Clicking thread with no unread posts should take you to last post not first post
- Thread starter rfc0001
- Start date
You can click on the last post date to go to the last post. The question is what the default behavior should be when a user clicks on the title. Currently XF takes you to the last unread post, which makes sense, however if there are no unread posts it takes you to the first post, which doesn't make a ton of sense if you've already read the entire thread, since if you've already read the entire thread, you are more likely to want jump to the last page and reply.
hIBEES
Active member
I agree, a user of mine asked that very question althou slightly diff.
"How do you go to last unread post on a thread?"
Maybe a goto last post link could be added?
Martok
Well-known member
Clicking on the date in the last column in forum view (or the date shown when in mobile view) does this already.
Going to the last post would be confusing for new members who wouldn't have an unread post history. Similarly for existing members who have marked all read (even if they haven't read all posts, some do to better keep track of new posts when they visit) and then visit a thread to read through it.
Last edited:
My recommendation would be to go the the last unread post, which for a new member/thread would be the first post.
Martok
Well-known member
So how would a member who has previously read through a thread (or previously marked a thread as read that they weren't interested in) be able to visit the first post in that thread (to say read that and then potentially read through subsequent replies) without potentially making several clicks?
Currently we have a solution that works in exactly the same way as other forum solutions (phpBB, vBulletin etc AFAIK, please correct me if I'm wrong) where the thread title takes you to the first unread post or, if no unread posts, the first post in the thread and the date in the last post column takes you to the last post in the thread. Whilst you have proposed a behaviour change, it might be an idea to explain why this should change and be different to other software solutions.
There is a link to the first post below the main link:
Understood, there is also a link to the last post to the right. The question is really is it more useful to link to to the first or last post if the thread is marked read.
XF should be optimized for better usability regardless of what other forum software does. Most people aren't intimately familiar with various forum software nor use multiple forum software on a daily basis. They just intuitively use the web page as they would any other web page, regardless of underlying software. They simply have expectations of how the page will work, and through observation learn how it works. I think regardless of how you implement this particular functionality there is going to be a scenario where it works the way the user expects, and a scenario where it doesn't. Therefore it really just comes down to which scenario occurs more often. So, in this instance, whether it is more likely that someone clicks on a thread they already read or clicks on a thread they haven't read, but marked read. IMO, it is more likely someone would click on a thread they already read, in which case the usability should be optimized for this case.
Understood, there is also a link to the last post to the right. The question is really is it more useful to link to to the first or last post if the thread is marked read.
XF should be optimized for better usability regardless of what other forum software does. Most people aren't intimately familiar with various forum software nor use multiple forum software on a daily basis. They just intuitively use the web page as they would any other web page, regardless of underlying software. They simply have expectations of how the page will work, and through observation learn how it works. I think regardless of how you implement this particular functionality there is going to be a scenario where it works the way the user expects, and a scenario where it doesn't. Therefore it really just comes down to which scenario occurs more often. So, in this instance, whether it is more likely that someone clicks on a thread they already read or clicks on a thread they haven't read, but marked read. IMO, it is more likely someone would click on a thread they already read, in which case the usability should be optimized for this case.
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