Comment 95 for bug 438536

Another side effect of the aesthetically curious decision with regards to stacks of notifications.

Previously, an application elegantly provided stacks of notifications via MacSlow's most impressive scrolling implementation and they dissolved in time according to their arrival.

Now, the notifications all cluster in the exact same region.

For example, in GWibber, you had a visual hierarchy of events based on time. Now we have a cluster of notifications that seem forced into a slim time frame.

As I can see it, with the new implementation we lose:

1) Proximity. The general location of most messaging applications happens in the upper right corner. Notifications straying from this lose their visual relationship. [1]

2) Hierarchy. The visual hierarchy present in the original model represented a visual relationship to time. Removing this behaviour requires one to be focused on the event to understand the relationship to time. [2]

3) Aesthetic-Usability Effect. While arguable, it does seem that there is at least some evidence the new placement has adversely affects the aesthetics of the desktop with regards to a westernized learned response. "Aesthetic designs are more effective at fostering positive attitudes than unaesthetic designs, and make people more tolerant of design problems." [3]

4) Scannability of Content. Notifications primarily consist of readable content. For example, within Gwibber, some content is relevant to the audience, some is not. Forcing overlapping information eliminates scannability. [4]

In closing, while do gain a degree of consistency with the new implementation. Clearly the reasoning for the positioning is not entirely understandable or easily discoverable [For example, see comment https://bugs.launchpad.net/ubuntu/+source/notify-osd/+bug/438536/comments/87], one could argue that the consistency is lost on the audience with the degree of aesthetic inconsistency.

The second argument that we create a logical division of events based on location, one could also argue based on the feedback in this report, is also either not apparent or entirely lost on the end audience member.

Unfortunately we have no explicitly stated audience for this design, so arriving at an effective solution is nigh on impossible. If we make an audience a power user that frequently is needing to hit window decoration buttons (again assuming top right orientation) and entering search bars in Firefox, then the current path has merit. If the audience is a slightly more casual individual, the decision might seem out of place aesthetically and subject to a different set of design concepts.

Alternatively, we could simply close this bug based on the fact that the fellow footing the bill has made a concrete design decision. :)

[1] PG 160 of Universal Principles of Design [ISBN 1-59253-007-9]
[2] PG 104 of Universal Principles of Design [ISBN 1-59253-007-9]
[3] PG 18 of Universal Principles of Design [ISBN 1-59253-007-9]
[4] http://www.useit.com/alertbox/whyscanning.html