Description

ONGOING 

A component which allows the user to trigger a "flow defined single action" (e.g. Apply, Continue, Expand) in context to a container its located in (e.g. screen, form, wizard, popup, popover etc...). 

Example for a table with a row of buttons from different types (icon, Icon + name, split) at the top

Buttons differ from links in this regard, because links navigate the user to a new state in the application but never initialize any actions. 

See also TBD (split, icon button, ribbon button? link or text link? segmented buttons such as the zoomer? toggle button?)

Types

Type	Usage
Primary & Secondary	Used for either main or secondary action on the page/pane/dialog
Icon & icon + label	Buttons used in buttons to better communicate what the button does.
split	Used when there are several possible actions  related but only one primary action (e.g most frequent used).
Link
Ribbon	Used in the ribbon pattern. see <<TBD link to pattern>>
Toggle

Usage & Behavior

A button allows the user to trigger a "flow defined single action" (e.g. Apply, Continue, Expand) in context to a container its located in. Some examples include Add, Save, Delete, Cancel. Do not use Buttons as navigational elements. Instead, use Links because it takes the user to a new page and is not associated with an action. Each pane or popup can have one primary button. Any remaining calls-to-action are represented as secondary buttons.

General guidelines

Labels

Button labels tell users what will happen when they click the button.

• Choose a button text that is short and meaningful.
• Use imperative verbs that describe the action, such as Add or Delete. Use sentence-style capitalization (only the first word in a phrase and any proper nouns are capitalized). In most cases, do not use more than three words for button labels.
• For Sets of Buttons, use specific labels, such as Save or Discard, instead of using OK and Cancel. This is particularly helpful when the user is confirming an action.
• Use tooltips for icon buttons.
• Do not use Uppercase except the The 'OK' button.
• In some instances a well understood acronym may be used.

Responssiveness

The buttons themselves are not responsive. The button text and position depend on the settings for the parent container.

Best practices

Use buttons in situations where users might need to:

• submit a form
  • begin a new task
  • trigger a new UI element to appear on the page
  • specify a new or next step in a process

• Don’t combine an icon and text within one button

States

Buttons can be enabled or disabled.

Of the enabled buttons - only a single button can be the default button, this button activates the action when Enter is pressed.

If an action button is temporarily inactive, use the disabled status.

Validations and errors

The button itself cannot have an error state. However, if a page, pane or form has an error, the buttons are disabled and an error appears above or next to them.

link to validations? can the button error state occur? If yes then when. If no - then we need to move from the design.

Related

• https://experience.sap.com/fiori-design-web/button/