In a web app, some people think a "Delete" button should be obvious and bright red, signifying danger. The trouble is that this draws the eye to the button and may make accidental clicks more likely. So in general...
Should "dangerous" buttons be prominent? Or should they be inconspicuous?
"Dangerous" buttons are buttons that users should never click by accident. Typically these are secondary action buttons that cause destructive actions, regardless of whether they require confirmation or are undoable.
I wonder if this issue has been dealt with elsewhere. I notice that the icon on Microsoft Outlook 2007's Delete button is just plain black, whereas IIRC it used to be red a few years ago. The WordPress blog editing page goes even further: the Save button is big and easy to click, while the Delete button is a small plain hyperlink that does not attract the eye. There are many other examples.
I've seen this "inconspicuous destructive button" pattern used in lots of places, but haven't seen a decent reference to it. Is this issue discussed in any books or websites?
Answer
There is a small snippit of information I can add. Bruce Tognazzini posted on AskTog some years ago:
" It would appear at first glance that painting the close box red is a good thing, since that warns the user about its potential danger. However, a study done at Apple almost ten years ago found that the user's mouse gravitates toward red objects almost as though they were possessed with magnetism. The study forced us to abandon the idea of making close boxes and the Shut Down option red. “
It may add some sway to your decision, but I can’t say that I’ve been mindlessly clicking close for the past 9 years in Mac OS X!
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