Removing the action menu on macro click has predictably confused users

This UX change is quite poor. Editing a macro…

Previous UX:

  1. Hover over macro
  2. Non-actionable app title appears at TOP
  3. Click on the macro ANYWHERE
  4. Action menu appears at the BOTTOM
  5. Click pencil edit icon at the BOTTOM

Current UX:

  1. Hover over macro
  2. Actionable app title appears at TOP (only a tiny icon indicates this change)
  3. Click only on the app title at TOP
  4. Action menu appears at the BOTTOM
  5. Click pencil edit icon at the BOTTOM

I’ve already received a support ticket on this from a customer:

We are using [app] for confluence in confluence, but yesterday onwards the team is complaining that the edit option for the tabs added are not showing in Edit mode of the confluence, Could you able to check that and let me know the update

Does anyone remember the RFC for this? I vaguely remember someone at Atlassian saying they would keep the action menu on hover.

1 Like

I think it is either RFC-33: Modernized macro styling while editing in Confluence Cloud or RFC-50: Let users easily interact with AND configure macros in the Editor

1 Like

Ah yep. And the UX in both final posts on those RFCs is different.

@DavidMichelson what’s going on?

Hi @nathanwaters - thanks for your feedback.

We’ve been making these changes to make it so users can interact with macros in the Editor as well as in the Renderer. In terms of “what’s going on,” your summary of the Current UX is accurate as found in the resolution of RFC-50, or if you attempt to edit a macro in product.

Previously, before macros were interactive in the Editor, users could click anywhere in the macro body to select the macro (and therefore click the edit pencil). Now that they’re interactive in the Editor, clicking in the macro body actually interacts with the macro. That’s why the macro title needs to be used to select macros.

I do see how selecting the macro title at the top, and the floating toolbar appearing at the bottom could be confusing, will take that to the team.

Have you done any user testing?

I’m certain my support queues are going to be flooded with users who all think the ability to edit macros has been removed.

There’s not a single aspect of consistency in UX, or any in-app guides, or anything to gracefully transition users to this new way of editing macros.

You’ve removed all the years of previous user expectations:

  1. Users expect the action menu to appear on hover/click.
  2. Users expect to see something at the bottom of the macro.
  3. Users expect to see a pencil icon to indicate edit option.

And since the app title previously appeared on hover it’s not something new that catches the user’s attention nor do they expect it to be clickable since it was previously a non-actionable UX item.

At bare minimum I would suggest a direct edit option next to the app title so at least there’s a single icon that the user recognises as a call-to-action:

Screenshot 2024-11-26 at 9.50.39 am

If the current UX is what you want, really what should have been done is a gradual transition:

  1. Move the action menu to the top on hover, then 3-6 months later…
  2. Integrate those icons next to the app title, then 3-6 months later…
  3. Collapse those icons into the config icon

Apperciate the added detail.

This doesn’t materially change your feedback too much, but one thing I wanted to clarify is that the action menu (or floating toolbar as I’ve called it) actually never appeared on hover. A user always had to select (click on) a macro in order to summon the action menu. What’s changed is how you select (click on) a macro in order to summon the action menu–now it’s by clicking the macro title (or, you can actually select the border of the macro).

Please do keep us posted if you continue to hear this feedback from your customers.

Can you please at least add a direct edit pencil icon:

Screenshot 2024-11-26 at 9.50.39 am

You’ve switched that app title from being non-actionable info to being an actionable button with no recognisable icon or consistent button UI.

By adding the pencil icon there, at least the user will get the hint when they move their eyes back to the top of the macro.

2 Likes