Remove from Trash

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1

If you selected a Private Message and then chose the option “Remove from Trash”, what would you expect to happen?

Debbie

2

That it goes back into your inbox…

3

Agreed - although if you wanted to be really clear, you could change the wording to “Restore from trash”.

4

That is what I originally meant, but maybe a User could get confused and think that “Remove from Trash” means “Remove from Trash (and Permanently Delete this Message)”…

Is that possible?

Debbie

5

As I said, if you want to be really clear, you could say “Restore from trash”.

I would expect the message to say “Delete from trash”, if that’s what’s going to happen.

However, if a user clicks on “Remove from trash”, expecting the message to be permanently deleted and instead it’s restored, your user may be surprised, but it’s no big deal. If they click on “Remove from trash”, expecting the message to be restored and instead it’s permanently deleted, then they might be a bit miffed. :slight_smile:

Pretty much anything is possible when dealing with real people. You’ll never cover every eventuality. :slight_smile:

6

I agree with the above, except I would drop the words “from Trash”.

If the user is viewing a message in the Trash, and now wants to restore it, I would simply label the option “Restore”. You know you are restoring from the Trash, because you are looking at the trashed message at that point.

Similarly, rather than “Delete from Trash”, I would say “Delete permanently”. I think the word “permanently” adds some value, because simply deleting a message might be synonymous (in some users’ eyes) with moving it to the Trash, which they have already done.

Just my EUR 0,02 worth.

Mike

7

If a User wants to get rid of a PM for good, then I have always had the choice “Permanently Delete”, which I think is pretty clear.

If a User wants to take a PM from the Trash and move it back to its original place (e.g. Inbox or Sent folder), then I originally had “Remove from Trash”. But after looking at that, it occurred to me some people might misinterpret that?!

To be honest, I’m thinking “Restore from Trash” and “Restore” are a little too technical for the average user… :shifty:

If you say “restore” to me, as an IT Geek I get it. But do you think your grandmother or 50 year old uncle would know what “Restore” means?!

Anyone else care to comment?

Sincerely,

Debbie

8

Would they be representative of your target audience? If so, you might be better off taking a straw poll of elderly friends/relatives, rather than asking on a “geek” forum.

For what it’s worth, I’ve been helping a friend of 76 master her computer. (She’d be the first to admit it’s been an uphill struggle. ;)) She’s away just now so I can’t check, but I’m pretty certain that as a very-definite-non-geek, she would understand “restore” to mean “return to its former state”, so “put that thing back where it came from.” Offhand, I can’t think what else it might be taken to mean, that might cause confusion. :confused:

9

At least all Windows users (geek or very-definite-non-geek), must be pretty common to the term “Restore”, which is used for the “Recycle Bin”.

See: [U]Restore this item[/U] (or just “Restore”)

10

Debbie, I would not consider 50 to be particularly old for a computer user these days. Remember that PCs have been around for over 30 years, and that a whole generation of people who use computers at their work are now in middle age.

Nor would I consider “restore” to be at all geekish. Off-hand, it’s the most obvious word I can think of which expresses the idea you are trying to convey.

Mike

11

Grandmas… No.

People in their 50’s… Yes.

When I hear the word “Restore”, I instantly think of a Database “(Backup and) Restore”, so that is why I feared it might be too “technical”.

True. That was an unfair blow to middle-aged people.

Maybe, but like I said above, when I hear “Restore” I think of Database Restores… And that is a concept only a geek would know.

Just my first impression…

Sincerely,

Debbie

12

You can always make a tooltip (!): “Bring this item back to where it came from before it was put into Trash.”

The geeks know that then your Database will get a (small) “Restore”.
The others, 50- and 50+, just see it coming back into their INbox (or whatever location it came from). :slight_smile:

13

Rather than hope that something will be understood, why not just be more specific? E.g.

Move this message back to Inbox

14

Because we are talking about the Trash Folder view where a User checks those PM’s he/she wants to take action on, and then chooses an action from a drop-down menu.

So while your verbiage is more explicit, it also won’t fit!! :stuck_out_tongue:

Also, in the Trash Folder you may be “restoring” both “Deleted Incoming PMs” and “Deleted Sent PMs”, so I need neutral wording…

Right now in my Trash Folder view, my drop-down has the choices:


- Restore
- Permanently Delete

I guess that is pretty clear, but who knows?! :cool:

Follow me, Ralph? (Or do I need to “Delete” you!!) :lol:

Sincerely,

Debbie

15

You can always shorten things, though. This would work:

Move PM to Inbox

If there isn’t room for that, then change the design. :stuck_out_tongue:

16

So, Ralph, your response sounds like a “Thumbs Down” vote for “Restore”?

Debbie

17

At first I thought it was fine, but the discussion made me think twice. Given that it could confuse some, I figure there’s no point taking the risk that it might be misunderstood if something clearer can be used. That said, I’d class it as a minor issue.

18

Interesting.

See, it is the opposite for me.

At first I liked “Remove from Trash” better than “Restore”.

But after kicking things around, if I was a User looking in my Trash Folder, and I had these two Actions that I could take on PM’s in my Trash Folder…


- Restore
- Permanently Delete

…I think that the context of being in the Trash Folder makes it very clear what is going on.

But we can certainly agree that everyone see - and interprets - things slightly differently! :slight_smile:

Sincerely,

Debbie

19

If there is "Move PM to Inbox " as well as the possibility “Move PM to SENDbox”, it will not work this way. Then you have to use a general term as “Restore”.

  • If you say both "Move PM to Inbox " and “Move PM to SENDbox” in a drop down, you have the risk that a visitor can put a Send message back to the INbox instead of to where is came from, or an old incoming PM back to the SENDbox (and maybe cannot find it back on the right place & think (s)he has deleted the thing).

But the phenomenon “drop down” is new for me. I assumed it would be some Icon (preoccupation? how should it come? ;)).
Then my suggestion of an explaining tooltip is out of order! *)

I think if a visitor finds in the Trash map a drop down with:

[INDENT][INDENT]“Restore PM to old location”
“Delete PM permanently”[/INDENT][/INDENT]
there will not be much confusion, and hardly opportunity for errors.

*) Unless you put a hoverable question mark (or Q-icon) just beside the dropdown.

20

To Ralph’s point, I could maybe use this…


Restore to Inbox/Sent
Permanently Delete

Can’t please everyone, but at least you guys have given me some good ideas.

Thanks!

Debbie