06 June 2011, 7:12

Considerations for future improvements

• Site navigation – Students often find it difficult to locate the site navigation level as it is different from navigation on the rest of the application. We would suggest for it to be permanently displayed for easier navigation, not just displayed on mouse over. 
  
  
• Page/view settings – Some users find the process of publishing a view difficult and confusing.                   
  x   We would suggest having a short description of the process of creating a page.
  x   Also we would like to see the tabs look a bit more prominent to differentiate from the page/view content level.
  x   Another suggestion would be either to numerate or set out clear steps in the process of creating a page.

• Page/view content – From the feedback that we have received from students, some have found it difficult to create a view/page. Some of the suggestions that were made to us are:                                                                                                           
  x   Consolidate all of the icons like text, video, images into fewer panels – to avoid having tabs with a single block (e.g. ‘external feeds’), and avoid having the same icon for different features (e.g. ‘some html’ and ‘image’).
  x   Making icons smaller – as they currently take up a large proportion of the screen.

Users have difficulties with dragging a content block and scrolling at the same time when dealing with a view/page with a considerable amount of content in place. They feel that this hampers and slows down the creating a page process considerably. Possible suggestions would be:

     x   Removing the drag and drop – enabling users to click to add, with a relevant block always being      at the top.
     x   Or alternatively, a more favourable solution, having a floating panel that always stays on top              when scrolling – so that users can add new blocks and scroll at the same time.

06 June 2011, 10:09

Good feedback there...

In response/addition:

Site navigation - discussed in another post on here, the small navigation can be turned on or off.

Page/view settings and page/view content - These issues/considerations can and should (in my opinion) be added when making your site theme. i.e. changing the size of icons, padding of the blocktype-list area.

It is possible to change all of the things you mentioned in the theme configuration.

however! I think the considerations you have noted here could be integrated into the core Mahara theme.

At the moment, drag and drop can be disabled only by turning off javascript in your browser. If you do this, you will see a radio button to choose and add blocks. It's a nice replacement of drag and drop but as far as I am aware, can't be enabled or disabled in settings?

I am in the progress of making a theme which addresses the bottom issue you mentioned there. I'll post a video of it in the making later...

06 June 2011, 10:52

For your perusal/interest: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6xU2GdlxPiw

All done within a theme.

06 June 2011, 15:03

Hi Thomas,

Could you please check if the video plays for you? It won't start at all on my computer. Another video of TDM works just fine.

Thanx

Kristina

06 June 2011, 15:08

yes it does.... eek

07 June 2011, 12:40

Yes it does for me 

10 June 2011, 20:20

Hi Thomas,

It works now. :-)

I like how you take everything out of the way when you edit the theme and leave only the important bits there. Putting the icons to the left gives more space for moving blocks. Nice idea! I am looking forward to trying that out myself once you are finished.

Cheers

Kristina

08 June 2011, 3:34

The custom theme looks great,

However just a quick note, would a first time user be able to identify particular icons and their functions?

Currently in Mahara some different functions are represented by identical icons for example - which is a bit confusing.

08 June 2011, 10:29

Also Thomas,

Will that theme be available to others, and if so when?

Thanks,

Daniel

08 June 2011, 11:06

I'm trying to make the title and description of the block appear when you rollover the icon.. So, new users would roll over the different icons and get given a description of that particluar block. but having issues with it!!

I'm doing it all in my spare time so haven't got any idea when I'm going to put it up for everyone, but I don't mind giving it out freely in the spirit of GPL/Creative Commons - Share/Edit/Distribute alike licence.

My intention to start with, is to have it as a theme  just for editing views (when users select their theme whilst editing their view) At the moment, if set as a Site wide theme, it doesn't look very good at all...

Then anyone can take the bits of the theme they like and add it to their own.If it were something of interest to lots of people, maybe we (the community) could create a patch to change your theme to have the different layout?

I'll stop, I'm hijacking this thread! eeek