Categorisation is not visible whilst reading topics within the category.
The absence of navigation means that it’s not as simple, as it could be, to reach the category from its contents.
Also, it’s disorienting. Things that are apparently uncategorised are, truly, categorised.
For example:
Kind of what I meant in another thread with the lonely icon at top left. Having a breadcrumb next to it explains its function (go home) and balances the layout.
Re: post 22 above, would you like me to attempt to make the category visible?
Or was the invisibility intentional?
Thanks. For me: in some ways the change is an improvement, in other ways it’s less user-friendly.
I performed some tests with Discourse on Android. Categorisation by default exposed a minor bug, I made the Discourse Team aware, the bug is acknowledged (also affected: Discourse on iOS).
That minor bug aside: a few other thoughts came to mind (I can share screenshots etc. in due course) but those thoughts are not yet firm.
It should become easier for people to get a ‘feel’ of the forum, on multiple platforms, after it gains momentum; after there’s more substantial content that is neither forum feedback, nor meta.
It may be worth spending a few days (just a few minutes each day) browsing and searching sites such as:
At first glance, Mozilla’s use of Discourse is impressive. It is immediately obvious that great care and forethought has been given to organisation, and presentation, of categories and sub-categories.
For me, things became more thought-provoking when I scratched beneath the surface. In the handful of areas where I browsed or participated, I gained a sense that use of the forum for discussion is sometimes discouraged; there’s encouragement to use GitHub, not Discourse for discussion …
… which slightly defeats the object of a forum 
especially where reasons for setting up a forum include the perception that GitHub is not ideal for forum-like discussions (that’s a very broad topic … probably best continued in Discourse Meta, not here).
Cross reference: today’s illustrations by @jdittrich under First impressions (preview) – visualising how categories might appear with and without the rectangular logo requirement.
I suggest a slight change to the name of this category. From:
Communication & collab between designers & devs
to:
Communication and collaboration
– and the elaboration (“between designers and developers”, and so on) can be explicit within
About 'Communication and collaboration', which is already pinned at the head of Communication and collaboration - Open Source Design
When the fixed version of the application is made available, I’ll add a note here.
… screenshots etc. in due course …
Not forgotten. I might share those first impressions next weekend. In the meantime there’s the question about category visibility
Communication and collaboration
One like and no objections, so I made the change. Hopefully not too hasty; if there are objections, please do not hesitate to raise them.
As the ampersand has been replaced by ‘and’ in the name of that category: for consistency, I’ll make the same replacement in two others that use an ampersand.
Also I’m shortening some of the URL slugs – /comm-coll in lieu of /communication-collaboration, /feedback in lieu of /forum-feedback, and so on. It will be smart to finalise any such changes before the site is promoted.
Both Forum feedback - Open Source Design
and Forum feedback - Open Source Design
redirect to https://discourse.opensourcedesign.net/c/feedback
If begun from the home page, a new topic defaults to Open Source Design meta (the category that appears to be not a category whilst reading any topic in that category).
Probably not the best default. Assume that some posters will not pay attention to the category before posting.
I’m not keen on enforced categorisation, but since it was introduced: can we have a more appropriate default? The lounge, maybe?
Fixed but not yet thoroughly tested. As far as I can tell, the problem arose when:
That’s not just a special name, it has a special purpose. Critically:
If you would like to see what’s uncategorised, at any time:
Refrain from categorising things such as:
– thanks 
Thanks @evalica for seeking feedback!
I’m not yet convinced that categories by default at the home page is, or will be (when the forum gains momentum), better than latest.
With apologies for short notice: I have performed a reset on the top menu. Short notice because I only just learnt of the call, less than three hours from now, with the forum on the agenda.
A two-hour opportunity for participants who have worked, for the past two weeks, with categories at home page to begin getting a feel for how things might be with the Discourse default for the top menu.
Please understand that today’s reset need not be a final setting. I never like making changes such as this without consultation – especially where a site has gone live – but with the call so soon, I’m squeezing it in with a hope that someone will form an opinion in the next hour or so.
(If the call is followed by a final or semi-final decision to reinstate categories by default: the change will be very easily achieved by any member of staff.)
I edited the category ‘About …’ texts a little, partly to remove things such as these:
:globe_with_meridians::iphone::art::dividers::slight_smile:Not because I dislike the smiley faces 
Because they were not rendered in some contexts. A few examples:
Aw bummer. Someone else posted this too here https://meta.discourse.org/t/excerpts-show-emoji-codes-and-not-emojis/55106
I like the default “Categories” by default. Since it’s easy to change, we can test and see which default is better, but it’s minor so I guess any is ok.
thanks for feedback.
Maybe poll users, some time after a good broadening of the audience.
Same here. Now it’s a jumbled mess of latest threads. In the category view @evalica set it was at least some structure on the left. That gives new people and regular users alike a way better sense of which categories exist.
Please be specific.
Can you give an example of a subject line that is not clear?
It’s not about a single subject line. It’s about the overall layout. The current one is just a list of topics. The other one @evalica set has the categories on the left too.
I can see a like from you on @evalica’s original message about changing it so I assumed you were ok with it? I can also see a like from you on @evalica’s message just now, and also @simonv3 liked my agreement with @evalica.
Also @htietze mentioned a preference for the categories view (with some suggested expansions).
And, yeah, my like was in agreement.
I feel like a conversation about the default appearance for users makes a lot of sense in this thread about “default appearance”, especially as it pertains to categorization and tagging.
Not sure what you are trying to say. It was closed because it was spreading out into too many topics. We can always open new separate topics about things.
This topic is about default appearance, and so far people seem to prefer the category view by default.
FYI:
– not so much swiping with the Open Source Design forum as with Mozilla Discourse but still, the UX is not great:
Not an issue with Latest by default, just something to consider if staff do choose to reinstate Categories by default.
Recent testing focused on mobile 'cause I’ll be without a computer for the next few days.