So the other day I was commenting on a blog where the authors were working on a new layout. I spotted some strange wrapping issues and uploaded a screenshot of my browser window for them to look at. Repeatedly, whenever the screenshot was on the screen, I caught myself trying to click the browser's back button in the screenshot. Needless to say, each time I did this was followed by a disjointed moment of confusion where I wondered why it wasn't working. Is my browser locked up? What's going on? After a second or so the realization would come. You dummy, that's not your browser, that's a picture of your browser.
I think it served as a reminder of how much we do automatically once we've "learned" to do it. The entire metaphor--hand to mouse, mouse to cursor, cursor to back button, click--all automatic and interpretted by the brain as "go back".
Anyway, next time I upload a screenshot of the browser, I think I'll leave the menu and toolbar out of it. ![]()

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