[Commotion-discuss] Website feedback from hackday on "warning" sign

[Andrew Reynolds]

I'm moving this discussion to the commotion-discuss list.

For those just joining in, the issue in question is how to present usage
warnings related to Commotion's current capabilities[1] in a way that
does not imply that the user has misconfigured the software.

On one hand, we need to be very clear about Commotion's current
capabilities, especially given the press around the project. On the
other hand, we don't want to give the impression that a correct
installation has failed somehow.

1. See
https://commotionwireless.net/blog/warning-label-development-part-1 and
https://commotionwireless.net/blog/warning-label-development-part-2

-andrew

On 06/12/2013 11:23 AM, Preston Rhea wrote:
> I maintain that when the first thing someone sees upon clicking a link
> and landing is a warning - someone who isn't a l33t hacker - they will
> think they have come to some page in error, and that creates the wrong
> kind of caution. It can cause confusion and mistrust in one's ability
> to follow the documentation, instead of invite caution about the
> decision you're making to use this sofware.
> 
> On Wed, Jun 12, 2013 at 11:11 AM, Georgia Bullen
> <georgia at opentechinstitute.org> wrote:
>> I think there's a happy medium, which is maybe just a color change to the
>> warning label? Or something like that? Pick one of the colors from the color
>> palette?
>>
>>
>> On Wed, Jun 12, 2013 at 10:53 AM, Seamus Tuohy <s2e at opentechinstitute.org>
>> wrote:
>>>
>>> That means it works! Seriously though, this is the intended effect. A
>>> user should feel uneasy and read the warning when they are going to
>>> download Commotion. Users in non-risky scenarios feeling uncomfortable
>>> is a small price to pay for those at risk being confronted with the
>>> limits of this tool.
>>>
>>> s2e
>>>
>>>
>>> On 06/11/2013 04:39 PM, Preston Rhea wrote:
>>>> Some of the feedback I got when walking folks through installation had
>>>> to do with the "WARNING" sign on the download site:
>>>> https://commotionwireless.net/download
>>>>
>>>
>>>
>>>> A couple of folks said that when the first thing they see after
>>>> clicking according to the instructions
>>>>
>>>> (https://code.commotionwireless.net/projects/commotion/wiki/Stock_Ubiquiti_Install_Guide)
>>>> is a warning sign, they feel like they've done something wrong. When
>>>> we discussed the purpose of the warning label, they agree that it
>>>> should exist, but that it should be moved down below the initial fold
>>>> of the page - but before the download links - so that it still serves
>>>> its purpose without giving the user a feeling of having committed an
>>>> error, or having gone somewhere dangerous.
>>>>
>>>> --
>>>> Preston Rhea
>>>> Program Associate, Open Technology Institute
>>>> New America Foundation
>>>> +1-202-570-9770
>>>> Twitter: @prestonrhea
>>>>
>>>
>>
>>
>>
>> --
>> Georgia Bullen
>> Field Operations Technologist, Open Technology Institute
>> New America Foundation
> 
> 
> 


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