Please stop selecting multiple tasks by default
(closed account) says:
I know this is written up elsewhere, but as I use RTM more and more, it's becoming a major thorn in my side.
I am finding it to be a bug that multiple tasks are selected by default and the user has no way to change this. If multiple are selected...some changes like completing and postponing affect all selected tasks...other changes, like editing properties affect only the most recently selected tasks.
We really need some way to specify our preferred behavior. I would like explicit single and multi-edit modes. One should only be able to select multiple tasks in multi-edit mode.
I am finding it to be a bug that multiple tasks are selected by default and the user has no way to change this. If multiple are selected...some changes like completing and postponing affect all selected tasks...other changes, like editing properties affect only the most recently selected tasks.
We really need some way to specify our preferred behavior. I would like explicit single and multi-edit modes. One should only be able to select multiple tasks in multi-edit mode.
joolian says:
Amen. As a relatively new, and otherwise totally impressed user, I just find the checkboxes and selecting multiple tasks totally counterintuitive. Just because Gmail does it doesn't make it right.
In every other task manager I've used, a checkbox is a satisfying way to mark a task completed (bonus for strikethough effects and other ajax visuals), not a way to repeatedly edit multiple tasks by mistake. I would imagine most users, most of the time, want to edit a single task at a time. So having to manually deselect a task before editing another one seems unnecessary and confusing.
Since the app already requires entering multimode to edit properties on multiple tasks, can't that mode be the one that selects multiple tasks by default? And since you already change the background color of selected items, why not use the checkbox to complete items, since that's the expected behavior in a task list?
You could keep the old way as an advanced preference setting for those that already drank the koolaid. But the current default is really frustrating for new users.
In every other task manager I've used, a checkbox is a satisfying way to mark a task completed (bonus for strikethough effects and other ajax visuals), not a way to repeatedly edit multiple tasks by mistake. I would imagine most users, most of the time, want to edit a single task at a time. So having to manually deselect a task before editing another one seems unnecessary and confusing.
Since the app already requires entering multimode to edit properties on multiple tasks, can't that mode be the one that selects multiple tasks by default? And since you already change the background color of selected items, why not use the checkbox to complete items, since that's the expected behavior in a task list?
You could keep the old way as an advanced preference setting for those that already drank the koolaid. But the current default is really frustrating for new users.
csesget says:
I tried RTM several times, and this was always my hangup. I found it utterly infuriating. On my third try, at yet another recommendation for RTM, I finally "got it." "Oh, this works like Gmail." Now that I'm totally accustomed to it, I think I'd be horrified if it changed. But it probably is a significant entry barrier.