Help:Notifications/New message indicator
Welcome to our discussion page for a new message indicator for Notifications.
We would be grateful for your feedback on this proposed feature.
Why this discussion?
A new Notifications tool was released by the Wikimedia Foundation on the English Wikipedia on April 30, 2013, to help inform users of activity that affects them (see announcement). Community members have since expressed concerns about the removal of the orange bar that used to notify users of new messages (affectionately called 'OBOD': the 'Orange Bar of Death'). Many on the Notifications talk page think that message notifications are not prominent enough in the new version of the tool, and are concerned that some users may not notice the red badge (which lights up next to your user name when you have new notifications). Because some messages are critical (e.g. warnings), many people have asked that we bring back the OBOD for registered users (note that the OBOD is already available to all logged-out or anonymous users).
To address these concerns, we would like to deploy a temporary solution this week, based on your feedback. The purpose of this solution is to better inform people who might have missed the red badge that now lights up when you have new notifications.
Based on community and team feedback, we recommend that this new message indicator be:
- prominent (easy to see)
- clear (disimbiguate messages from other notifications)
- persistent (stays on until you click -- or easy to find)
- consistent (with best UI practices)
This discussion page features four different options for your review (options C, D, E and F), plus the original OBOD (option G). Each option includes a design mockup, key features, as well as pros and cons. We think any of the first four options can be developed quickly this week, and have the potential to provide the same benefits as the OBOD, without some of its drawbacks (see below).
We would be grateful if you could comment on each of these options below, so we can collaboratively identify the most practical solution together.
Thanks for your guidance.
Tooltip over badge (C)
Description
Features:
- tooltip connects to the red badge
- click opens the notifications flyout
- shows up on each page load
- goes away after a few seconds
- hides after you visit the talk page
Pros:
- Prominent
- Clear
- Invites you to use new tool
- Easy to develop
- Can adapt OBOD code
Cons:
- Not persistent
- Obscures critical tools below it
- Messages may not be in flyout, could be buried in archive
- Two numbers are confusing
- Can be annoying to some users
- Needs a dismiss function?
Comments
What do you think of this option?
- [add your name and a short comment about this option]
Tooltip over talk link (D)
Description
Features:
- tooltip connects to the talk link
- click opens the talk page
- shows up on each page load
- goes away after a few seconds
- hides after you visit the talk page
Pros:
- Prominent
- Clear
- Matches expectations
- Easy to develop
- Can adapt OBOD code
Cons:
- Not persistent
- Obscures critical tools below it
- Inconsistent number treatment
- Discourages use of new tool
- Can be annoying to some users
- Needs a dismiss function?
Comments
What do you think of this option?
- [add your name and a short comment about this option]
Alert box near name (E)
Description
Features:
- one-line box next to your name
- click opens the talk page
- shows up on each page load
- goes away after a few seconds
- hides after you visit the talk page
Pros:
- Prominent
- Clear
- Persistent
- Doesn't obscure content
- Easy to develop
- Can adapt OBOD code
Cons:
- Disconnected from talk link
- Doesn't invite use of new tool
- Can be annoying to some users
- Needs a dismiss function?
Comments
What do you think of this option?
- [add your name and a short comment about this option]
Inline text after badge (F)
See also: this animated mockup
Description
Features:
- inline text after the red badge
- click opens the notifications flyout
- animation makes it more prominent
- shows up on each page load
- goes away after a few seconds
- hides after you visit the talk page
Pros:
- Prominent
- Persistent
- Clear
- Doesn't obscure content
- Easy to develop
- Can adapt OBOD code
Cons:
- Messages may not be in flyout, could be buried in archive
- Long text makes navbar hard to read
- Inconsistent with links near it
- Does not stand out in static view
- Animation could get annoying
Comments
What do you think of this option?
- [add your name and a short comment about this option]
Orange bar in article (G)
Description
Features:
- big orange bar inside article area
- click opens the talk page
- shows up on each page load
- hides after you visit the talk page
Pros:
- Very prominent
- Clear
- Persistent
- Expected feature for current users
- Easy to re-enable (as add-on to Notifications)
- Consistent with interface for anonymous users
Cons:
- Too prominent/overwhelming
- Bad UI / visual design
- Does not belong in article content
- Annoys many users
- Discourages use of new tool
Comments
What do you think of this option?
- [add your name and a short comment about this option]
Final comments
Please post any final comments and suggestions about next steps for this proposed feature.
(For a quick overview of our options, check out this matrix of options by criteria.)
- [add your name and a final comment to guide our next steps]
Next steps
Thanks for your feedback!
We plan to develop a new message indicator for release this week, based on your responses and our development team's recommendations.
We'll also host an IRC office hours chat to discuss these new designs and the new notification tool next Wednesday, May 8th at 20:00 UTC (1pm PT). We hope some of you can join us then for a constructive conversation about our next steps.
Next week, we plan to collect data on how that new solution compares to the current version of the tool, in order to determine its effectiveness. This will help us all make more informed decisions for our next steps, based on actual data rather than subjective impressions.
To see all the designs we have considered so far, check out these slides. We are particularly interested in Option H: Separate badges, for the long-term, to provide separate flyouts for notifications and messages. However, that option would require several weeks of development, and cannot be implemented this week. It will also require more research to validate that it would provide a better user experience.
To learn more about Notifications, visit the project page or check this FAQ page. You are also invited to join our discussion on the talk page.