What are the changes to the classic interface?

[marcmartin]

Originally Posted by Quilleron

Anyhow, I have now updated my tweaks.css file and it's available on the wiki here:
http://fastmail.wikia.com/wiki/NewInterfaceCSS/Stylesheet_Gallery/Clean_and_Compact#tweaks.css

I seem now to be back where I was before the upgrade and sanity has, at least for the timebeing, been restored.

By the way, though I say so myself, Clean and Compact is a great custom stylesheet.

Great, thanks! The tweaks files I was using before stopped working with the "upgrade", so I've now started using these instead (they should probably just make this one of the standard themes)

[torbeck1]

Originally Posted by ChinaLamb

so your complaint is that there is a larger logo now?

Seriously?

Yes. I need my screen space and they have many little ways of wasting it. This logo in the new version cannot even be scrolled off the page. All the accumulated screen wasters are reaching the point where they are making the service unusable for mr purposes.

[labarum]

Originally Posted by torbeck1

Yes. I need my screen space and they have many little ways of wasting it.

I'm guessing it was designed on a 27" iMac.

Some of use run ultraportables. Our needs are different.

All the current stylesheets, less Concise, are the same with different colours - that's no choice at all.

[ChinaLamb]

Originally Posted by labarum

Some of use run ultraportables. Our needs are different.

AAaahhh... Okay. Gotcha. This makes sense now. Sorry for being insensitive.

[labarum]

I make these points in the thread "Why do you steel my screen"

http://www.emaildiscussions.com/showthread.php?t=65752

There is room for the left hand side bar showing the folder list, and the rest of the screen needs to be devoted to the read or compose panes. There is no room for a right hand side bar with wizzies, gizmos, calendars or anything else.

This gives the width for an optimum 80 character line length when using a font big enough for comfortable reading on a small screen.

I can achieve this in the new classic interface with some browser zoom. Finding a solution in the new interface is not possible because the read and compose feature is locked into a frame that stops two thirds across my small screen.

Gmail has the same problem.

There must be many who will want to use the Fastmail web interface on a 10" tablet or a laptop with and 11" or 12" screen. We need either a more varied range of style sheets or (better) other means to configure screen layout and font size. The vertical use of space is just as critical as the horizontal.

I hope you are reading and listening, Devs.

My ultra-portable is dying and will soon be replaced with the £229 ARM Chromebook with an 11.5" screen. My plan had been stick with old Fastmail, new classic will I think be usable, but it could be better.

PS It is rather confusing to have an interface called "Classic" and a stylesheet called "Classic".

[marcmartin]

Originally Posted by labarum

PS It is rather confusing to have an interface called "Classic" and a stylesheet called "Classic".

It's also rather confusing to have an interface called "Classic" that is NOT the same interface that we were using before!

[labarum]

Originally Posted by marcmartin

It's also rather confusing to have an interface called "Classic" that is NOT the same interface that we were using before!

Agreed

Perhaps the two should simply be HTML and AJAX, except nether term means much to many (most?) users.

[chrisjj]

Originally Posted by labarum

Perhaps the two should simply be HTML and AJAX

Please not. The AJAX interface is just as much HTML as the Classic interface.

[labarum]

Originally Posted by chrisjj

Please not. The AJAX interface is just as much HTML as the Classic interface.

Suggestions?

(They don't have to be polite.)

[thymara]

Not-Classic_Classic

[chrisjj]

Originally Posted by labarum

Suggestions?

No change needed to the name - just to the interface.

I suggest the Classic interface be reverted to the pre-Halloween version.

[BritTim]

Originally Posted by chrisjj

No change needed to the name - just to the interface.

I suggest the Classic interface be reverted to the pre-Halloween version.

That would also be my preference. However, FM has made clear their preference for a common base for the ajax and classic interfaces. This concerns me, not only because of what has already transpired, but because we can expect further impact on custom ui as changes occur to the ajax interface in the future.

I am still undecided on what to do. The choices, I think, are

• Very extensive CSS changes in the custom ui, combined with an expectation that ongoing maintenance will be needed.
• Switch to use of an external mail client and develop the necessary UI tailoring there.
• Abandon FM for another email service.

[chrisjj]

Originally Posted by BritTim

That would also be my preference. However, FM has made clear their preference for a common base for the ajax and classic interfaces.

That would be fine - had they been able to do it without messing up the classic interface.

Originally Posted by BritTim

This concerns me, not only because of what has already transpired, but because we can expect further impact on custom ui as changes occur to the ajax interface in the future.

Agreed. Particularly worrying is that I've seen no indication that Fastmail/Opera even know they have messed up the classic interface. They say at http://blog.fastmail.fm/2012/11/09/t...ew-interfaces/

Originally Posted by Bron

In short, classic is here to stay

(whereas, in short, the classic we had is not even here) and ...

Originally Posted by Bron

Where possible, changes for the new interface have been rewritten as shared “library code” and integrated into both interfaces simultaneously.

That's the best explanation I have seen for the breakage of for example classic interface style sheet compatibility. If someone as smart as Bron can't get this right, let alone prevent untested code from being put into production, this does not bode well for the future.