Hi all,
I'm glad to see this thread continuing. I agree completely with Terri, Fil and Joost. I'm really impressed with Googlegroups.. I used it recently and it works well from a usability standpoint. I think Joost has hit the nail on the head about how Mailman works well if you want to understand exactly what it is doing and how it works - most people (as shown by Yahoogroups) don't need this anymore and can expect to be shielded from it. Likewise the passwords in the welcome message.
It sounds like through changes to the email interfaces/templates, new wrappers (liked that idea very much) and a toggle for expert/newbie interfaces, as well as integration with forums for discussion lists, we *can* make Mailman more usable by ordinary people.
BTW, for those (like Kabissa) considering non-open source options, I see that Jive Forums has an "email gateway" that can handle Mailman integration and MBOX importing. http://www.jivesoftware.com - they have a nonprofit license option that is in the realm of the affordable. Something for the FAQ?
So yes, Terri, count me in! I have a ready group of Kabissa members and list owners who would be willing to help out with usability testing. We also do training regularly and have training partners in Africa, so could possibly take advantage of that to do usability testing with them.
Waiting for MM3 might be too long for me - I am in the process of overhauling Kabissa's interfaces and integrating them, and need to be making more rapid progress on making Mailman work for me or replacing it with something easier.
Cheers,
Tobias
On Mar 4, 2005, at 5:50 AM, Fil wrote:
Same here. I am considering writing a wrapper in front of the admin
pages, with _lots_ of buttons removed. (Don't hold your breath for
that, though.) Perhaps a newbie/expert toggle on the interface would be
helpful. Lots of listadmins at the site here are overwhelmed by the
sheer _amount_ of buttons.
Most people don't care about options. On my site I have tried to streamline
the registration process: there is a popup window where you can type in your
email, and sub/unsub (whether you are or not already subscribed).
See for instance http://listes.rezo.net/popup/ (click on the first link).
But the second most important place for usability is the welcome message,
which is loaded with options and jargon. I have replaced it with (in French):
<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<
----------------------------------------------------------
%(welcome)s Votre adresse est inscrite sur la liste %(real_name)[EMAIL PROTECTED](host_name)s
Merci.
----------------------------------------------------------
Pour vous désabonner, une page vous est réservée %(optionsurl)s %(umbrella)s Ce mot de passe empêchera quiconque de vous désabonner contre votre gré : %(password)s.
Autres informations sur la liste %(real_name)s : %(listinfo_url)s
But I still find it too complex; we should get rid of the password thing.
People just nedd to know where they can see more options.
As for the web interface, from what I've seen I think GoogleGroups has got
the slickest interface for the moment.
-- Fil
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* Kabissa's vision is for a socially, economically, politically, and environmentally vibrant Africa, supported by a strong network of effective civil society organizations. *
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