We describe control menus and how they are useful in different types of user interfaces. The interface can thus adapt the menu's contents to that position and associate the action selected in the menu with the position. The problem with pop-up and marking menus is that they do not allow the chosen operation to be controlled interactively. They also do not allow any parameters to be supplied. For instance, an operation such as a font size change often requires a dialog box to supply the new font size.
Users have to use the menu and then switch their attention to another interactor.
Once the new size has been entered the dialog box is dismissed and the users have to refocus their attention on the workspace. Zooming is another operation that is difficult to perform with menus. Users want to zoom until the correct scale has been obtained. Standard menus only allow them to zoom in fixed steps and then only via repeated uses of the menu. The menu disappears and the operation starts as soon as the cursor has been moved the activation distance from the centre of the menu.