[openlp-dev] Splash screens and logo screens

[Raoul Snyman]

Hey everyone,

I saw another case of users getting confused between the *splash screen* 
and *default image* recently, and I want explain the problem and propose 
some changes to decrease the confusion. First, let me explain the 
difference between the two.

The *splash screen* is the initial OpenLP logo that shows up when you 
start OpenLP. The goal of the splash screen is to show users that the 
application is actually responding when they start it. A number of 
applications, OpenLP included, take a while to start up, and don't show 
up immediately, and showing the splash screen as soon as possible helps 
to prevent users from trying to start the application multiple times 
because it doesn't seem to be starting the first time.

The *default image* is the logo that shows up on the live display screen 
when OpenLP first launches.

I'm not entirely sure what the source of the confusion between these two 
screens is, but I think it has something to do with the following facts:

1. There's an option in the settings to hide the splash screen.
2. There's an option in the settings to change the "default image" on 
the display screen.
3. We currently have no feature to show the default image again (aka 
"logo screen").
4. When you start OpenLP on a computer with only 1 monitor for the first 
time, the display screen covers the main window, and the splash screen 
logo perfectly covers the default image on the display screen.

I'd like to propose the following changes, in the hopes that they will 
help to alleviate the confusion:

1. Remove the option to hide the splash screen. I doubt anyone who 
actually knows what this does actually uses it, and 99% of applications 
out there that also have a splash screen do not have this option.
2. Rename the "default image" to "Logo screen"
3. Add the ability to "Show logo screen" (alongside Blank/Desktop/Theme)
4. Go over our screen code again to prevent the display from showing up 
on a computer with only a single monitor (this one is really tricky if 
we want to continue to support single-monitor setups).


Thoughts? Ideas? Comments? Criticism?

-- 
Raoul Snyman
+1 (520) 490-9743
raoul at snyman.info