Label changes in the Dashboard and Builder

Announcements
1

What? :tada:

We are changing some labels in the Dashboard and Builder.

  • “Schema” will be called “Data”
  • “Objects” will be “Tables”
  • In the Dashboard, we are changing the copy from “Knack Builder” to “Knack Dashboard”, to correctly reflect what screen it is.
  • In Pages (Views), “Tables” will be called “Grids” or “Grid Views”.
  • These will be purely UI copy changes.
  • The code, api endpoints, and urls are not changing.

Why? :slightly_smiling_face:

As a no-code database, the nomenclature we use is a very important tool for organizing and communicating information in a clear, consistent, and inclusive way.

We will be making incremental improvements to the dashboard and builder for better usability, functionality, and modern design, and the new labels are inline and conducive to that future work.

What else? :asterisk:

The current icons that represent both current and future terminology will be updated soon to better reflect the new labels.

We will be updating the Knowledge Base articles to reflect these changes.

When? :date:

Tuesday, March 14

Cheers,
Kara

4 Likes
2

That’s welcome news. But don’t forget this one: “modal” (as used by Knack) is really “modeless”.

Thanks!

3

Hi.

I think this is a terrible idea. A table is exactly what it is on the front end. It is not a grid view in html. I really think these changes will hinder people, who will have to alter their Google searches to match what these things are IRL.

Craig

1 Like
4

I just wish you’d spend more time on the usability of the backend. Rather than changing terms which are used throughout database design. The schema is not data the data is the bits of information that make a record. I’m completely flabbergasted that you would put your time into this instead of bringing new feature request which could be helpful. I’m sorry but it is frustrating waiting for new features which could really help you to become a no code database. Rant over. I hope you will continue to improve the backend.

5 Likes
5

Hi Kara,

As a no-code database, the nomenclature we use is a very important tool for organizing and communicating information in a clear, consistent, and inclusive way.

Very important indeed.

I understand all the changes listed except “Schema” will be called “Data”. As @CSWinnall is saying:

The schema is not data. the data is the bits of information that make a record.

You say that

  • The code, api endpoints, and urls are not changing.

but the actual code for a table use “t” for table. If it is called Grid than it breaks the logic of the code name.

Thinking more about it, I think Objects is better name than Tables. I explain why:
It is surely correct that in the builder, for ease of use, they are presented as tables. But do not have to. They could be presented inside the builder as the various views offered for the Pages views (Lists, etc.). Using the name Tables is reductor of the scope of the possible views. It creates confusion.

People did not know what was a hard drive, a link, a difusion list, skins, etc. They learned and the added vocabulary made them more precise in their communications, more flexible and more creative. Same for WordPress.

I think “Object” when explained is easily understood for a no-code platform user. And the strentgh of this word is that the object can be viewed in the App in many different forms: table, list, etc.

Please, reflect on the minimum education level of the average no-code Knack builders.

So, the intention is very good, but careful not falling in the extreme, and maybe not even a priority.

2 Likes
6

Hi Kara

I am in agreement with all of these changes. The terms will much more in line with all other end user focused database products from whatever era (dBase, Access, Airtable etc).

Data would perhaps make more sense if the Records option were back to being only a tab within the Table page (as it used to be in the old builder I think) - but I like having the option of going straight to records in the left hand menu so am quite happy with the new ideas.

Julian

2 Likes
7

Thanks, everyone, for the feedback.
Please be assured that we are continuously working on a large number of new features, bug fixes, and backend performance and reliability improvements.
These label changes are part of a larger plan that will ease the learning curve for new users.
Cheers,
Kara

2 Likes
8

Hi Kara,
This is, again, another brute force change without proper end user consultation and testing!
In this case, a simple user survey can easily be done and increase user satisfaction. However, same as the last few changes, nothing is done from Knack. And the result will be beared by the Knack users.
Why is this happening again and agin? Perhaps the Knack management thinks that they are right forever.

2 Likes
9

Hi Alex,
Thanks for your feedback.
This was not a change that was made on a whim - there were multiple surveys sent to different types of customers and trialers, and dozens of hours of user research, testing, and ideations.
The end result that will be felt by the Knack users, is hopefully, more Knack customers like you, since they won’t be intimidated by the wording and drop off the platform right away.
This was not a breaking change, and is one step of many that we are taking to make Knack better. I can’t post more details publicly about that right now, as it is still a work in progress.
If you would like an overview of the research put into this, I would be happy to chat with you on a call.
I am hoping that people will get to a place of trust with Knack and our new leadership and product teams, and know that we have plans beyond this that we think will be welcomed by current and new customers.

Cheers,
Kara

1 Like
10

Yes! :+1: that objects are now tables and the view of them is called a grid view. Being old school, tables is what I called the objects anyway (which led to confusion in one community article, because I called them tables not objects, lol). So yes! Less confusion (standardising the wording to be consistent with other providers does also offer benefits).

Its not a big deal, but similar to @MichaelG , @CSWinnall and @JulianKirkness , the only thing that don’t get is the change to Schema > Data. It’s more than data.
Tables are just part of the schema (which incl. tables, views, joins, indices, tasks, stored procedures, etc).
To me, Data is another name for the records (ie rows in the tables).

So I don’t get the change from Schema to Data just yet, but happy to see how it plays out.

11

Since Kara has come on board there is definitely more transparency. However, I would argue not enough transparency. Among other things, we need a roadmap. Other products have them. I don’t know if the Knack leadership is concerned that providing a definitive roadmap would give competitors a jump on Knack, but I doubt it. Many other products come out with weekly, if not daily, updates. So arguably, it’s Knack that needs to catch up. So far we know there are some kind of mysterious back-end changes taking place. And, yes, Knack performance has improved in many areas since the last upgrade. But other than that there have been a few minor tweaks. If you want to encourage customers, new prospects and others, we need more information on where Knack is heading.

Here’s a suggestion - and you probably already know this - don’t limit your focus to current customer needs only. Think of what will attract new customers. A roadmap and a steady stream of new features will go a long way towards that end.

3 Likes
12

@PeterJurgen are you referring to modal, like in this example?

image
image1349×891 31 KB

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Hi Kara,

Yes, that’s it.

Thanks

–

For the benefit of anyone who is not familiar with the definition of a modal window (not you, Kara), here it is from Wikipedia:

A modal window creates a mode that disables the main window but keeps it visible, with the modal window as a child window in front of it.

1 Like
14

Knack’s use of modal is correct. When a page displays as a modal, you cannot interact with the page that it is displaying on top of, without first closing the modal. In web design, that’s the definition of a modal.

1 Like
15

When a Knack page display’s as “modal”, it is not modal. You can click on the page background and the dialog goes away - unless you use a JavaScript workaround.

2 Likes
16

Wow! I never realized that. Indeed, it should not be possible to click somewhere else than inside the popup window (modal).

Some time the popup is a form, and it is easy to lose the written text by an unintended click outside the modal.

1 Like