How can WikiTree improve the Change Details page?

Question

Hi WikiTreers,

Last month WikiTreer Kenneth Nellis pointed out that the Change Details page does not include the change explanation.

If you don't know what the Change Details page is, it's the page you get when you click the description of a change in the change activity feed. An example of this page can be seen here.

The Change Details page shows exactly what was changed during an edit and includes a link to revert the profile back to a previous change. 

Since we plan on updating the Change Details page to include the change explanation, I thought it would be a good idea to find out if anyone else has suggestions on how this page can be improved.

Is there anything about that page that is difficult to understand? Do you have a suggestion for additional information we should add? Do you wish the design was different?

Please post any suggestions or ideas you have. If you have an example of a change that is confusing, it would be helpful if you include the link to the change. Thanks!

Answer 1

1. I would like to have a link that allows the user to expand the wiki markup so that we can see a full view of the side-by-side comparison, rather than just the excerpt. 

Since we lack a separate "view source" button on all profiles, it would be useful since the edit history can be accessed by anyone. e.g. On Tudor-4, for instance, a person who isn't pre-1500 can't click the [edit] button to view the full source; it's a useful learning tool. 

It's also just useful to see the changes in a fuller context.

2. Ideally, I'd also like the ability to view the diff between any two arbitrary versions of the profile, not just two immediately sequential versions. This can be done by editing the URL, e.g. 

• Most recent edit pair: https://www.wikitree.com/index.php?title=Nielsen-3777&diff=96183280&oldid=67483693
• Most recent edit vs a much older version: https://www.wikitree.com/index.php?title=Nielsen-3777&diff=96183280&oldid=30166264

However, that is not intuitive. So it might be better accomplished by having a pair of drop-down lists to select versions to compare. Two drop-down menus and a button should suffice..?

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As an ancillary note, it would be useful to have the profile activity feed to include a magnitude for each pair of sequential changes. Something simple like this: (new characters added) + (old characters deleted). 

Each time an edit is made, the edit magnitude could be calculated, recorded, and listed as a column on the activity feed. Then one can more easily watch for big changes (vandalism / substantive contributions) which could be prioritized in user notifications or maybe to help the "Rangers" with their monitoring. 

Maybe (some day) that sort of thing could even be used as a better way to count user edit contributions. But that's just me dreaming. 

Comments

If there were drop-downs given, it would be helpful to have the 'explanation' shown in the drop-downs.

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The diff comparison feature does exist, but you have to enter the URL manually to see it.

The URL for that example page is https://www.wikitree.com/index.php?title=Nielsen-3777&action=history

The easiest way to enter that URL is to enter the Edit mode for the page and change edit to history:

That is, change

https://www.wikitree.com/index.php?title=Nielsen-3777&action=edit

to

https://www.wikitree.com/index.php?title=Nielsen-3777&action=history

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I should add that I support several suggestions that JN made:

• People who lack permissions to edit an Open or Public profile should be able to view the page source and see the Changes History
• Diff comparisons should be available on the Changes History page
• I do not want the Changes History to display the full content of both versions side-by-side (TOO LONG), but it would be good to have a way to display the full content of any previous version of a profile.

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I appreciate the heads-up about the history page, Ellen. Though that too is limited depending on the number of edits made on the page. 

To be clear, I'm not asking for "the  Changes History to display the full content of both versions side-by-side", but rather *the option* (via a button) to expand the current snipped to the full content, side-by-side. For some changes, it's very helpful to see what was done in the full context of the profile markup.

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Yes Murph, I really want to see a total side by side comparison. So much clearer especially when I don't remember what it looked like before someone else changed one of my Profiles. Years of smoking (tobacco) and Jim Beam have taken a toll on my mnemonic memory.  LOL

And the =history is nice...if I want to open multiple tabs and switch back and forth between them.  Or multiple windows and tile them side by side. Wow, when was the last time I did that....

One other thing, do not use red on both the previous and present view for changes.  Change the color so there is a clear differentiation between what was and what is. Maybe use Blue for the newer.  And underline the changes for those who have trouble with colors.  And no pastel colors, my rods and cones are getting a little burnt out after all these years. Google Low Vision. Wink, wink.

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Adding my vote to this: 

"People who lack permissions to edit an Open or Public profile should be able to view the page source and see the Changes History"

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Thanks guys, these are all really great ideas.

Answer 2

When a father was added the change explanation is blank.

https://www.wikitree.com/index.php?title=Theron-867&diff=101329621&oldid=101324659

Confusing indeed to get blank contribution pages. Now if there appeared something like +Father Jack Snow

Comments

For the above, it has 'Edited the Data' in the Changes Log summary.

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This happens for any relationship change, I think.  Of course, as many of us have said, it would be nice to have the 'relationship' changes seen on all profiles changes log instead of only the profile where the change was made from.

