Eight More Rules of Tablet UI Success

Developers are starting to get the message: A Tablet PC is not a standard desktop or notebook PC. It's easy to think that the Tablet PC is simply just a notebook with a bright swiveling screen, a pen, a few new UI widgets and a few extra bits crammed into the operating system.

In a previous article (Eight Essentials of Tablet User Interface Design), I presented some suggestions that applications programmers and UI designers should keep in mind while constructing tablet applications. Some of those suggestions are very specific to the tablet platform; others, in my humble opinion, are general Windows UI points that are simply more important on the tablet platform.

Thanks to feedback from readers of that first article, as well as additional notes I've taken on UI design based on watching people use the platform, it's my pleasure to present eight more user interface design suggestions.

Avoid cascading drop-down menus.

Avoid the need for scrolling documents.

Place tool tips above, not below.

Stand up for portrait mode.

Remember color preferences.

(Via Tablet PC Developer)