Talk:Grades FAQ: Difference between revisions
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There has been considerable discussion about usability as Moodle has grown, including questioning whether adding new features necessarily requires a more complicated interface. Some have argued (including this author) that more field testing, carefully chosen defaults, and progressive revealing of features (including an "advanced" button) can make it much easier for new users while making it possible to make available features selectivity available as needed. During the Beta process, progress was made on this, but additional improvements are probably quite possible. | There has been considerable discussion about usability as Moodle has grown, including questioning whether adding new features necessarily requires a more complicated interface. Some have argued (including this author) that more field testing, carefully chosen defaults, and progressive revealing of features (including an "advanced" button) can make it much easier for new users while making it possible to make available features selectivity available as needed. During the Beta process, progress was made on this, but additional improvements are probably quite possible. | ||
An obvious example would have been to retain the <1.9 interface as a legacy option, but built on top of the new code. The counter-argument is to make all options available to every user so that they know that the feature is there, but this has a high cost in terms of usability as a product becomes feature-rich. | An obvious example would have been to retain the <1.9 interface as a legacy option, but built on top of the new code. The counter-argument is to make all options available to every user so that they know that the feature is there, but this has a high cost in terms of usability as a product becomes feature-rich. --[[User:Gary Anderson|Gary Anderson]] 10:59, 29 March 2008 (CDT) | ||
--[[User: | :We couldn't retain the <1.9 interface, we would have had to re-code it entirely. The main reason for developing the new gradebook was internal, to enable long-term scalability, extensibility and consistency. We don't expect end users to understand or be interested in what goes on behind the User Interface, in the database, in the backend code, but it is true that usability has suffered as a result. The good news is that our efforts are now entirely focused on usability instead of these other important considerations. [[User:Nicolas Connault|Nicolas Connault]] 07:39, 7 November 2008 (CST) | ||
Revision as of 13:39, 7 November 2008
This FAQ asks begins answering the question Why is the new gradebook so complicated?
There has been considerable discussion about usability as Moodle has grown, including questioning whether adding new features necessarily requires a more complicated interface. Some have argued (including this author) that more field testing, carefully chosen defaults, and progressive revealing of features (including an "advanced" button) can make it much easier for new users while making it possible to make available features selectivity available as needed. During the Beta process, progress was made on this, but additional improvements are probably quite possible.
An obvious example would have been to retain the <1.9 interface as a legacy option, but built on top of the new code. The counter-argument is to make all options available to every user so that they know that the feature is there, but this has a high cost in terms of usability as a product becomes feature-rich. --Gary Anderson 10:59, 29 March 2008 (CDT)
- We couldn't retain the <1.9 interface, we would have had to re-code it entirely. The main reason for developing the new gradebook was internal, to enable long-term scalability, extensibility and consistency. We don't expect end users to understand or be interested in what goes on behind the User Interface, in the database, in the backend code, but it is true that usability has suffered as a result. The good news is that our efforts are now entirely focused on usability instead of these other important considerations. Nicolas Connault 07:39, 7 November 2008 (CST)
