Maximum tab width

JohnSmith22

As a past chromium user, tabs that change size and position are disorienting. Always having equally sized tabs, which stay in the same position, is part of muscle memory.
The solution: adjustable maximum tab width in settings. The default would be 100%, matching current behavior, but it could be configured to be less.
The remaining space could be configured to go to the left, the right, or split evenly.

Vlad

JohnSmith22 Remember that Chrome uses non-native controls and that design of Chrome tabs comes from Windows. In macOS there is something called Human Interface Guidelines for native apps, and Orion uses native tab controls (like Safari) that are built for macOS.

While we understand the preferences of Chrome users, I think it is more important for Orion to be and feel native on the host OS.

JohnSmith22

I was going to point out Safari's compact tabs, but I realized those are already under review. Compact tabs achieve basically the same thing but fit MacOS guidelines, so see this as an upvote for them. Thanks for looking at this feedback!

Vlad

JohnSmith22 As far as I know compact tabs also resize so care to explain what exactly do you mean?

George

No, listen. Im telling you right now. Please add an option to set maximum tab width. For the love of God. Yes apple human interface guidelines whatever. Look, it's important that people be able to customize the browser. It's very distracting to poeple who are used to having a max tab width (like in every other browser except safari!) to come to Orion and be able to use the browser the same way. If you just want to cater to former safari users fine. But that is so limiting it's ridiculous.

Vlad

George Sure, but if we are going to go against HIG, this needs many more than just 3 upvotes.

Note: Firefox and Chrome were designed for Windows. They are not native on macOS. They do not look or behave native.

We are trying to cater to all users of browsers, respecting the fact they are running macOS, not Windows or Linux. macOS has rules for design and UX called HIG and Orion is striving to be a fully native app on this host OS. Many users apprecite the fact that Orion is a native app.

We are building this with users and for users though, and if this suggestion has considerable numbers of upvotes, it will be planned.

bontano

I don't plan to be demanding about it, but may I just say that the ability to set a max width of tabs would be highly desirable to me and I hope more people vote for it. Though a Mac user, I have never liked Safari for a variety of reasons. Before I discovered Orion, I'd been using FF and Chrome for different purposes and I guess had become accustomed to the nice maximum tab widths. Maybe I'll get used to it, but I find it challenging to identify tabs - and the 'x' to close them - at a glance when they vary so widely in size (at least, when only a small number are in use). This is especially the case in dark mode.

Thanks for listening!

[Afterthought: One way to improve usability to the status quo might be to make the 'x' to close tabs always visible. At present they're only visible on hover. I suspect that this would make getting used to dynamic tab widths much easier.]