Orphalese Tarot Zone Community Forum

i love orpahlese..
i hate orphalese

why do i have to fight with this interface...

in free mode, why can't i just drag and drop the cards into the spread. in any order, into any position. and if i drop the wrong card , why can't i just drag it out.. like every other windows program i use

and in free mode , the deck expands off the screen .. so i can't position it.. so i have to unfree mode.. position it better then go back to free mode...

and in the spread, i want larger card size (for the cards in the spead) , but i want a tiny deck size for the interface/menus

eternally sorting... why isn't it always sorted if i set it so..

why not add the menus at the top of the screen also.. like every other windows program

Hi Zen,

I mostly love Orphalese :o) but I agree about the free mode - that's why I don't use it any more.

I'm not so bothered about having to click on the deck to get the menu... Guess I like to keep my reading table clean... Would be interesting to hear what everybody else says...

Cheers,

AngelDancer

Dear ZenMusic,

We all know that computers and their applications can be extremely frustrating at times. But there's something you should know. The Orphalese programmer is well liked and respected here. So next time, instead of throwing a hissy-fit at him, why not write your suggestions in a helpful, constructive way, one that shows him the respect he deserves?

Sincerely,
Sue Jones

Hi ZenMusic,

I have spent a couple of hours looking at the issues you raised. The fact that the deck was resizing off the screen was very interesting because it was the first time that bug had been notified to me. I can see how it happens: you are using a small deck, say a majors only deck. Then you lay out a spread which uses a full 78 card deck. Some variable fails to update properly which means there is too much edge showing for each card, and the sides of the fanned-out deck are off the screen.

The reason you can't drag and drop cards into the spread is because the mouse actions required to start a drag and drop operation are already being used (to move the deck around the screen). Drag and drop operations are appropriate to controls hosted on a form, such as the icons hosted in an Explorer window. They aren't really applicable to Windows forms themselves, although it can be made to work. In this case, I think it would be very hard to drag and drop a card (which is relatively large) onto the small rectangle on the spread form, when there may be a whole bunch of spread positions close together, with any accuracy at all. I think this would lead to even more user frustration.

The idea of dragging a card back into the deck when you have made a mistake sounds like it would be useful. The deck in free selection mode doesn't allow cards to be dropped back in when a spread is being dealt (this is because the spread might require a card to appear directly over the fanned-out deck, in which case the card would be re-absorbed straight away), but I can add an 'undo' button.

I am hoping to bring out a beta version of 7.5 in the next two or three weeks, so these changes will be incorporated into that.

Re the sorting, the sort order you specify will be remembered until you shuffle the deck, or you change decks (unless there are cards out). If you find it is happening too often, make sure you don't have the Always shuffle after dealing option selected on the Options form.

The menus are on the deck not the background screen because the background screen is an optional enhancement that people can use, a kind of virtual tabletop, but many people use the program without the background visible.

I hope after giving this feedback you will be able to download the beta when I post it and give it a bit of testing - I think you are the first person to register an opinion about the deal in selection mode feature of the program so your input would be appreciated.

Cheers
Richard

hi richard.. my previous reply didn't show up.. so i'm reposting this..

thanks for the reply.. i'm a programmer also...i hadn't thought about the drag-n-drop mode
already being on, for the deck movement.. would cause a redesign to use the drag and
drop the way i expected..

one note though. the outline ghost image doesn't have to be as large as the cards,you
could make in any size, smaller to fit the target..
... sort order.. i'd like to see the sort order 'stick' across deck changes, so i don't have to resort.

i use the orphalese mostly for the layout and display and recording of physical deck readings..
so i spend a lot of time switching between decks, ordering and speading etc.. (and i like the comparison display)

I have found a partial solution... I have programmed a set of macros (macro-express) that
now allow me to to select a deck, sort, and do a spread with 1 function key,
now i'm working on one to help with card selection in free mode...

i'll look at the beta and give you some feedback... i like it enough that i went ahead and registered the program (though i had a free copy included with Tarot of Dreams) to support your work.. i'd like to see Orphalese continue to evolve..

thanks.. i'm sure you'll hear more from me as i use it more..

oh, i would like to be able to park the deck in reading mode .. or set the deck to a smaller size than the cards are (i like larger card size for the readings, but once i have all the cards out, i have to drag the deck partially off the screen to make sure it doesn't cover any cards)..

I don't miss the menu bar - I prefer more screen space without the clutter of a windows menu bar. Its certainly not an inconvenience or difficult to right-click the deck to see the menu choices. I find the HCI approach in Orphalese a refreshing change that does the job without eating up screen real estate - I would leave it as it is.

Aloha, Richard!

I too would prefer that we continue with the clutter-free, real estate friendly screen we now enjoy.

Thanks,
Sue Jones