May 3rd, 2007
Google Gadget Designer still sucks
When it was first launched last June, I wasn't a huge fan of the Google Gadget Designer — it seemed to defy all convention when it came to user experience. Properties weren't sorted alphabetically, tabs had to be closed through an awkward menu item, and several other things. The newest version of the gadget designer released today has fixed a couple of these, however I can officially say that I'm glad Google doesn't make their own IDE like Microsoft Visual Studio.
For example, one of the "improvements" they made was the ability to close a tab using — get this — middle click. Who in the modern world uses middle click? Is this intuitive for anybody? Nevermind, it appears that this is more common than I thought — however I, and probably others, prefer the right click context menu and/or a readily available close button.
That said, I realize this isn't a one of Google's prime applications, but it definitely has that potential. If Google could create a tool that developers actually want to use, the rate of development on Google's platform could significantly increase — something I'm sure they wouldn't complain about.
Garett Rogers is employed as a programmer for iQmetrix, which specializes in retail management software for the wireless industry. See his full profile and disclosure of his industry affiliations.