Answer 3

When multiple changes are made to a biography, Change Details doesn't always show 'all' of the Biography 'surrounding' the text being changed, which makes a user think that some of the biography had also been removed, but it still exists when looking at the biography.  Will try to find an example of it.  

Edit - This is not to say ALL of the biography, just the text that is immediately before and after the change

Comments

Yeah, I'm certain I've seen what you are talking about. If we implement JN's suggestion above to allow the option to see the full text of the profile, that should help I think.

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This is an example of a change log where it is showing lines from biography and lines from sources as if they are together in the biography and they have lots of other lines between them.  The way this is presented is very confusing.

https://www.wikitree.com/index.php?title=Gaylord-8&diff=prev&oldid=101391066

Answer 4

I would like to see what changed when Editbot made a change. I then only see on my watchlist that something was changed, but can't see what.

Comments

This is a great suggestion, there have been many times when I have seen a change made by an EditBot. Then I have to go looking for what the change was and hopefully I find it.

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If you click on the change details page it doesn't show you?

For example, on the same profile that I have in my example above, here is the Change Details page of a change made by Editbot https://www.wikitree.com/index.php?title=Nielsen-3777&diff=96183280&oldid=67483693

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Sorry, it does (in the meanwhile). There was a time when it didn't do that.

Answer 5

I get really confused when merges occur.  It is so confusing that I can't reasonably make a suggestion for improvement to the change details.  All I know is that sometimes a merge has happened incorrectly because they really are two people and I can't figure out any way to separate them again.  I can't figure out a way to see the previous info on both of them.

Comments

To see how a profile was changed by a merge, go to the changes page for the post-merge profile, find the entry where the profiles were merged. For example, in the Changes page https://www.wikitree.com/index.php?title=Special:NetworkFeed&who=Cossart-9 the entry for the most recent merge is: 

00:13: B (McFeaters) U edited the data for Anthony Cossart (1673-1740). (Merged Cozart-248 into Cossart-9: duplicate) [Thank B for this]

In that entry, click on the words "edited the data" to see what changes happened due to the merge.

To see the previous version of a profile that was merged away, go to the changes page for the post-merge profile, find that entry where the profiles were merged, and  click on the link for the profile that was merged away. In the example, that is Cozart-248.

The link will take you to a changes history for the merged away profile. In the example, it is https://www.wikitree.com/index.php?title=Special:NetworkFeed&who=Cozart-248

On that changes page, go to the entry for the most recent edit (the merge -- in the example it is 00:13: B (McFeaters) U edited the data for Anthony Cozart (1673-1756). (Merged Cozart-248 into Cossart-9) [Thank B for this]) and click on the words edited the data to see what the profile looked like immediately before it was merged away. Previous changes to the merged-away profile can be reviewed on that page, but the original as-created version of merged-away pages disappear into a black hole.

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In that case, I'd like to see it made easier or more obvious to find.

Answer 6

On a merge, we can't see either of the old biographies and sources, to verify that what was kept was complete.  I know, mostly everything is kept and there is duplicate information more often, but still when It's been edited, I do wonder and have no way to look.

Comments

Cindy, see my response to Peggy McMath for information on how to find the history you are looking for.

It is not easy, but it is not totally impossible.

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Oh, that's not too bad, thank you for telling me how to do it.  I thought the merged away profile was not available any more since it no longer had a link.  I'll used the "edited the data" to see it!

Answer 7

How about showing changes made by the editbot together with the profile id of the member who set it up to make the changes ?

Comments

It is not always clear who requested the change. Initial request can be done by anyone, but  the category is then edited by a categorisation member to authorise the change.

More info can be seen on EditBOTs log pages.

https://www.softdata.si/wt/EditBot/

and if there is a problem I keep all data from any change  in case more details needs to be looked at.

Answer 8

All too often, I see blank changes.

https://www.wikitree.com/index.php?title=Gordon-13080&diff=101425701&oldid=101335253

Comments

Some changes are blank because nothing changed. Maybe the member started an edit, then changed their mind.

One of my standard "explain your changes" entries is "my browser tells me I need to save this page." (If we could preview changes, I wouldn't need to use that.)

Sometimes when I use that explanation, it turns out that I made important edits and forgot to save them. Sometimes, however, there are no visible changes on the page. (And there are other times when it turns out that I saved an tab that was opened before important edits were saved, so I end up having to revert the edit.)

Answer 9

When you change a relationship, e.g. change a parent from one profile to another, there is no direct way to go from the Change Log to that particular Change Detail. One has to go to the Change Details of some other nearby "edited" change and click either Previous Change or Next Change to get to the one for the parent change. Very awkward. Very annoying. And sometimes there IS NO OTHER change, so even this method won't work.