This ticket is for deploying the new Flow indentation model on Mediawiki.
The new model includes:
- 8 possible levels of indentation
- replying to the last message in the thread or the last message in an indented tangent opens the entry field at the same indentation level, and posts the new comment at that level
- replying to a previous message that's not the last in a tangent opens the entry field at the next indentation level, and posts the new comment at that level
- clicking Reply on the last message in a thread puts the focus in the bottom entry field
It does NOT include any change to the width or spacing (at least, not right now).
Rationale
The feedback from the English tests was mixed -- some people really liked the new model, some were confused by it. The negative feedback flagged the "Comment/Reply" distinction and not having a Reply link for the last message in a thread as being confusing. We changed those two pieces, and also tried out a version with the current indentation system at 8 levels. The feedback at that point didn't reveal a particular preference for the 8-level current system.
We offered a week of testing in French, Catalan and Portuguese, to make sure we got feedback from a variety of users. We didn't get a ton of feedback -- it's a pretty subtle difference, and I'm sure translating my explanation didn't help. Still, all the people who commented were either positive about the new model, or didn't really care.
So I think the next step is to deploy on Mediawiki, and see how it goes in real conversations. We're not declaring victory on this -- just giving a tryout on real pages.
Examples
These are the same posts by the same users, posted using the same links.
Old indentation model:
New indentation model:
