MySQL Bugs: #35841: click-reclick for editing values is bad usability + grid improvements

Bug #35841	click-reclick for editing values is bad usability + grid improvements
Submitted:	4 Apr 2008 19:10	Modified:	10 Oct 2013 14:48
Reporter:	Exception e	Email Updates:
Status:	Closed	Impact on me:	None
Category:	MySQL Workbench	Severity:	S4 (Feature request)
Version:	5.0.30	OS:	Windows (XP Prof 32bit)
Assigned to:		CPU Architecture:	Any
Tags:	UI, usability

Description:
Workbench uses an inconvenient interaction model.
In order to change a colum name, datatype, default vale etc in tab Columns for the table editor one needs to click somewehere in a row, wait a moment, then click on the appropriate cell. Then you need to wait a second, and the cell-value becomes editable.
The user is forced by this model to slow down in order to alter values. I found it very inconvenient, one needs to be constantly aware of this limitation. In addition, if the user forgets that he must click slowly, he does not get what he wants, but he get this unexpected behavior:

Double-clicking a row that is NOT a primary key makes it a primary key and enables NOT-NULL flag

Double-clicking a row that is a primary key turns it back into a normal row (no primary key), BUT it leaves the NOT-NULL flag to ON.

How to repeat:
This is how one is forced to change values:

1. load or create a table with some columns and open it.
2. goto tab Columns
2. Click a row
3. Wait a moment!
4. Click on the columname-cell or other cell
5. Wait a second
6. Now one can enter a new value
Problem: this is cumbersome.

This is what happens if click-reclick is done fast (i.e. double-click):

Case: non-primary key row
1. load or create a table with some columns and open it.
2. goto tab Columns.
3. Click, reclick (double-click) a cell of a non-primary key row
4. The row becomes a primary key, NOT-NULL is enabled

Case: primary key row
1. load or create a table with some columns and open it.
2. goto tab Columns.
3. Click, reclick (double-click) a cell of a primary key row
4. The row becomes a normal row, NOT-NULL keeps being enabled

Suggested fix:
clicking a cell makes it *immediately* editable.
To move up in a row, one presses the arrow-up key
To move down in a row, one presses the arrow-down key

However, selection boxes have predefined behaviour for these keys. Two possibilities
[preferred] 1) use ctrl-up/down for selection boxes only
[bad] 2) don't support row-navigating when a selection box is active

related bug:
http://bugs.mysql.com/bug.php?id=35842

Thank you for a problem report. It looks like a reasonable feature request to me (to change grid behaviour).

please, could you verify if this is stil an issue with the latest version (5.0.17, Rev 2972) ... i cant reproduce it anymore.

sorry, wrong post - the double-clicking issue should be fixed in the latest version

No feedback was provided for this bug for over a month, so it is
being suspended automatically. If you are able to provide the
information that was originally requested, please do so and change
the status of the bug back to "Open".

in 5.0.21 (rev 3111) clicking a row does not toggle primary key status. So this is fixed, thanks!
I hope you can have a look at the keyboard navigation issue too!

When it is fixed then I will close it now.

Ok, for the keyboard navigation we would need a separate bug report.

Anyway, we will take this here. But it is a feature request and not a bug.

Since the double click problem was solved a long time ago and there has always been the hotkey F2 to start editing there's no need to keep this report open any longer.