link expansion options

11.7: adde/outliner/links whose default is
[target replaces current link instead of current page]:
. outlines are like a tree of links except that
instead of the destination replacing the current view
it becomes added to it .
. notice that this is a generalizable link option:
a link would have a default activity,
but by using the context menu, you could select either
{ target replaces current link instead of current page
, target replaces current page
, target lauches in new {window, tab, todo list}
}.
. if the default is to embed,
that could have the appearance of a folder,
ie, a folder icon precedes the link's text;
whereas the usual link would look like a browser link, [11.25:
or there could be an icon for various other reasons
eg, wikipedia uses an arrow icon to show
the link's destination is an external site;
additionally, the icon could include these clues:
{ 2-windows.icon: target lauches in new window
, 2-tabs.icon: target lauches in new tab
, todo-list.icon: target lauches in new todo
, otherwise: target replaces current page
}.]
. how would you show that a folder was empty?
. a folder appears as in the typical
list view of a file system:
an icon of a folder is in front of the folder's name;
there can be various versions of folder icon
{empty [11.25: apearing up-side down?]
, full
}. [11.25: the way microsoft does this is
show a folder as being {open, closed},
and so then you could know folder has content by
trying to open it, and see if anything falls out
into an indented subwindow
(most other systems copy this behavior,
but I find myself too often wanting to
check what's empty).]
. folder-icon'd links can, as usual,
be part of word-wrapped text,
and when these are opened, things are kept organized by
having the contents of a folder be in parentheses
and following the folder . [11.25:
. or if the destination was large, the opening would result in
putting the link on its own line,
and then putting the contents in an indented subwindow .]
--
. the important thing for personal pref's
and avoiding patent infringement,
is that it be very easy for the users to design
the behavior of the flavor of their gui .