Improvements to Game List View

[mark5000]

This is discussion about improving the game list view, specifically the Watch page, but also the Home page. (See issue #151).

@Lemurek’s game list looks like this:

My game list looks like this:

(Yes, there’s a lot of white space on my page. The lower half is completely blank.)

I feel the issues can be categorized in this way:

• What information should be displayed?
• How should the information be organized on the page?

What information to display:

The current page displays (1) move number, (2) game description, (3) Player Black, (4) Black time remaining (unlabeled), (5) Player White, and (6) White time remaining (unlabeled).

I don’t think this information is the best information to display. From an observer perspective, I don’t really care what the game title is. It might be relevant if it’s a teaching game or a “special rules” game, but those games don’t appear first on the watch list very often. I also don’t really care how much time is remaining for each player.

An observer wants to know (1) what are the ranks of the players (I like to watch a high level game), (2) how many players are watching (I may want to kibitz or watch a kibitz), and (3) what move is it (I don’t want to watch a game that’s almost over).

From a correspondence player’s perspective, I may care what the game name is (I may spend more time in a rated or tournament game), but it’s still not really critical to display on the game page. I don’t care how many are watching, because no one watches correspondence games. I care about who my opponent is and how much time I have remaining.

It’s kind of hard to find a solution that satisfies both goals of observers and players. I think the solution is to separate the two. The Watch list should display (1) move number, (2) Player Black, (3) Player White, (4) observer count, and (5) the time designation (“Live” or “Blitz”). The home page should be different, because the essential information is: (1) move number, (2) my opponent, (3) time on my clock, and (4) whether it is my move.

Organization of information:

This is about showing the information in a beautiful way. First I think that the information should be centered on the page. The left-justification looks ugly on my screen.

The Watch page should show the players, then the number of moves, then the time setting, then the number of observers last.

The Home page should show my opponent first, number of moves, and my time left. Currently OGS shows whether it’s my move by highlighting it green. I suppose I’m ok with that.

Please add your thoughts below.

[Conrad_Melville]

As an observer, I very much like seeing the time remaining. It tells me the pace of the game, which is important if I don’t have time to watch a slow game. Or vice versa if I want to see a more thoughtful game. I agree that the game title could be omitted. In its place I would like to see whether the game is 19x19, 13x13, or 9x9. Sometimes one can tell from the time setting, or from the number of moves, but a large gray area remains. In addition to watching Dan games, I like watching games by players at my level (i.e., high DDKs) to get a sense of how they play and the mistakes that are made. I frequently click on a game, hoping for a 19x19 at an early stage, but get a 9x9 or 13x13.

Note: there is enough open space on the current Watch page to add a feature without omitting anything, I believe.

[mark5000]

Good point about the board size.

To be clear, I don’t want the time setting info removed. I only want to replace “Black time remaining” and “White time remaining” with a single item: “time setting.” It would be something like 30m + 3 x 30 or even just “Live.” There’s enough space on the desktop site, but decluttering helps keep it mobile friendly.

On second inspection, I think there should be more vertical space between games as well.

[gamesorry]

@mark5000

An observer wants to know (1) what are the ranks of the players (I like to watch a high level game), (2) how many players are watching (I may want to kibitz or watch a kibitz), and (3) what move is it (I don’t want to watch a game that’s almost over).

I couldn’t agree more with that.