The discussion focuses on the lack of mouseover text for certain icons in the Discourse interface, highlighting usability and accessibility concerns. jidanni points out that icons like the arrow, cog wheel, and bell with an exclamation mark lack helpful tooltips, which could confuse users, especially those unfamiliar with the interface or relying on screen readers. Lilly supports this, suggesting clear labels like “reply options” or “more posting options.” twofoursixeight emphasizes that mouseovers aid accessibility, particularly for visually impaired users. jidanni argues for an automated check before releases to ensure all icons have mouseovers, noting that even if clicking reveals functionality, the absence of a tooltip is a developer oversight. jidanni shares an example where the bell icon’s function became clear only after clicking, but a mouseover like “Watching - click for details” would improve clarity. anon65426961 adds that some users might misinterpret the icon as an emergency alarm, underscoring the need for clear labeling. denvergeeks clarifies that this feature is known as a tooltip or link title. anon65426961 suggests the missing mouseovers are likely an oversight and easy to fix in future updates.
Sure, you might say anybody with a Internet driver’s licence should know what the cog wheel stands for. And yes I do. But, believe it or not, some people aren’t as smart as me. So a mouseover wouldn’t hurt.
And no, I admit I don’t know for sure what the arrow will do. You never know these days. So do add a mouseover.
you are not wrong IMO. the arrow should have a mouseover that says something like “reply options” and the cog should be “more posting options” or something. although both of these buttons pop up more options when clicked, they should still have mouseover descriptions.
On the left, the arrow has a mousover explanation.
But on the right the mysterious bell with the “!” in it doesn’t.
The HTML is <svg class="fa d-icon d-icon-d-watching svg-icon svg-string" xmlns="http://www.w3.org/2000/svg"><use href="#discourse-bell-exclamation"></use></svg>
I recommend there be a regular automatic check to see that all icons have mouseover explanations.
Yes, bell has something to do with notification. And “!” probably means urgent or something. Or from the SVG name we see it has something to do with watching.
Wait!
I clicked it because I wanted to unwatch the thread and maybe this is what to click, I thought.
That is probably wise, although not everyone has mice.
Could be someone thinks it’s an emergency alarm bell and will never click unless there is a mouse-over explanation.
The mouse over works for the alert setting link at the end of a thread, and the explanation for what setting this is at is also posted so it can be read without a mouse.
Yes, someone might think it is to “immediately report abuse” and not want to click to find out more.
And indeed, at the bottom of a thread there is the icon again with full explanation.
So perhaps the designers assume people’s eyes will first visit the bottom, then remember what the symbol means as their eyes drift back up or something.
Most likely you were correct to say it may have just been an oversight to write in the mouseover info display. Seems like that would probably be easy to correct if it can just be written in to new version.
The scroll bar on the side seems to only be there for desktop/tablet view.
A bell icon usually does mean alert setting, not like a flag or exclamation mark to report something to a boss.
