[Trac #1108] network view should give topology, freshness, and strength info

[Zarro Boogs per Child]

#1108: network view should give topology, freshness, and strength info
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 Reporter:  AlbertCahalan     |        Owner:  Eben    
     Type:  enhancement       |       Status:  assigned
 Priority:  high              |    Milestone:  BTest-3 
Component:  interface-design  |   Resolution:          
 Keywords:                    |  
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Comment (by Eben):

 > You could blur the XO image, pixelate the XO image, punch holes in the
 XO image, etc.

 > The XO should NOT disappear immediately when the signal is gone. The
 signal might be temporarily blocked by a vehicle. It's too disorienting to
 have the XOs rapidly appearing and disappearing. Users need to be able to
 interact with an XO that has an unreliable connection, while still being
 notified that the connection is unreliable.

 I think this is exactly the point I was trying to make, but I didn't make
 it clear.  My suggestion is that the visual treatment should be the
 present/absent stroke with no fill.  That will be the visual cue
 throughout the interface for an absent or inactive element.  Moreover, I
 was trying to make exactly the same point, which is that the XO should be
 rendered in this absent form in hopes that it may reappear before it
 disappears completely.  When I said it should disappear "when a signal
 goes away," I meant "when a signal has been gone for some timeout and
 should be considered lost."  I'm in full agreement there.

 > An XO should begin fading out at the first hint of signal loss, but
 should not disappear until there is little hope for recovery. Maybe give
 it a minute to fully die. Hey, they could morph into skull-and-crossbones
 icons. :-)

 The stroke/no fill will do the trick, though I'm amused by the skull &
 crossbones comment.  He heh.  I still think some reasonable threshold is
 needed.  I'd rather not confuse the view with a highly continuous way of
 representing exact signal strength.  All a kid cares about is if a signal
 is strong enough to maintain a connection.  If it is great; if it's below
 some threshold, then it should be easily distinguishable as such.

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Ticket URL: <http://dev.laptop.org/ticket/1108#comment:5>
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