Bug 452486

Summary:	inconsistent menus
Product:	[I don't know] kde	Reporter:	David Chmelik <dchmelik>
Component:	general	Assignee:	Unassigned bugs <unassigned-bugs-null>
Status:	RESOLVED NOT A BUG
Severity:	normal	CC:	nate
Priority:	NOR
Version First Reported In:	unspecified
Target Milestone:	---
Platform:	Neon
OS:	Linux
Latest Commit:		Version Fixed In:
Sentry Crash Report:

Description David Chmelik 2022-04-11 06:26:05 UTC

SUMMARY
Many KDE menus are inconsistent and change their letters or have different ones for same thing in different places, not just Konsole (but I think I already reported the rest, like the System Settings problem since KDEP4.)  Sometimes when I press right mouse button to switch profile, I can press s, and at other times, it's w, and maybe the profile's letters also change (for default or day or night... I also set one of the latter two as default but that didn't let me move default further down list or delete it, in which case it should be restorable.)

STEPS TO REPRODUCE
1. Start Konsole (and have more than one profile.)
2. Press right mouse button to switch profile.
3. If you want to do it with keyboard the key probably changed from s to w or vice versa (but then there's actually no option that has s.)

OBSERVED RESULT
Konsole often changes menu letters... then you end up pressing and something else happening and you have to get out of that and try again, often taking considerable time in total.

EXPECTED RESULT
Choose overall menu letters set for everywhere and all the time and stick with it, not just changing it for no reason if something happens in the program.

SOFTWARE/OS VERSIONS
Linux/KDE Plasma: Slackware64 15.1-current /  KDE 5.24.4
KDE Plasma Version: 5.24.4
KDE Frameworks Version: 5.92.0
Qt Version: 5.15.3

Comment 1 David Chmelik 2022-04-11 06:29:31 UTC

*** Bug 452487 has been marked as a duplicate of this bug. ***

Comment 2 David Chmelik 2022-07-06 08:45:26 UTC

Most systemsettings uses <ALT>a keystrokes to 'apply' (and certain letters for other buttons 'cancel,' 'discard') which users get used to.
        A few other systemsettings menus: regional (date & time, input method, spell-check,) hardware (all sub-menu 'apply' buttons) 'apply' use <ALT>p, <ALT>l, <ALT>y, which confuses users and makes them usually press <ALT>a, then nothing happens, then they must double-check and use unexpected keys.
        No other systemsettings buttons use a,p,l,y, so 'apply' should be same/standardized/consistent throughout all its menus.
        The current format prevents users from ever learning an easy system a button is same/standard/consistent, rather than be entirely different/non-standard/inconsistent, leaving users permanently mixing-up & confused.
        There may be other cases (haven't researched (in)consistency buttons besides 'apply.')

Comment 3 David Chmelik 2022-07-06 08:51:33 UTC

This bug report overall was about several cases, so has several different sets of steps to reproduce.  I initially mentioned an earlier case (reported, maybe ignored, in KDE3 and/or KDEP4, but couldn't find it) but then only gave steps for Konsole.  Other steps are below.

STEPS TO REPRODUCE.
1. Run systemsettings.
2. Try 'apply' button in every (sub-)menu.
3. Notice they're widely different/non-standard/inconsistent, so never learn interface rather than remain permanently mixed-up confused.

Comment 4 Nate Graham 2022-08-02 15:41:00 UTC

So you're saying that the underlined letter for alt-accelerators in menus aren't consistent? Am I understanding the issue?

Comment 5 David Chmelik 2022-08-02 19:50:46 UTC

(In reply to Nate Graham from comment #4)
> So you're saying that the underlined letter for alt-accelerators in menus
> aren't consistent? Am I understanding the issue?

I don't recall term 'alt-accelerators' but think so: that I described that and every case I found (though I guess should be different bug reports).
'Konsole -> right mouse button -> switch profile' first has s underlined but later w then continually switches back & forth every few hours.
Systemsettings underlines a, p, l, y on different menus' 'apply' buttons.

Comment 6 Nate Graham 2022-08-04 17:52:51 UTC

In general all of these are individual, app-specific bugs, so a general bug report aying "alt accelerators aren't always consistent everywhere" isn't super actionable. :) 

> 'Konsole -> right mouse button -> switch profile' first has s underlined but later w then continually switches back & forth every few hours.

That's a bug in Konsole; please file one there.

> Systemsettings underlines a, p, l, y on different menus' 'apply' buttons.

That's a bug in System Settings; please file one there.