9 votes

Basic comment reply notifications added

Posted by Deimos
Tags: changelog

It's still very rough in quite a few ways, but lack of comment reply notifications has definitely been one of the biggest missing features, so I wanted to get this basic form of it out before I worry about fixing some of the weirdness with it.

A few quick notes on it:

  • Currently, notifications are only for replies to comments. You won't get any notifications for replies to topics, username mentions, etc.
  • Currently, you can only view the unread notifications. Once you mark one as read, it'll be gone with no way to see it again. It's still stored and viewing read notifications will definitely be possible in the future, just not yet.
  • There are some strange interactions between the comment visit-tracking and the notifications still, I'm not totally sure how I'm going to handle those yet.

Let me know if you notice anything else, I'll probably apply some more updates to it before long to fix some of the strange aspects.

18 comments

  1. [3]
    rkcr
    Link
    I could either test it by taking the direct route like cfabbro, or I could go into some other thread and start a flamewar... choices choices...

    I could either test it by taking the direct route like cfabbro, or I could go into some other thread and start a flamewar... choices choices...

    2 votes
  2. aphoenix
    Link
    I noticed this. Looks good.

    I noticed this. Looks good.

    1 vote
  4. [13]
    cfabbro
    Link
    test

    test

    1. [9]
      Deimos
      Link Parent
      Here, let me help you out.

      Here, let me help you out.

      1 vote
      1. [6]
        MajorParadox
        Link Parent
        Any plans to integrate with browser notifications so I get a pop-up for, like how toolbox works? Replying here so you see this, since you won't get a notification otherwise :)

        Any plans to integrate with browser notifications so I get a pop-up for, like how toolbox works?

        Replying here so you see this, since you won't get a notification otherwise :)

        2 votes
        1. [5]
          Deimos
          Link Parent
          I'm not totally sure. I feel like notifications are one of the things that sites (and especially apps) over-use a lot as a way to keep people "engaged". It's kind of nice to have using the site be...

          I'm not totally sure. I feel like notifications are one of the things that sites (and especially apps) over-use a lot as a way to keep people "engaged". It's kind of nice to have using the site be on your own terms, without having it try to grab your attention every time something minor happens. Browser notifications aren't nearly as bad as app ones though, since you can always just close the tab to prevent them.

          And while I wouldn't have directly gotten a notification if you hadn't replied to a comment, the thread still would have been marked for me as having new comments because I have the "track visits" feature turned on: https://tildes.net/settings/comment_visits - I need to find a better way to explain/promote that feature, since it seems like most people aren't using it, and I think it's one of the better ones.

          2 votes
          1. [3]
            MajorParadox
            Link Parent
            I find browser notifications for direct post replies, comment replies, and private messages extremely useful. I'd rather get a notification and go check it out right away than find I have 10 of...

            I find browser notifications for direct post replies, comment replies, and private messages extremely useful.
            I'd rather get a notification and go check it out right away than find I have 10 of them next time I check the site, for instance.

            But maybe I'm just not as active as other users where it's more annoying. However, disabling notifications per post/comment is useful for that. Also, a suggestion I made on reddit once about solving the "my inbox exploded" issues is to automatically set that if it explodes. Like if it's getting x replies a minute, auto-disable them with a notification such as "You're getting way too many here, so we turned it off. Go turn it back on if you like."

            3 votes
            1. [2]
              cfabbro
              Link Parent
              Ditto. I rely heavily on desktop browser and mobile notifications a lot, especially for YouTube, Reddit, Slack, Discord and many other sites/services. Having it as a feature here would be super...

              Ditto. I rely heavily on desktop browser and mobile notifications a lot, especially for YouTube, Reddit, Slack, Discord and many other sites/services. Having it as a feature here would be super helpful. Opt-in, of course though since not everyone wants it.

              3 votes
              1. MajorParadox
                Link Parent
                As long as opt-in allows me to set it as my default, I'm in. I don't want to have to always click something to say give me notifications.

                As long as opt-in allows me to set it as my default, I'm in. I don't want to have to always click something to say give me notifications.

                3 votes
          2. MajorParadox
            Link Parent
            When I saw it, I didn't look very close and thought it was about tracking to help development or something. Now I see it's basically the showing new comments feature, but you're trying to make...

            And while I wouldn't have directly gotten a notification if you hadn't replied to a comment, the thread still would have been marked for me as having new comments because I have the "track visits" feature turned on: https://tildes.net/settings/comment_visits - I need to find a better way to explain/promote that feature, since it seems like most people aren't using it, and I think it's one of the better ones.

            When I saw it, I didn't look very close and thought it was about tracking to help development or something. Now I see it's basically the showing new comments feature, but you're trying to make sure the user understands what's involved. I'd recommend flipping it: Make the setting explain the benefit, but where they go to select it, explain what's involved, tracking-wise.

            2 votes
      2. cfabbro
        (edited )
        Link Parent
        Yep, worked fine. Thanks. edit: actually... for some reason I got a notification for my reply to your comment. That's not expected behavior, I suspect, right? edit2: And even though my own comment...

        Yep, worked fine. Thanks.

        edit: actually... for some reason I got a notification for my reply to your comment. That's not expected behavior, I suspect, right?

        edit2: And even though my own comment shows in the notifications page as "mark as read" I still only see "1 comment replies" in the top right even though neither are marked as read yet.

      3. cfabbro
        Link Parent
        test 2 edit: yeah it's fixed now... GG

        test 2

        edit: yeah it's fixed now... GG

    2. [3]
      cfabbro
      Link Parent
      test edit: I can't reply to myself and get a notification? Dang, outsmarted again it seems.... :)

      test

      edit: I can't reply to myself and get a notification? Dang, outsmarted again it seems.... :)

      1. [2]
        evans
        Link Parent
        This post is not meant to be helpful in the least; just interested in being captured for historical purposes. tl;dr bump

        This post is not meant to be helpful in the least; just interested in being captured for historical purposes.

        tl;dr bump

        1 vote
        1. cfabbro
          Link Parent
          "You get a reply and you get a reply, everybody gets a REPLY!!!!"

          "You get a reply and you get a reply, everybody gets a REPLY!!!!"