A list box (リストボックス) is a GUI control that lines up prepared choices as a list inside a frame and has the user pick an item from them.
The choices stay visible on the screen, and any that do not fit in the frame are reached by scrolling. Because users pick from a fixed set, it prevents typing mistakes and inconsistent spellings that free text entry would allow. You can also preset the item that is already selected when the screen opens (the default value).
AnalogyIt is like looking at a list of school clubs pinned to a bulletin board and pointing at the one you want to join. Every option is visible from the start.
How to rememberSplit the name into list and box, and you picture a list sitting inside a box, always in view.
Exam points
ExamWhen the same value is entered again and again, setting the default value (初期値) to the value entered last time saves users from picking it again.
A menu bar (メニューバー) is a strip across the top of an application window that lines up, in a single row, items standing for groups of functions.
← Scroll the figure sideways →
Typical items are File, Edit and View, and choosing one opens a list of items beneath it (a pull-down menu). The bar itself stays on screen while you work, so users can reach most functions from here.
AnalogyIt is like putting only the chapter titles of a book's contents page on one line; pick a chapter and its sections appear.
How to rememberA bar is a rod. Picture one rod laid across the very top of the screen, with name tags for the functions hung along it.
Exam points
Mix-upMenu bar (メニューバー) means the strip of items itself, while the list that opens downward when you choose an item is called a pull-down menu (プルダウンメニュー).
A pull-down menu (プルダウンメニュー) opens downward when you choose a heading, such as one on the menu bar, and has you pick one of the items it shows.
Choose a heading
The item list opens below
Pick one item
The item is chosen and the list closes
The chosen item is set, and the list closes back to just the heading.
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Normally only the heading is shown, and the list is pulled down only when you need to choose, so it takes up little screen space. Choosing an item or clicking outside the list closes it. It is also called a drop-down menu.
AnalogyIt works like a roller blind on a window: you pull it down when needed and roll it back up when you are done.
How to rememberPull down means to draw something downward, and that direction, from the heading downward, is exactly what the name says.
Exam points
ExamA pull-down menu (プルダウンメニュー) is a control that opens its list of choices only when the heading is pressed, and has the user pick one from it.
A pop-up menu (ポップアップメニュー) is a menu that appears on the spot where you right-click or perform a similar action.
One opened with a right-click lists items suited to whatever you are pointing at, so it is also called a context menu (コンテキストメニュー). The actions you need appear right next to the target, saving you a trip with the mouse to the top of the screen.
AnalogyIt is like a librarian coming over to explain the procedures right where you picked up a book, so you do not have to walk back to the front desk.
How to rememberPop up means to spring up suddenly: like toast jumping out of a toaster, the menu appears right where you are.
Pull-down menu vs. Pop-up menu
Aspect
Pull-down menu
Pop-up menu
Key differenceWhere it opens
Below a heading in a fixed place such as the menu bar
Where the action was performed
Trigger
Choosing a heading
A right-click or similar action
Items listed
Fixed for each heading
When opened by right-click, they change with the item pointed at
A thumbnail (サムネイル) is a small preview image that shows a picture or a document page scaled down.
When many files are lined up, you can find the one you want by how its content looks instead of reading names. What you see is only a reduced preview, so to check details you open the original data.
AnalogyIn the days of film, people chose which frames to reprint by looking at an index print that showed every frame in miniature on a single sheet.
How to rememberThumbnail literally means the nail of your thumb, so remember it as a picture shrunk to about the size of a fingernail.
Exam points
ExamA thumbnail (サムネイル) is a reduced view of the actual content of an image or document, used to check what it contains by its look before opening it.
The help feature (ヘルプ機能) explains how to use software and what its terms mean, so users can solve problems on their own when they get stuck.
The typical way to use it is to call it up from the Help menu or a dedicated key, then look up and read the topic you need. Explanations put into electronic form so users can read them directly while using the software are called online help (オンラインヘルプ).
AnalogyIt is like an appliance that keeps its instruction manual inside the machine, ready to consult the moment you run into trouble.
How to rememberIn many Windows applications the F1 key opens help. Let your fingers remember it: stuck, press F1.
A tooltip (ツールチップ) is a short note that appears next to a button or icon when you rest the mouse pointer on it.
Rest the pointer on an icon
A short note appears nearby
It vanishes when the pointer moves away
Move the pointer elsewhere and the note disappears.
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Placing the pointer over a control and holding it still without clicking is called hovering (ホバー), and a tooltip appears in response to a hover. When an icon's picture alone does not make its role clear, it lets you check what the control does before pressing it. Moving the pointer away makes the note disappear.
AnalogyIt is like a small name tag on each tool in a toolbox. You know what a tool is for before you even pick it up.
How to rememberRead it as tool plus tip, a small hint, and you get a quiet word attached to a tool.
Exam points
Mix-upHovering (ホバー) is the name of the action of resting the pointer on something, and a tooltip (ツールチップ) is the name of what that action makes appear, so the two are cause and result.
Help feature vs. Tooltip
Aspect
Help feature
Tooltip
Key differenceHow it appears
The user calls it up
Appears automatically when the pointer rests on a control
Amount of explanation
Detailed explanations of usage, topic by topic
A brief line about a single control
Key points
A list box only lets users choose from fixed options, so it prevents typing errors and inconsistent spellings better than free entry.
A thumbnail is a shrunken preview of the content, letting you find what you want by its look without reading names.
The help feature and tooltips are aids that let users confirm for themselves what an operation means.