8
votes
Replying from my notifications sometimes makes me duplicate someone else’s response, since I didn’t see it - solution ideas?
Sometimes I reply to a comment via my notifications page, then when I go look at my reply in the context of the thread, I see that someone else already addressed my point in a peer comment and I feel dumb.
Has this happened to other folks too?
Any thoughts on possible solutions?
Maybe there could be an indication of other replies to the comment which might prompt you to read them first prior to making your reply?
Until this issue is magically resolved, I feel like I should never reply via my notifications.
As a simple idea, maybe we could just have a marker on the notification that tells you how many replies it already has (if it has any)? That way at least you'd know that it might be worth looking first before you start answering.
A "children" counter would actually be really useful.
Yes, that’s what I was thinking and I think I had even brought it up long ago.
Something like:
UserName - Link (2 other replies exist) Parent
However, that will likely still allow you to make the mistake at least once prior to understanding the purpose of that counter.. maybe in the long run, it could be a more explanatory statement on its own line? But maybe that’s a bit too much.
I would be happy with the counter for sure!
Edit: @Deimos, I realized I had put the counter next to the wrong link.. it should be next to “link” not “parent.”
Even having a count of the replies to a comment won't necessarily help you: you won't know if any of those replies are related to what you want to say. You'll still end up having to click through to the thread to read them.
But knowing that there are no replies means that there are many cases where you don't need to bother clicking through first. So yes, the difference between knowing there are 1 or 2 replies may not be able to change your behavior, but the difference between 0 and 1 can.
I think the biggest solution is adjusting your habits when replying.
On Reddit I always click "context" before replying. it helps me in a couple of ways; I can reread the thread and remember where my train of thought is on a given topic. As well as seeing if anyone else has already continued the thread.
Here that has transfered over to clicking "parent", its not as smooth as the context button (because context opens in a new tab) but it serves the same purpose.
I understand that modifying my behavior is the best way to go, if we were on Reddit or some other site with no flexibility. But we are Tildestinos! We still have influence on the design of the system, and I am very thankful for that. That’s why I posed this question... the mountain can come to Muhammad around these parts.
If there is no possible tech solution, then I will modify my behavior for sure.
I have created this GitLab issue based on this brainstorming session. Thanks everyone!
Why not just click through to the thread before replying?
I guess that’s the UX question.. why even give the user the option to reply in their notifications if that is not the ideal user flow? IMHO, the question is that either notifications need to give you some information regarding other replies, or maybe (more radically) the ability to reply should be removed from notifications?
Edit: @Deimos, mentioning you in case you already read this comment: removing the ability to reply directly in notifications might be in line with the idea that the comment input is at the bottom of the thread... it is radical, but forces a specific user flow. This might be an area to experiment on?
Edit2: as mentioned below, the ability to reply directly from notifications might only be removed in the case where other peer level replies exist.
Good point. I almost never reply from my notifications. I almost always click through to the thread before replying - not necessarily to see other people's replies, but to remind myself of the context leading up to the comment I'm replying to. If it was up to me and only me, I'd force everyone to do things my way. :)
But some people seem to like being able to reply directly from their notifications page, without being able to see the context. I don't get it, but it happens.
However, if you're type of person who wants to see some context - whether it's the preceding conversation (like me) or other people's replies (like you) - I don't see why you'd need to be forced or even prompted to see that context. Surely, you'd look anyway.
As I hope to have stated in my edit of the parent, if I understand Deimos’s direction for this platform, forcing the preferred user behavior of reading the context might be ideal.
Currently the bottom right button in notifications is Reply. Maybe in the case where other peer level replies exist, that button could be changed to Context, and it would have the same functionality as Link?
Edit: clarity
P.S. And while we're talking about clicking through to threads from replies... Clicking on a reply should mark it as "read". <hint, hint>