Button vs. Icon?

[Geoff Hart <ghart -at- videotron -dot- ca>]

Suzanne McKinney wondered: <<I'm working on user documentation, and am 
editing something written by a developer. I've always called GUI 
elements that you click to do something "buttons" but this developer 
(and others) often call them "icons". Which is it? For example, "Click 
the Save icon at the bottom center of the page to save the record." To 
me that's a button. Is one right or wrong, or better/worse?>>

"Buttons" are clickable interface items within a dialog box, and are 
generally built from words. Icons are graphical buttons that may occur 
in toolbars, in dialog boxes, and in a variety of other places. 
Ideally, the two should not be mixed (i.e., icons usually belong 
outside dialog boxes). It's worth preserving the distinction.

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Geoff Hart   ghart -at- videotron -dot- ca
(try geoffhart -at- mac -dot- com if you don't get a reply)
www.geoff-hart.com
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