Signal-desktop: Change "Loading Messages" in desktop startup to something less confusing

[mcashm]

• [X ] I have searched open and closed issues for duplicates
  

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Bug Description

The desktop client says, "Loading messages", and then numbers that appear rounded to the tens (e.g., 80). This was confusing confusing for me, and is confusing for users in general, because people will infer "messages" refers to Signal messages sent from one user to another, rather than low-level software-talking-to-software stuff. I haven't actually received 80 messages.

Steps to Reproduce

1. Wait a while so you will accumulate some messages to load
2. Launch the desktop client
3. Observe the "Loading messges" message

Actual Result:
People are confused, and think they have received many many Signal messages from other users

Expected Result:

It'd be nice if it said just "Loading data", "Synchronizing", or similar

Platform Info

Signal Version: v1.27.4

Operating System: Debian 10

Linked Device Version: Android Signal 4.47.6

[ralienpp]

If it is not loading messages, then what is it loading?

My understanding is that the text is correct, because it loads and decrypts locally stored messages in my archive. I noticed that it takes longer and longer to load, the more correspondence history I accumulate.

So if it is not that, what is actually being loaded?

[Cerberus0]

When the desktop client says it is "Loading messages", it is actually downloading and processing all of the items that had accumulated in that device's server queue while it was offline. These can be messages and attachments that you've already received on your other device(s), but the majority can also be read receipts and other hidden "messages" that are supposed to synchronize the desktop client's state with the state of your other device(s). The loading screen's number is not referring to any messages that have already been received and processed on that particular device previously.

I agree with @mcashm that a significant number of users misinterpret the loading screen's current text and that it could be improved. Perhaps it could be made to say "Loading data" or "Synchronizing" as has been suggested, and the number of loading "messages" could be turned into a progress bar that is capped at the same number as the server queue. If the user has fewer than the max number of "messages" queued and the loading screen finishes before the progress bar is full, that could just be a pleasant surprise.

[mcashm]

Agreed @Cerberus0 -- I think the very minimal amount of work to change the text "messages" to "data" would be worth the effort, though the progress bar would be nice to have.

[Meteor0id]

"data" is quite vague, it pertains only to something that tech savy people understand. Regular users would benefit from some text which relates to a real word things. Instead write something like "messages and attachments". It won't benefit the user to name every technical item which is being synchronized, users don't need to be bothered with synchronization of safety numbers and profile pictures. To solve the issue of the number of items not matching the named items, it's better to convert the number to a percentage, so users won;t be tempted to derive meaning from it other than how long it might take till everything is loaded.

Yes, that is right, I am proposing to show the user less detail by not showing the exact number of items which have been synchronized. But users don't need to think of all these items, those only clutter their experience. For users only messages and attachments matter. They expect the rest to be dealt with by the app itself in the background (and so it should be).

Let's not use the word "data" as that container term won't give users any clarity either. Let's instead not give the users an exact number where that has no meaning to them.

[swxxii]

I think the issue is the time it takes to do this, not so much the wording (tell me to log separate but if needed). I want an option to disable message sync on desktop. This sync makes the app take over 10s to load and I am a light user - can't imagine heavy users. Reading past messages is not why I use Signal on my PC. It's usually I found a link or want to send a quick message while I'm working on my PC.

[ralienpp]

What would also work out is to load the last N messages right away and open the UI, while older messages are loaded in the background at a slower pace.

An alternative would be to apply some "lazy loading" and only load them when the user scrolls the history back far enough when those old messages are actually needed.