Projects/Usability/HIG/GroupBox

    From KDE TechBase


    Purpose

    A group box is a labeled rectangular area that surrounds a set of related controls. A frame (also known as panel) is an unlabeled rectangular area that can be used to mark relationship as well.

    Both, group box and frame are a way to show relationships visually; it provides no additional functionality.

    Example

    Guidelines

    Is this the right control

    • Always try to use a group box to arrange related controls.
    • Use a frame to arrange related controls that cannot be labeled.
    • Do not group single controls.
    • Consider to communicate relationship by layout only.

    Behavior

    • Do not nest grouping elements; use layout to show relationships within a group.
    • Do not place controls in group box’ caption.
    • Do not disable groups. To indicate that a group of controls doesn't currently apply, disable all the controls within the group, but not the group itself.
    • Put a splitter between aligned grouping controls.

    Appearance

    • Label the group box with a descriptive caption.
    • Do not assign an access key to the group box’ caption.
    • Set the group box or frame shadow to 'flat' to convey relationship. This provides the consistent spacing required to convey the relationship.

    Implementation