To determine which type of visual feedback to provide for a
particular operation, consider these factors:
-
Whether your application can provide an estimate of the
operation's progress.
-
Whether the operation blocks the user from issuing further
commands in your application.
-
Whether your application has a dedicated space, such as a status
bar, for indicating the status of operations.
The table below shows which type of feedback to provide for
operations that usually take at least 1 second to finish. In the
"Appropriate Feedback" column, "Internal progress
animations" means progress animations displayed in an
application's dedicated status area, and "External progress
animations" means progress animations displayed somewhere other than
in a dedicated status area— typically, in an alert box.
Table 7-2 Visual feedback types for operations that take at least 1 second
| Typical Duration > 5 seconds? |
User blocked from issuing further commands? |
Application has dedicated status area? |
Appropriate feedback |
| Yes |
Yes |
Yes |
Internal animation plus pointer feedback |
| Yes |
Yes |
No |
Pointer feedback |
| Yes |
No |
Yes |
Internal animation |
| No |
Yes |
Yes |
Internal animation plus pointer feedback |
| No |
Yes |
No |
External animation plus pointer feedback |
| No |
No |
Yes |
Internal animation |
| No |
No |
No |
External animation |
Guidelines
-
Use a busy pointer whenever users are blocked from interaction
with your application for 1 second or longer. Display the busy pointer
less than 1 second after the operation begins.
-
If a command will likely take 10 seconds or longer to finish,
provide a Stop or Cancel
button, which can also be activated by pressing Esc,
that lets users terminate the command's processing even if your
application cannot undo the command's effects. See Section 7.6 ― Allowing Interruptions.
-
When using an external animation, leave the window containing
the animation on-screen for at least 1 second after the operation has
completed, with a successful completion message. Change the
Stop or Cancel button to
an OK button during this period— pressing this
button should close the window immediately.