Double Click on Field Name - Restore Customize Field Functionality!

[Paul_Warren1]

Hello Airtable, Please, please please reverse this change!

Double-clicking on the field name now only modifies the name of the field. It is a pain to have to right-click to access this menu. I don’t want to be overdramatic and claim this will totally ruin Airtable, but it’s much less efficient than the old method.

I also noticed that when creating a new field, the field type is now the first dialog. Then we are prompted to put in a name. This is fine and I can get used to the new workflow. I understand that this reduces the number of times I use “Tab” to move between dialog boxes.

I love Airtable and hope it continues to make progress! Just not the progress I don’t like :stuck_out_tongue_winking_eye:

[M_k]

Hi @ScottWorld

I would strongly suggest that you send Airtable an email about this most insane latest change.

It seems instead of making things better, they made things worse.

Mary

[ScottWorld]

Yeah, I sent Airtable Support an email earlier today about the first batch of these changes, and just now sent them a 2nd email about this 3rd change.

I even outlined my first 2 reasons in the email to the support team, and as expected from Airtable Support, the guy wrote me back and said this:

Would you be willing to share specific use cases of how this hasn’t worked for you so that I can give the reasoning to the product team? If you have any suggestions of what you would like to see in regards to field creation and editing, let me know.

After I had already told him the first 2 reasons above, he wants to know specific use cases?? And he wants a suggestion of what I would like to see in field creation & editing?? Yeah, how about LEAVE IT ALONE since it was working 100% perfectly fine before.

To recap the 3 issues from above in one convenient list:

1. First of all, now we can’t edit fields on mobile web browsers anymore, so now we’re required to use a desktop computer to make any changes to our fields. I would love for Airtable to please explain to me how this has made our lives easier. (Or maybe explain why mobile browsers have been shunned altogether in the product.)

2. Second of all, it makes absolutely no sense for the customization/creation of fields to be separated from the renaming of the fields. It was completely easy & straightforward before, and now they’ve made this a 2-step process that is unintuitive & ridiculous, especially for new users. I would love for Airtable to please explain to me how this made our lives easier.

3. Now when you create a new field, are you ready for this? Sit down for this one. The ABSOLUTE GENIUSES at Airtable have decided that we don’t need to see any of the options for the fields that we create. Whenever you create a new field, it doesn’t show you any of the options for that field. It literally just creates the field. So if you want to make ANY changes to the field options at all (even as simple as adding the “time” to a date field, or changing the options for a “last modified time” field, or ANY OPTIONS AT ALL ), you have to create the field once, then you have to GO BACK INTO THE CUSTOMIZE FIELD OPTION AGAIN to find the options and change the options. Oh, and then, you have to take a 3rd action to RENAME THE FIELD . So now, creating a field & choosing its options now takes 3 DISTINCT STEPS that are extremely confusing for the user (especially if the user doesn’t even know that there are options available): 1) create the field, 2) rename the field, 3) go back into the field customization and choose its options. What ever happened to keeping things easy & understandable & simple & straightforward for the user?

Think about the insanity of just decision #3 alone. Now, new users aren’t even shown that there are field options for the different fields they’re creating. This makes the product infinitely more difficult & frustrating to use.

@Stephen_Suen @Alex.Wolfe @VictoriaPlummer @Halley_Johnson @somehats @Pooja_Raman @Shrey_Banga @Taylor_Savage @Adam_Minich

[Kamille_Parks]

ScottWorld:

Yeah, how about LEAVE IT ALONE since it was working 100% perfectly fine before.

I respect that’s your position but I for one will keep asking for the “don’t create the new field until the options have been set” change since that was a point of frustration for me and a change that had merit.

Everything else of the original workflow, in my view, should remain.

[ScottWorld]

Kamille_Parks:

I respect that’s your position but I for one will keep asking for the “don’t create the new field until the options have been set” change since that was a point of frustration for me and a change that had merit.

I’m not sure I understand? In the past, when you created a new field, everything was on one unified screen: (1) the field name, (2) the field type, and (3) the field options. Now, this one easy-to-use screen has been separated into 3 steps, 2 of which are now hidden from the user.

Ohhhhh, wait — I think you’re talking about if you CANCEL out of creating a field, then the field shouldn’t be created at all. Is that what you’re saying? Yes, that makes perfect 100% sense and totally agree with you 100% on that. That is the only good change that has come out of this fiasco. I totally & completely agree with this.

[Kamille_Parks]

Yep. Before a new field was made instantly with a default name applied (something like “Field #5”), and no settings being applied. Then the dialog pops up and you customize some options and rename it (in the same box :)), then click save/update. I have never liked that workflow. Ideally, for me at least, you set the name and options for a new field, then click save, then the field is created.

[M_k]

@ScottWorld

It sounds like you have been pretty precise about your explanations.

Hopefully, they will see the “error of their ways” and change it back.

I don’t even think this latest change will even help the new users of Airtable, which kinda defeats the whole purpose.

I certainly understand your frustrations.

Here’s hoping that this will be resolved to everyone’s satisfaction and soon.

Mary

[ScottWorld]

Kamille_Parks:

Yep. Before a new field was made instantly with a default name applied (something like “Field #5”), and no settings being applied. Then the dialog pops up and you customize some options and rename it (in the same box :)), then click save/update. I have never liked that workflow. Ideally, for me at least, you set the name and options for a new field, then click save, then the field is created.

Yessss… totally agree with this 100%. Totally onboard with you here. This was also one of my all-time biggest frustrations with Airtable.

So at least they got one thing right with this change. :joy: :grinning_face_with_sweat:

[ScottWorld]

M_k:

I don’t even think this latest change will even help the new users of Airtable, which kinda defeats the whole purpose.

I certainly understand your frustrations.

Here’s hoping that this will be resolved to everyone’s satisfaction and soon.

I feel like Airtable is writing the playbook on how to turn their biggest Airtable evangelist into their biggest Airtable cynic, skeptic, and doubter. I haven’t been this angry in a long time.

To sum up what’s happened here:

1. The Airtable engineering team took a process which was easy-to-understand for all users (both newbies & advanced users), and which only took one simple step to accomplish…

2. … and they turned it into 3 completely separate steps which are confusing, difficult, hidden, time-consuming, takes extra knowledge & extra time, and doesn’t work on mobile web browsers.

3. The only good thing to come out of this change, as @Kamille_Parks mentioned above, is that Airtable no longer creates an extraneous field if you cancel out of the field creation process.

Everybody, please email support@airtable.com about this change. They are completely out of touch with their users, and they need to hear your complaints directly.

@Stephen_Suen @Alex.Wolfe @VictoriaPlummer @Halley_Johnson @somehats @Pooja_Raman @Shrey_Banga @Taylor_Savage @Adam_Minich

[andywingrave]

Yeah - would love someone to chime in from Airtable. It feels a bit like this:

[Bill_French]

ScottWorld:

Here’s the 3rd thing

There’s only 3? …