Last modified: 2014-09-22 13:45:09 UTC
The edit summary box currently uses a textarea input box. Current functionality has the return key starting a new line in the textarea, but upon save the edit summary is truncated into one line in the page history (line breaks are turned into spaces). Thus, the textarea box is misleading. A more sane option would be to use a single line text input box, where the enter key processes the edit rather than starts a new line. See bug 38042 and bug 40034, and specifically https://bugzilla.wikimedia.org/show_bug.cgi?id=40034#c5.
Another issue brought up with having a text area box is that previously entered summaries are not suggested. Most browsers suggest prior terms entered into text input boxes, this allowing editors to choose from their (frequently) used summaries. https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Wikipedia:VisualEditor/Improvements&oldid=566754323#Autofill_edit_summary
By making the summary a textarea rather than an inputbox we've seen a radically-greater number of editors (especially, anonymous and new editors) entering edit summaries for their edits. I think we should think very seriously about the impact of such a change before just making it.
I seriously doubt that that is the reason you have a higher incidence of edit summaries. What you did in parallel to making it a textarea was that you hid the "Save page" final submit button behind a dialog that prominently presents the box for an edit summary. Users no longer feel free to skip a mysterious text box and click "Save page" right away, the look and feel of the modal dialog forces them to consider filling it out in full before proceeding. That's why you're getting more edit summaries.
(In reply to comment #3) > I seriously doubt that that is the reason you have a higher incidence of edit > summaries. What you did in parallel to making it a textarea was that you hid > the "Save page" final submit button behind a dialog that prominently presents > the box for an edit summary. Users no longer feel free to skip a mysterious > text box and click "Save page" right away, the look and feel of the modal > dialog forces them to consider filling it out in full before proceeding. > That's why you're getting more edit summaries. Sure, but collapsing the box down to a single line would de-emphasise the edit summary, however, and turn it back into "a mysterious text box" that uses "feel free to skip".
> Sure, but collapsing the box down to a single line would de-emphasise the > edit > summary, however, and turn it back into "a mysterious text box" that uses > "feel > free to skip". Why would it? It's still hidden behind a modal dialog. I will wager that editors still feel forced to fill it in simply because it is there.
(In reply to comment #5) > > Sure, but collapsing the box down to a single line would de-emphasise the > > edit summary, however, and turn it back into "a mysterious text box" that > > uses "feel free to skip". > > Why would it? > > It's still hidden behind a modal dialog. I will wager that editors still feel > forced to fill it in simply because it is there. The numbers went up when we switched from inputbox to textarea. Expecting them not to fall when we reverse that change seems unlikely to me.
Killiondude's comment 1 is an significant usability point - for repetitive tasks it is very helpful that the browser pops up a list of suggestions to click on, which is context-sensitive and based on previous usage. I did not realise how helpful that was until with VE I found myself having to type the full edit summary each time.
Bug 48274 seems to cover the same ground, and was one of the first things I found problematic with VE: those of us who do a lot of regular work on many different articles usually have a set of standardised edit summaries which can convey a lot of useful information, with links, to help other editors. The autocomplete facility provided by browsers for a one-line input box worked well.
Is it possible to meet in the middle: To show it as a textarea, but to allow saving using Enter/Return? And maybe provide autocomplete?
(In reply to Amir E. Aharoni from comment #9) > Is it possible to meet in the middle: To show it as a textarea, but to allow > saving using Enter/Return? And maybe provide autocomplete? That will lead to another problem: newbies will accidentally save before they have finished entering the summary. The fact is, the edit summary *is not* a text area and should not be displayed as such. It can only ever be a single line of text. That is what should be shown. Enter should initiate a save.
(In reply to Spinningspark from comment #10) However, the input box should be large enough to accomodate the maximum permitted length of edit summary, even if that means using two lines.
