# Some settings need better descriptions
**URL:** https://meta.discourse.org/t/some-settings-need-better-descriptions/215114
**Category:** UX
**Created:** [January 17, 2022, 5:53pm UTC](https://meta.discourse.org/t/some-settings-need-better-descriptions/215114 "2022-01-17T17:53:56Z")
**Posts on this page:** 8
**Page:** 1
### Author:  [@ganncamp](https://meta.discourse.org/u/ganncamp)
#### Post date: [January 17, 2022, 5:53pm UTC](https://meta.discourse.org/t/some-settings-need-better-descriptions/215114/1 "2022-01-17T17:53:56Z")
As an admin, I’m starting to feel that the more I explore Discourse settings, the less I know. Twice in a short time, I’ve struggled to figure out how behaviors are controlled:
> [@New "Has your question been answered" popup can't be permanently dismissed](https://meta.discourse.org/t/new-has-your-question-been-answered-popup-cant-be-permanently-dismissed/213025/13):
>
> Do you have allow solved on all topics set in your admin settings? I think that removes the category by category setting:
> [@Staff member didn't get notification when task assigned](https://meta.discourse.org/t/staff-member-didnt-get-notification-when-task-assigned/214784/7):
>
> If you want email notifications, then please check the Assign plugin settings. The email notifications are set to “Never” by default.
When I’m dealing with user-level or category-level settings, there’s no indication that there’s a global override. The search functionality in the admin settings page is great. Really. But if I don’t know that I _should_ be looking for something, or what to look for, it doesn’t help me.
I’m sure there’s a manual somewhere I’m supposed to have read. And, it would be awesome if there were hints in the UI…
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### Author:  [@codinghorror](https://meta.discourse.org/u/codinghorror)
#### Post date: [January 17, 2022, 6:07pm UTC](https://meta.discourse.org/t/some-settings-need-better-descriptions/215114/2 "2022-01-17T18:07:28Z")
Is there any place the _description_ for the settings should be improved? You’ll need to attack this on a setting-by-setting basis. Does the explanation for the setting sufficiently explain it? If not, how can that description be improved?
I’m super open to copyedits that make the meaning of the settings clearer.
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### Author:  [@JammyDodger](https://meta.discourse.org/u/JammyDodger)
#### Post date: [January 17, 2022, 6:20pm UTC](https://meta.discourse.org/t/some-settings-need-better-descriptions/215114/3 "2022-01-17T18:20:50Z")
> [@ganncamp](#):
>
> The search functionality in the admin settings page is great. Really. But if I don’t know that I _should_ be looking for something, or what to look for, it doesn’t help me.
I find looking at the settings from the plugin tab quite useful for scoping out what each plugin can do:
Clicking on one of those ‘⚙ Settings’ will group all the admin settings for that plugin together, and give a bit of an overview.
(Apologies if this is too obvious, and you’re already aware)
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### Author:  [@ganncamp](https://meta.discourse.org/u/ganncamp)
#### Post date: [January 17, 2022, 6:29pm UTC](https://meta.discourse.org/t/some-settings-need-better-descriptions/215114/4 "2022-01-17T18:29:03Z")
For me it’s less about copy edits than it is about knowing there’s a global override in force. For instance, on the question of getting an email when you’re assigned a topic, I thought it was about this user-level setting:
When it turns out this has nothing to do with it, and there’s no indication at the user level that there’s a global setting preventing _initial_ notification. It’s not clear to me that this setting’s description _should_ be edited to include mention of that global setting. but if I had something like this
As a user, I would know what to ask for (and that I _could_ ask) and as an admin I would know what to look for.
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### Author:  [@codinghorror](https://meta.discourse.org/u/codinghorror)
#### Post date: [January 17, 2022, 6:30pm UTC](https://meta.discourse.org/t/some-settings-need-better-descriptions/215114/5 "2022-01-17T18:30:35Z")
So it’s a problem with a specific plugin, the assignment plugin? Then I’d expect the discussion to be there.
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### Author:  [@ganncamp](https://meta.discourse.org/u/ganncamp)
#### Post date: [January 17, 2022, 6:30pm UTC](https://meta.discourse.org/t/some-settings-need-better-descriptions/215114/6 "2022-01-17T18:30:45Z")
Thanks for the tip @JammyDodger. It assumes that I know what functionality is built in and what comes from plugins, but I appreciate the pointer. 😃
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### Author:  [@ganncamp](https://meta.discourse.org/u/ganncamp)
#### Post date: [January 17, 2022, 6:50pm UTC](https://meta.discourse.org/t/some-settings-need-better-descriptions/215114/7 "2022-01-17T18:50:49Z")
@codinghorror I gave two recent examples. The other is also from a plugin, so okay maybe this is just about plugins. But the point I’m trying to make is that as an instance admin, these relationships: global vs granular, and plugin versus built-in aren’t clear to me. And beyond that, other than simply clicking through and reading every single setting description, I don’t see how they’re supposed to _become_ clear to me.
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### Author:  [@codinghorror](https://meta.discourse.org/u/codinghorror)
#### Post date: [January 17, 2022, 7:47pm UTC](https://meta.discourse.org/t/some-settings-need-better-descriptions/215114/8 "2022-01-17T19:47:48Z")
Sure; the easiest “fix” is to improve the specific descriptions inside the site settings, and/or the plugin documentation. So I’m trying to winnow this down to smaller, actionable elements. We are _very_ open to copy improvements, and most products are in fact a bunch of words on the page, so never underestimate the power of a copy change:
[https://www.toptal.com/designers/ui/microcopy-impact-ux](https://www.toptal.com/designers/ui/microcopy-impact-ux)