Heads up - Improvements to watched threads coming

[BeccaMumsnet]

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 )

Thank you all
MNHQ

Hello BertieBotts,

We're having a look but can't replicate the switched off option not working for you. Can you confirm that it remains checked on new pages (i.e. ones you don't navigate back to using your browser back button)?

We haven't changed anything on Threads I'm on so think that's a different issue entirely.

We'll look at that separately. Would you mind emailing us the details of what threads you were on that seemed to have changed? Screenshots would be really helpful too if possible.

Thanks

OK, I've sorted out what was going on with my watch list (found some of the older threads in the list and realised that others might have been deleted, since the OPs are no longer around), but my colours used to be OP highlighted green all the way through the thread, with me in purple. Now the OP's OP is grey and nothing is highlighted in the thread. This makes a long thread just a solid block with no reference points in it.

I'm more bothered about the colours than the watched threads thing, tbh.

Grrrr! My colours have gone too and now I've got pages, whereas before I used to have one long thread

Even opting back in hasn't changed it back.

I wish I'd read the rest of the comments on the thread before clicking the link.

I really would advise everyone to do just that.

Yes mine looks as though I'd logged out - OP at the top in a box and posts in pages. My customised view before had OP's posts in purple and mine in green (LOVED that option!) and just one long page of posts, with most recent posts at the top. I'm definitely logged in.

I now realise 'reading like a book' with OP at the top is actually better, so I've been able to change it to that in the options.

MN posts are still blue though.

MN posts are still blue for me (which is good)

I still have 'reading like a book' (which is good)

But the OP's posts used to be in grey and mine in pink and I used to have one continuous page.

Yep colours gone here too. MNHQ posts still blue but no colours for my posts or the OPs.

My colours are ok.

I too have lost my colours. The OP is grey and every other reply, including mine and the OPs further comments lack colour. The page in customise that used to allow me to choose is no longer there.

MN posts still definitely blue

*JessicaMumsnet (MNHQ) Tue 04-Aug-15 16:08:27

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?*

OP would have been green, with only MNHQ posts in blue.
Now the OP is in pale blue, but only for the first post, not for each time they come back, and MN posts seem to have stayed blue for each posting.
Makes reading long threads very hard to keep track of.

Why can't we have the ability to fix our own colours any more - that was useful unlike being inundated with emails

It's not auto-checking now. I think it must have just not quite taken effect on the first thread I tried. (Sorry I went elsewhere for a bit!)

But I am still without OP and self highlighted posts. I'm not even fussed about the colour - I would like the colour choice I picked but I don't mind as long as those are highlighted. MNHQ posts are still blue.

I have just posted on a thread and it added it to my watch list. I dont want the thread on my watch list.

The colours and choice of colours was actually a really useful function!

And now this has been added to my watch list!!! Arrrrrrrrrrgh!

Okay, in fact, it is auto checking it still. But I don't get the green banner after posting saying the thread is now being watched.

I'm getting long hangs on clicking Post Message too.

I am now finding that if I post on a thread it's adding it to my Watch List too, without me asking.

Have just checked the watch list and handwriting thread is on there. But since I posted on it earlier perhaps it added it then.

Will go test on a random thread, then I'm off for a bit.

OK it's not doing it on new threads. Must have been something to do with being on that thread earlier today.

As an aside, I have some really old threads in my watch list that I had no idea would stay there that long. See, now I've realised that, it seems as though it's a feature that I might actually use in the future. I never ever use watched threads normally. But I can't use it to keep a record of interesting threads I may want to refer back to if it keeps getting cluttered up with every thread I've ever made an offhand comment on.

Ffs as well as getting annoying emails every time someone posts on a busy thread it's now buggered up my threads I'm on settings since I opted out. Instead of showing last 5 posts it's now showing all of them or something ridiculous

Why make it an opt out any way? Why not an opt in? I'd have thought if the auto opt in leads to lots of emails that would have some consequences regarding the data protection act? What with people not giving consent to the tides of spam emails.

Oh and some of the threads are now missing the highlighting but only the ones access via watch.

My colours are gone :-( OP is grey but only on the first post. MNHQ is blue and stays blue. But my posts (heather/ purple) are no longer highlighted...

My colours have gone too was pink for op and grey for me

Actually all my colours have gone now.

I think you may need to change your thread title to remove the word "improvements" and replace with something like "we've buggered up all your settings. Sorry." but snappier.

I don't want my colours to change, so if I don't update and opt out I can keep them?
Right I am just going to filter the emails using the identified as spam option instead. Might cause problems and highlight it as spammy sender if lots chose this route though...