[plt-scheme] Version Check

Eli Barzilay wrote:
>The problem is
>that it is not much time for a first-run -- so if this is the first
>time it's about to do a check, it shows a different message, then
>waits for 20 seconds and proceeds with the check.  I tried it, and it
>looks like it should be noticeable enough.

In my opinion no software should phone home without explicit
permission to do so, at least the first time.  If it's the first time,
the check should not proceed after 20 seconds or even three hours, it
should stop, tell the user what's going to happen, what information is
going to be transmitted, and ask for an explicit confirmation.  User
friendliness should not get in the way of full disclosure or take
control away from the user by assuming what the user's answer might
be.

If you want it to be user friendly, then the first time around change
the "disable" button in your system into a "proceed" button, add a
helpdesk link right next to it with all the necessary details, and
don't do anything until the "proceed" button has been clicked by the
user.  Then, right after he's clicked on "proceed", popup a window and
ask the user whether he wants the checks to always proceed
automatically in the future. If he answers "yes" then change the
"proceed" button into a "disable" button in all future checks like
it's done currently.  If he answers no, the future checks should
behave like a first check.

Philippe