Feature Request: button in top links to display keyboard shortcuts
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I know that typing ? in the forum displays keyboard shortcuts - but that's, IMO, not very discoverable. This could easily be made discoverable by putting a ? or a [keyboard][1]* icon in with the menu search and comments bubbles. You could even just put a link in the menu if you are dead set on a minimalist UI.
* I have no idea how to insert unicode text - it's \f11c
[1]: http://fontawesome.io/icon/keyboard-o/
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Just noticed that fontawesome is already in use here, which makes using the exact icon I referenced even easier!
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I know that typing ? in the forum displays keyboard shortcuts - but that's, IMO, not very discoverable.
Damn, I completely forgot about that when I posted in another topic. I've even seen it mentioned, but it is so unintuitive to me that I never even thought of it. I was going to say "typing random non-control characters to navigate text is completely unintuitive," but vi. Doing that in a web browser, however, is something I have never done, and is unexpected behavior, at least in my experience.
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I was going to say "typing random non-control characters to navigate text is completely unintuitive," but vi.
Using vi as design inspiration for a web UI is the way to madness.
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Using vi as design inspiration for
a web UIanything is the way to madness.FTFY. Wait, actually no.
Using vi
as design inspiration for a web UIis the way to madness.FTFY.
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Damn, I completely forgot about that when I posted in another topic. I've even seen it mentioned, but it is so unintuitive to me that I never even thought of it. I was going to say "typing random non-control characters to navigate text is completely unintuitive," but vi. Doing that in a web browser, however, is something I have never done, and is unexpected behavior, at least in my experience.
I never said that I wanted to use them - I said they were not discoverable (mostly because it really does feel like unexpected behavior) and that adding the option would make them discoverable.
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Using vi as design inspiration for a web UI is the way to madness.
I never said otherwise. What I meant was, it's not completely unintuitve because there is precedent and it seems intuitive to me in this one, specific context where I've been doing it for almost 30 years, but it is unintuitive in any other context. (And yes, I know, even in that one, specific context, it's unintuitive to someone unfamiliar with it.)
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I never said that I wanted to use them - I said they were not discoverable (mostly because it really does feel like unexpected behavior) and that adding the option would make them discoverable.
This. There is NO discoverable help screen. The FAQ isn't even a FAQ!
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The FAQ isn't even a FAQ!
You can be forgiven for not knowing but, the FAQ is actually over here.
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That is an improvement.
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I have no idea how to insert unicode text - it's \f11c
Have a spare “”, though since it's in the Private Use Area I really have no idea what it looks like to you. Is it a grand shrine to Morbs? If not, why not?
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should insert it, but all I get is this this stupid box ... (see the Markdown Tutorial)
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All I get is a
'-shape.
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#
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I have no idea how to insert unicode text - it's \f11c
Do you mean ⌨ ? (U+2328 KEYBOARD)
(I wonder how much I can increase the font size by nesting <big> tags…)
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Quite a lot.
<big><big><big><big><big><big><big><big><big><big><big><big><big><big><big><big><big><big><big><big><big><big><big><big><big><big>⌨</big></big></big></big></big></big></big></big></big></big></big></big></big></big></big></big></big></big></big></big></big></big></big></big></big></big>
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Wow, this is totally Community Server stuff right here.
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F
is for friends who
do stuff together!U
is for you and me!
N
is for anywhere
and anytime at all,
under the deep
blue sea!
Filed under: /thread
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Sweet, you guys actually broke it. I can't reply to your shit. Or even like it (haha.jpg). I had to go back up to write this.
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Wow, good find — you guys are really good at breaking things.
It's been fixed now.
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@sam had talked about making
Mobile View
switch to
Keyboard Shortcuts
when on desktop. I'd like to avoid adding Yet More Menu Items in the hamburger if we can avoid it
so having a menu item that decides what to be based on the mobile / not-mobile distinction works for me.
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My only question is: what does mobile view do? If it forces mobile view, then there might be times (such as on a tablet) when a user might want to have that feature available, but this proposed fix would replace it with Keyboard Shortcuts.
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Sounds as meaningful as other design choices.
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Ask yourself this: do mobile devices have keyboards?
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How about instead of asking asinine questions, you answer the actually valid question which I put to you. Your question only has meaning if the Keyboard Shortcuts menu option is enabled when a keyboard is detected, which is technically difficult to do from a browser.
However, I will humor you and answer your question: Yes, some mobile devices have keyboards. There are bluetooth keyboards which can be connected to any mobile device. There are tablets out there with keyboard docks, or keyboard covers.
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If you can't see it, it doesn't.
#90% of Discourse is not there
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Yes, some mobile devices have keyboards. There are bluetooth keyboards which can be connected to any mobile device. There are tablets out there with keyboard docks, or keyboard covers.
This is a fair point.
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I've now answered your question. Will you answer mine, or should I just ask Sam instead?
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I feel like people who have keyboards and care about keyboard shortcuts on websites should generally know the "press ?" convention which exists on virtually all other websites that support keyboard shortcuts -- and it is, to me, a power user feature that can confuse newbies.
Every bit of text on the screen is going to confuse someone, so I try to limit the words we put on the page when I can.
Maybe a good compromise is to show it at trust level 1.
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What good is a feature that no-one knows about? You keep asserting that 'people care about keyboard shortcuts' but it's a surprisingly unknown feature.
Until I came here, I didn't even know websites were doing the keyboard shortcut thing.
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But, as we've shown here at TDWTF, most people don't know that convention exists on other sites. Just because everyone else has it, doesn't mean that people know about it. And hiding your functionality because everyone else does is a shitty reason.
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I thought Discourse was trying to improve the status quo, not copy it.
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I thought Discourse was trying to improve the status quo, not copy it.
Apparently they're just taking every trendy thing they can find and applying it to forum software.
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I feel like people who have keyboards and care about keyboard shortcuts on websites should generally know the "press <kbd>?</kbd>" convention which exists on virtually all other websites that support keyboard shortcuts -- and it is, to me, a power user feature that can confuse newbies.
As others have stated (apparently repeatedly. I can't find it myself as I'm still trying to figure out the search) there are two issues with this argument:
- Just because other websites do it doesn't mean you should. If someone else perpetrates a WTF, don't go copying them.
- Most (if not all) of us are what you would consider power users, and we were unaware of the ? shortcut on any other site until you mentioned it. Why? Because there is zero discoverability. You actually have to read the documentation to know it's there, and most people who are power users just jump right in and start using the software. They don't want to waste time with documentation. And do you know why? Because, as often as not it's wrong, usually because it's outdated. Not to mention, discourse doesn't have any official documentation.
Every bit of text on the screen is going to confuse someone, so I try to limit the words we put on the page when I can.
Sounds like you have a low opinion of your users. You either trust your users or you don't, and you don't.
Maybe a good compromise is to show it at trust level 1.
If you feel that is the only way to do it, fine. But let's look at it this way: it appears that you already don't trust your users, so to them, the trust levels are going to seem like magic (especially without documentation). So having a new option appear like magic is probably not the right way to go.
What does Mobile View do?
I am curious about this as well. Since you and @sam have apparently discussed the option of having this automatically interchange with Keyboard Shortcuts, how about telling us what Mobile View does, so we can give you useful feedback on whether that might be a good idea. Remember, this is a site full of IT people.
Filed Under: I'm hungry
