Improvements
Triage
If sections are collapsed, it's too hard to expand them again
We have sections for Collections and Formats.
If open, the section is located between the left side menu and the active Collection.
In general, I like the layout a lot. But there is a problem:
If the user drags and moves the separator, to make the section in the middle smaller, it can happen (maybe intended by the user) that it becomes totally collapsed,
From now on it is "away". The user could forget about it if he navigates a little around.
Out of view = out of mind. "Doesn't exist".
Needed iprovements:
- The separator should be VISIBLE (yeah, this topic again!)
- If the middle section is collapsed to "not there anymore", it should become visually clear that there something is that actually isn't shown.
This saves the user from forgetting it for all times that there something exist. - As shown in the video, it can become hard sometimes to find the separator of the collapsed section, to drag it back so that the collapsed section becomes expanded again.
-- Please make it CLEAR VISIBLE!
-- Also, make it more easy to pick with the mouse. Sometimes I swiggle the mouse left/right again and again but it somehow cant pick the separator. - I miss the "Open in full-screen" button that we have in the Side Peak Layout.
I can't see a way to expand a Page or Collection to full-screen is a Section ("Formats" or "Collections§ is shown between the left side menu and the open Object or Collection.
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There's a button for all of those instances. Are you looking for something more?
I principle, you are right.
But there is IMHO a lot room for many little improvements.
In short: If the user THINKS that he already knows all existing buttons ... and suddenly, after collapsing the section in the middle, appears a tiny new button that wasn't there before .... he WILL overlook it!
He will not even search for it, he simply doesn't know about that button.
Especially a new user, who tries "wildly" out the GUI, jumping from one Collection, Mini app, Page to the other, may wonder:
"Wasn't there somewhere a different layout with a section in the middle? Where is it? Why can't I find it anymore?"
There should be a very clear indicator that something is blended out. For example, the new appearing tiny button could become bold and bright orange and even blink in the first two seconds when it appears, so that it catches the users attention, that here is suddenly something new.
And the draggable separator that's now left after collapsing a section (and is quasi invisible btw), could also become bright orange.
A part of the problems wouldn't be anymore if we would have the automatic open/close feature from Anytype, that normally blends out the left side menu but lets it reappear when the mouse pointer hits the left boundary.
It happens often enough accidenticaly that the user hits the left boundary, so that he becomes quickly familiar with that fuunction.
Actually, its confusing that there are two tiny buttons for expanding sections, one is not even always there, AND it is one row deeper located the the other, AND it is small and too unobtrusive.
It simply needs way too long to become familiar with that part of the GUI.
Some users (me) need days, some others maybe even weeks to get it.
Til then, they despair, because they miss a lot of the GUI's feature, simply because they are collapsed and not to find.
If the user doesn't clearly know, where the collapsed sections are supposed to be (after clicking multiple times elsewhere in the left side menu), he will not even search for it if he comes back to where the collapsed section is.
A power user who's already well familiar with everything, becomes quickly blind for such little flavs,
But a new user who isn't such an enthusiast, will eigher despair, or for a long time (day, weeks) not grasp it what's going on in that strange app.
-- Look, think on @Shampra 's reaction at the end of his first day as tester.
He was disappointed! -- Even he, as a long-term Anytype user.
Seems that he overlooked a lot on his first day (same counts also for me).
"Normal" users will not be so patient as we long-term Anytype fans.
I believe, meanwhile he has changed his opinion and likes AnyTwo better. But it has cost him some days to become "hooked".
-- Sorry for the long text.
No doubt that there can be a lot of user experience improvements on the app, and we should do them. But the stage of app development we're in needs to be considered, we can spend thousands of hours in many small bits here and there and make marginal improvements. But if we're missing massive features that prevent users from using the app at all, well that's a bigger problem.
I think it's good that you're flagging these, and please continue to do so. However, please also understand that we simply have to prioritise. I know that these UI issues causes you a lot of friction, but we're not 'ignoring' all of them because it's unimportant.
When it comes to first impressions, none of the testers got an in-product tour, onboarding, or getting started space. All of which we need to build before properly releasing to users. No doubt, it will be better and it doesn't exist today.