Default simple interface
This page is kept for historical interest. Any policies mentioned may be obsolete. If you want to revive the topic, you can use the talk page or start a discussion on the community forum. |
Concept: Greatly simplify the interface for new users.
See also Default view of content.
Basic ideas
editReduce the number of links in the nav-bar, particularly those not useful or comprehensible to non-editors.
Add one or two links suitable only for users who have never interacted with a wiki before (including a single-click "turn on advanced interface" link to restore the current interface).
Make a friendly "comment on this page" link more prominent than the "edit this page" link -- "edit this page" is, surprisingly, intimidating and confusing to some (perhaps many) new users.
(Once we have gotten a user to use an edit form, be it for a talk: page or for an article itself, they may be much more likely to be hooked and to find out about editing in general.)
Target user-groups
edit- The media, coming to find out about our project; stats, About: pages, contacts.
- One-stop users, visiting a deep-linked specific page. We should encourage them to click on another link before leaving, without overwhelming them.
- Visitors who have heard there are ways to contribute to Wikipedia, but have a hard time with the "edit" concept -- encourage feedback from them in familiar ways.