GtkLabel show tooltip if ellipsized or other way to display ellipsized information.
This is an attempt to have a serious discussion about the issue touched upon in #5461 and !5362 (closed). Both attempt to find a way to enable tooltips only for ellipsized labels.
There are multiple scenarios in which labels will get ellipsized even for well-designed applications:
- Filenames in sidebars e.g. GNOME Builder: currently long filenames are ellipsized, with no way to know their full name than to drag the sidebar as wide as possible. A tooltip on hover would be ideal for this usecase.
- Labels based on user input: this is a generalisation of the above situation. Users are allowed to choose their own filenames, directory structures, naming conventions. Sometimes it is not an option for the app developer to limit the size of these strings. In those cases ellipsized text will make sure that the app still looks well, with the tooltip allowing for an option to view to full text.
- Translations to languages that have much longer words than the original language for which the app was designed. I personally feel that this use case is less of an issue, as communication between designers and translators is still possible. #5461 focused solely on this, which is why I felt the need to make a new issue.
Other solutions besides tooltips are of course also welcome.