Revolutionizing gratitude: a new era of thanking comments

Gone are the days of the cumbersome, archaic method of thanking someone for their insightful comments. We’ve all been there—struggling through the labyrinth of revision histories, squinting at timestamps, and desperately trying to find that one comment that made our day. But fear no more! A new, streamlined, and utterly delightful way to express your gratitude is here!

The old way: a journey through History (pages)

Picture this: You stumble upon a comment so brilliant, so profound, that you feel compelled to thank the author. To do so, you had to embark on an epic quest:

1. See a comment you want to thank: Easy enough, right? Wrong. This is where the nightmare begins.
2. Look at the revision history for that talk page: Because who doesn’t love sifting through endless pages of edits? 
3. Find the revision that created the specific comment you care about: Presumably by looking based on the timestamp in the signature. This is the painful bit, the part where you question your life choices. And you bless the folks who created Ctrl+F.
4. Use the “thank” tool in the history item at hand. But is it the right diff? If you are brave enough to click, your mission can stop here. Otherwise, you still need to go to the next page.
5. If you were unsure of that revision, you of course clicked on the diff link to confirm that it was the right comment. Finally, after what feels like an eternity, you can express your gratitude. 

Have you already mastered this? Congratulations! You earned this knowledge the hard way. But think about newcomers who have no idea of step number 2…

The new way: a breath of fresh air, one click away from you

But now, dear readers, thanks to the Wikimedia Foundation’s Editing team, we have entered a new era! A revolution in gratitude! The process is so simple and intuitive, as in three steps:

1. See a comment you want to thank: Still easy, but now the fun begins.
2. An overflow menu appears next to the reply button: Like a magical door to a world of appreciation.
3. It contains a “🖤 thank” button, which you click: A pair of clicks, and you’re spreading joy.

Simplicity! 

Everything else goes as usual. The user gets a thank you notification, through Notifications or via email, and the log gets a new line saying that you’ve been nice towards another user. This new path has been tested as a Beta feature over the past months and is now available for all users who benefit from Usability Improvements. And if you prefer hiking the old path through History pages, it remains exactly as it is.

Why this matters

There’s no exposure either way of exactly what was thanked. The comment you thank in the new method is not permanent like a revision. Therefore, it is not possible to edit a comment to make it appear that the person thanking you approves of something they did not intend to approve. It’s a system that’s not only efficient but also mindful of potential future enhancements and potential community limitations.

So, let’s raise a glass to the new way of thanking comments. It’s faster, it’s easier, and it’s a whole lot more fun. Say goodbye to the dark ages of gratitude and hello to a brighter, more appreciative future! 🖤