Undo/Redo are fine but they’re not a 1:1 replacement for OK/Cancel.
Ok/Cancel can do clear hulk actions. I open a settings dialog and make a bunch of changes, if I hit Cancel I know none of them applied. However, it I hit undo, I don’t know how many were reversed. I don’t know how many times I need to hit undo to replicate the Cancel behavior, especially if it can go in history beyond the current session, as some word editors such as VIM can for example.
Applications can keep enormous stacks but humans cannot keep the same in their mind. A confirmation dialog for bulk items, or conceptually heavy items, reduces mental taxation.
Comments
Undo/Redo are fine but they’re not a 1:1 replacement for OK/Cancel.
Ok/Cancel can do clear hulk actions. I open a settings dialog and make a bunch of changes, if I hit Cancel I know none of them applied. However, it I hit undo, I don’t know how many were reversed. I don’t know how many times I need to hit undo to replicate the Cancel behavior, especially if it can go in history beyond the current session, as some word editors such as VIM can for example.
Applications can keep enormous stacks but humans cannot keep the same in their mind. A confirmation dialog for bulk items, or conceptually heavy items, reduces mental taxation.