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Heads up - Improvements to watched threads coming

868 replies

BeccaMumsnet · 04/08/2015 12:52

Hullo everyone,

Just a heads-up: we wanted to let you know we've been working on some changes to improve the way our 'watched threads' option works, and we’re going to be releasing them today.

As you know, at the minute, if you want to receive an email notification when someone posts on a thread you yourself have posted on, you have to check the ‘watch this thread’ box when you post your message. From today, the box will be automatically checked.

Our thinking was that because, in the immortal words of Ferris Bueller, , it can be easy to miss replies to threads you’ve posted on, so it’d be useful to keep you updated as a matter of course.

Some crucial points:

  • Fear not: we absolutely won’t email every time someone posts after you have - and if you’re still looking at the thread, we won’t mail you at all.


  • You’ll only get ONE email after you’ve left the thread, to say it’s been updated.


  • If the idea of receiving any such emails makes you want to weep/tear out your hair/throw a toddler-style tantrum on the kitchen floor, DON’T PANIC: you can do a one-time-only opt out, by clicking on customise at the top of any thread, and unchecking ‘Auto-watch threads I start’ and/or ‘Auto-watch threads I post on’.


  • If you’d like to adopt a mix-and-match policy and be alerted to replies on some threads but not others, simply uncheck the auto-watch options in customise, and check the ‘watch this thread’ box underneath the message box on the thread you’re interested in.



Hope all of this makes sense, and sounds useful. Do shout if you've any questions (we know we can rely on you Wink)

Thank you all Flowers
MNHQ
OP posts:
magimedi · 04/08/2015 13:00

I don't want any email notification at all for my watched threads, thank you. How do I totally opt out?

GoooRooo · 04/08/2015 13:02

^^ what magi said

whatsagoodusername · 04/08/2015 13:06

Would there be any chance in the future for a notification only if the OP posts again? It would be great for threads where people are waiting for updates.

BanditoShipman · 04/08/2015 13:10

It tells you how to opt out in mnhq post

GoooRooo · 04/08/2015 13:20

Ah thanks bandit I thought it meant we'd have to do it on every single thread. I see that we can just opt out entirely. Phew.

Queenbean · 04/08/2015 13:29

Ta da!

- If the idea of receiving any such emails makes you want to weep/tear out your hair/throw a toddler-style tantrum on the kitchen floor, DON’T PANIC: you can do a one-time-only opt out, by clicking on customise at the top of any thread, and unchecking ‘Auto-watch threads I start’ and/or ‘Auto-watch threads I post on’.

SarahMumsnet · 04/08/2015 13:30

BanditoShipman speaks the truth; you can do an all-encompassing opt out (with the option to opt back in again on any particular thread should you choose).

whatsagoodusername - good question. We'll pass it on to tech and let you know what they say Smile

SarahMumsnet · 04/08/2015 13:32

X-post with Queenbean - you don't actually need us here, do you? Grin

GreyAndGoldInTheMeadow · 04/08/2015 13:35

Is it possible for when a watched thread is deleted to leave the deletion message on display the same way it does for threads I'm on rather than it just vanishing from my watched threads, might stop all the place marking on interesting threads.

songbird · 04/08/2015 13:55

I clicked on the link to make sure I wouldn't be getting email notifications and since I've done that my customised settings (OP=purple, me=green) have stopped working. And I can't actually find any way of turning it back on - I thought it was through the 'customise' link but there's no mention of post colours in there.

Seeline · 04/08/2015 14:39

My colours are all up the creek now too Sad

SarahMumsnet · 04/08/2015 15:21

Hey songbird and Seeline - sorry about that; I'll get tech on the case now.

Allthequeenshorses · 04/08/2015 15:22

Not sure if this is related, but i was not logged in and every OP post is shown as green now, so like without being logged in.

Allthequeenshorses · 04/08/2015 15:24

and now that I have logged in, my colours are as they should be. Though when I log out OP is still Green on all threads.

JessicaMumsnet · 04/08/2015 16:08

Hello,
We've been trying to reduce the number of items in customise and have a clear out of some of the rarely used options.

As part of that we have removed the option to choose different colours. It shouldn't have changed the choice you had already though.

Seeline, when you're logged in can you let us know what you expect to see and what you are seeing?
songbird, can you confirm what you're seeing at the mo too?

Thanks!

JessicaMumsnet · 04/08/2015 16:11

Ta Allthequeenshorses! We've sorted that now and non-logged in users should be back to as they were.

BertieBotts · 04/08/2015 16:19

This is weird. Why would it be the default to have it checked? Am I really in a minority in absolutely hating the idea of being emailed about threads?

I will go and opt out now. But it's odd having it as an opt-out. Why not just introduce it as a new option to have it automatically do so and let people choose that rather than giving it to everyone and making them look for the option to not do it?

It would really put me off if I joined a new website and suddenly they are bombarding me with emails and I don't know why and it's not immediately obvious how to turn that off.

Sparklingbrook · 04/08/2015 16:23

I don't care about any of it but I like the Ferris Bueller quote. Smile

BertieBotts · 04/08/2015 16:24

Aww, my colours have gone too :( I don't get mine and the OP is grey.

And the box is automatically staying checked even though I've clicked NOT to auto-watch threads I post on.

And Threads I'm On is now showing masses of preview replies under each thread rather than the usual five.

Nooooooooooooooooooo what is happening?

ouryve · 04/08/2015 16:25

Improvement? Just managed to customise after realising that I'd added 2 threads to my watch list inadvertently, only to find a total of 28 random threads that I've posted on in the past few weeks/months added to the list and none of the threads that I've deliberately watched because I wanted to be able to refer to them Angry

If it aint broke...

BertieBotts · 04/08/2015 16:28

Oh. OOH. You've snuck out the option to view MN in classic mode. That WILL rile them up. This ought to be interesting.

BertieBotts · 04/08/2015 16:29

I'm really confused as to why this has been done, TBH. We already have Threads I'm On, which you can sort by recently active.

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BertieBotts · 04/08/2015 16:32

And now a thread I've recently posted on has disappeared from Threads I'm On, where it should be right at the top. I definitely haven't hidden it!

ouryve · 04/08/2015 16:32

And my colours have gone, now I've turned off the automatic watch option.

Well done on making long threads impossible to wade through, MNHQ.

JessicaMumsnet · 04/08/2015 16:40

Hello ouryve sorry that definitely doesn't sound right! We'll dig deeper for you.

Would you mind posting a screenshot please?

Also could you let us know what colours you had previously set and are expecting to see and what you're actually seeing?

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