[SOLVED] Regarding email notifications

[MarkFL]

Hello all,

As someone who checks in every day, I realized that getting email notifications of responses to all of the topics in which I have participated is unnecessary, as I am aware of these responses simply by looking at all the new posts. It seems to me, at least in my case, this is causing server activity that is easily avoided, and so I have turned off this option.

I don't recall actively choosing this setting so I suspect it may be the default setting. If this is indeed the case, then I would propose changing the default to no subscriptions, and let the users choose to turn this option on if they want it.

 

[Ackbach]

Hello all,

As someone who checks in every day, I realized that getting email notifications of responses to all of the topics in which I have participated is unnecessary, as I am aware of these responses simply by looking at all the new posts. It seems to me, at least in my case, this is causing server activity that is easily avoided, and so I have turned off this option.

I don't recall actively choosing this setting so I suspect it may be the default setting. If this is indeed the case, then I would propose changing the default to no subscriptions, and let the users choose to turn this option on if they want it.

Subscriptions do not imply emails. Subscribing to a thread means that you are "following" a thread. Then you can search your subscribed threads, for example, under Quick Links. You can choose any of the following options:

Do not subscribe
Subscribe with no notification
Instant email notification
Daily email notification
Weekly email notification

We could do "Subscribe with no notification" as a default setting. How does that sound?

 

[Jameson]

Instant notification as the default might be overkill but I think going to complete other end of the spectrum would be bad too. How about weekly as the default option? That way a person can get some kind of reminder that we exist but not enough to pester them, and of course it can be set to another frequency manually by the user if so desired.

 

[Ackbach]

Instant notification as the default might be overkill but I think going to complete other end of the spectrum would be bad too. How about weekly as the default option? That way a person can get some kind of reminder that we exist but not enough to pester them, and of course it can be set to another frequency manually by the user if so desired.

Sounds good. Done.

 

[MarkFL]

As always, you guys are right there getting things done!

I think this is a great solution that will reduce server strain, yet not orphan any users who do rely on the notifications.

 

[Evgeny.Makarov]

I think that instant notification by email is a sensible option for people asking questions, which is the majority of the forum users. When I go, say, to an Android forum and ask a question, I'd like to get an answer as soon as possible, in particular, to engage in a conversation that does not span days or weeks. Receiving an email with a link to a thread is a great service that makes it unnecessary going to the site and fishing for my threads manually. I think it is more reasonable to expect a few power users who answer a lot of questions to change their default settings if they wish. I personally receive instant emails on MHF and here because I want to answer promptly if I can.

 

[Ackbach]

I think that instant notification by email is a sensible option for people asking questions, which is the majority of the forum users. When I go, say, to an Android forum and ask a question, I'd like to get an answer as soon as possible, in particular, to engage in a conversation that does not span days or weeks. Receiving an email with a link to a thread is a great service that makes it unnecessary going to the site and fishing for my threads manually. I think it is more reasonable to expect a few power users who answer a lot of questions to change their default settings if they wish. I personally receive instant emails on MHF and here because I want to answer promptly if I can.

Ha! "The one who states his case first seems right, until the other comes and examines him."

That's a good argument in favor of instant notifications. We were thinking from the staff perspective, which is not perhaps the best one to use.

 

[MarkFL]

Yes, that's a great point...it would certainly be easier for the few to change than for the many.

 

[Ackbach]

I have switched the default back to instant (which really ends up being every 10 minutes, according to when the server processes a batch).