perspective).

So, use a NSPanel, but turn off all three of the close/maximize/
minimize buttons in IB so that they don't even show up in the title 
bar. On a suitable menu (e.g. View), add a Hide/Show XXX item for each 
of your different palettes, connected to a ToggleXXXVisible action for 
each palette.

If it turns out that disabling the standard close button *doesn't* 
prevent the palettes from responding to the standard performClose: 
action (which is sent by File | Close and Command-W), implement an 
override for each palette's window controller that forwards the action 
to the current main window (if there is one) or discards it (if there 
is no main window).

Seems to me that's simple to implement and clear in the interface, and 
not in conflict with standard behavior in any reprehensible way.