Hello, hello, hello! Welcome (back) to the technical updates regarding the Fandom platform that we release every other week to give you some insights in selected user-relevant bugs that got fixed, notable changes that may have occurred, and ongoing/upcoming experiments. We try to share some highlights and give you some insights, but as always, if you have any burning questions that didn't get answered by the shared information or a bug to report, don't hesitate to reach out and ask!
Quiz entry point on Discussions at the top and an example in-content quiz at the bottom
Two years ago, Fandom introduced a quiz feature on the content side of wikis (located under the Table of Contents and only viewable to logged-out users) after a select amount of wikis already could enjoy quizzes on the Discussion side of wikis. However, after the in-content quizzes were released, it was discovered that one could no longer have quizzes on Discussions without also having the option to have them in-content enabled. Following-up on user feedback we received about that, this link has been severed by the User Experience Team, making it now possible for communities that already have quizzes on the content side to choose if they'd like to have quizzes enabled on Discussions, the content side, both, or neither. If you would like to see this change on your wiki or would like to request quizzes on Discussions be enabled, please either contact your Community Manager or contact Fandom Staff.
Recent Fixes[]
The Wiki Representative module on Special:Community has been replaced by a Community Managers module.
Using ?useskin=fandomdesktop while on mobile no longer results in a page without any content under the section headings.
We restored the naming consistency in the edit dropdown by changing the MediaWiki default "View history" back to "History".
Fixes in Development[]
If you try to edit a User: subpage on the mobile layout, you are correctly forced onto the desktop layout. However, saving changes simply reloads the page with no changes applied. We're working on a fix for this.
The lists on the RecentChanges, History, and Contributions pages display too much space on the left side, reducing available content width.
[Ongoing Experiment] Maps Progress Tracking redesign: On Monday June 10, we launched a redesign of the maps progress tracking experiment. Users affected by this experiment will now see one of five variants. This A/B test will run for 2 weeks, affecting 20% of logged-out desktop and mobile users on English gaming wikis with at least one Interactive Map. Take a look at all the mockups and read more details about the Maps Progress Tracking redesign experiment
Example of an embedded map focused on a single marker, aligned to the right
[New Test] Maps Embeds: Starting next week, volunteer communities will have the ability to embed their own Interactive Maps in a more precise way than what is possible now. Right now, the only way to embed Interactive Maps on wiki content pages is adding them with a 100% width embed and with a fixed height. To allow for more flexibility, we will be testing out some other options – ranging from options in regards to Map height and width, left/right display, and including a caption to what's being shown on the Map (think embedding a map to show only one specific marker or only the markers included in a specific category) – and if all goes well, this functionality will be released to the Maps feature in general. Read more about the envisioned embed improvements and different display options.
The first experiment version on the left vs the redesign on the right
[Ongoing Experiment] Redesign of cross-linking GameFAQ Guides widget: Visible only on the logged-out desktop experience on 300 gaming wikis, the widget aims to set up a strong linking game between the Fandom wiki continuing the lore and details about a game and GameFAQ game guides to help people play it. With this redesign, the widget follows the same design trend of other recently redesigned Fandom widgets by placing more emphasis on images as well as indicating through the GameFAQ logo that the content of the widget is not created by the wiki editors. It's placed after other widgets like "Recent Images", "Others like you also viewed", etc. and above the sticky "Popular Pages" widget.
[Testing] Structured Quotes: A small recap from the last tech blog paragraph about this: "structured data means information that is organized and structured using a predefined format", and we are starting our structured content initiative with Structured Quotes. Starting next Monday, a good dozen wiki communities have volunteered to help us test out the new quote template created for this initiative. However, for those interested but not included in the test group, please take a look at this very aptly named Structured Quotes TEST Wiki, where you're free to create your own structured quote and play around with it. Read more about Structured Quotes.
Collapsed (left) and opened (right) version of the mobile drawer
[Ongoing Experiment] Mobile Drawer: To declutter the mobile reading experience for our logged-out users, we're testing a "drawer" that slides up from the bottom, without covering the entire page. This component contains all Fandom's "non-wiki" features and advertisements, thus creating a go-to space for fans to decide whether to engage or not with these features or our advertising customer's content. Released on Thursday, June 6, it'll run for one to two weeks on 6% of logged out users. Read more about the Mobile Drawer experiment.
The old (top) and new (bottom) widget design side by side
[Ongoing Experiment] Unification of Others Like You Also Viewed: Similar to what we tested for the Recent Images and Popular Pages widgets, we also unified the design of the "Others Like You Also Viewed" widget to see if it may entice users to engage more with the wiki content. Launched on Wednesday, June 12, it'll run for one week for 3% of logged out users on desktop. More widgets are to come! Read more about the "Others Like You Also Viewed" redesign experiment.
That's it for the past weeks! Per usual, if you encounter something that feels off about the platform, please report it by sending in a bug report, reach out to your Community Manager, contact the Product Support Owner on their Wall/talk page, or just simply sound off in the comments here. As always, thank you for helping us by continuing to communicate. Happy editing and Happy Pride, everyone!
Lostris is a Senior Product Support Manager. When not online, she lives to travel, play roller derby, and escape the world by watching anything that has a good plot, good acting, and preferably a ton of sassy one-liners.
