On 08 Jun 2007, at 16:34, Morbus Iff wrote:
Not only that, but I have visions of a database full of trivial or even identical node revisions. For example, what if the user changes only the taxonomy selections and then previews the node? All those DB queries and extra data in the table, for nothing. Or they change a bit of HTML formatting and preview, trying several times to get it just right. The user may have only worked for a couple of minutes, so what's the value in preserving all those
This is pretty much the way I work - I could easily spend 30 previews before I finish what I consider my first draft of a node. I would hate to waste 30 revisions (and the overhead) for stuff like that.
Likewise, I tend to think this is a semantic breakdown - when I "preview" something, I am doing so because I want to see what WILL happen IF I saved/the data. The revised change breaks this meaning, making it more a "save and re-edit" button, not "preview".
I agree with this. As an excessive previewer myself, the mental model that lives in my head assumes that previews are volatile. I preview because I don't want to save my data before it's ready to be saved. I don't finish everything that I start writing so every once in a while, I abandon the post in which case the previews and the node ID would still be in the database? That said, I'm not opposed to an auto-save feature or a 'Save as draft' feature. Except that it should somehow align better with my mental model. Something else to consider -- spammers will often try to submit spam to your site. Even if they don't make it through, they might insert permanent junk in your database. -- Dries Buytaert :: http://www.buytaert.net/