In user profiles, "Track" tab should be renamed "Contributions"

Jao - April 30, 2007 - 19:17
Project:Drupal
Version:7.x-dev
Component:other
Category:feature request
Priority:normal
Assigned:Unassigned
Status:needs work
Description

I don't know much about Drupal, but I registered to a website using it, and, in the users' own profiles, there is a tab named "my subscriptions", and another named "track". I've asked them about the difference, and they told me they were two Drupal modules with different functions. The thing is, in my own user profile, when I see "track", I just cannot differentiate it from "my subscriptions" (in this context, they just mean the same thing...). This is a usability problem.

The "track" tab should better be named "Contributions" -like in Wikipedia, for example- (possibly, "My contributions", in my own profile, and "User contributions", in other users' public profile, although it is probably more simple to simply call it "Contributions"...). If you want a shorter name, you can use "Contribs", but it is generally advised not to use shorter names, if not necessary, and it is not, in this case, except if there are too many tabs).

I understand that the "track" function permits to track the contributions (without subscribing), and not just to list them, but if there is a separate subscription module, then the name "track", is too similar to "my subscriptions" (note that "Track my contributions", or something like this, would not change anything to the problem -and is probably too long for a tab title).

As far as usability is concerned, it would be a problem to change a tab name in a minor release, so you should probably wait until there is some major release, with multiple interface changes (and you should, of course, properly advertise the name change).

#1

cosmicdreams - October 22, 2007 - 17:48

Very Interesting. I associate "Track" to the module that is doing the tracking (named tracker). So you can see where that name came from.

I agree, though, that naming it something else might be a good idea. What do others think?

#2

elv - October 24, 2007 - 14:22

"My posts" or "My contributions", or "My anything", even "My track" would be better than just "Track" IMHO.

#3

BrightLoudNoise... - October 25, 2007 - 02:17

How about "My Activity", or "My Activities"

#4

VM - October 25, 2007 - 02:21

The problem with using "My" when looking at another users profile "My" would be incorrect.

#5

cosmicdreams - October 25, 2007 - 03:04

So the word "My" would have to programmatic. When you are viewing the posts that you have submitted and the activity you've done on the site the tab should read "My Activity". If you're viewing someone else's profile, it should read "'s Activity"

Sound good?

#6

VM - October 25, 2007 - 03:09

yep, now all that has to be done is a patch created and submitted for Drupal 7

#7

cosmicdreams - October 25, 2007 - 18:19

--username--'s Activity

I meant to say the above. As far as a patch...I'm still setting up my test environment so I can make patches. I'll race ya.

#8

cosmicdreams - October 25, 2007 - 18:20
Status:active» needs work

#9

Sutharsan - August 31, 2008 - 10:04
Project:User experience» Drupal
Version:<none>» 7.x-dev
Component:usability» other

Moving issues from User experience project to Drupal core usability component.

#10

Xano - September 12, 2008 - 07:39

"Contributions" would indicate users actually write valuable content for a website or anything like that IMHO. "Track" or "activity" would be better, since it only describes that the user is active on the site, but it doesn't give any implications on what exactly thet user might be doing. I think those words have a more general meaning.

Personally I like "track" better, but considering simplicity and translations I'd go for "activity", since that's a more general word in most languages.

 
 

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