Choosing Appropriate Feedback

To determine which type of visual feedback to provide for a particular operation, consider these factors:

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
YesYesYesInternal animation plus pointer feedback
YesYesNoPointer feedback
YesNoYesInternal animation
NoYesYesInternal animation plus pointer feedback
NoYesNoExternal animation plus pointer feedback
NoNoYesInternal animation
NoNoNoExternal animation

Guidelines