Twitter Reportedly Testing New Threaded Conversation Layout

KEY POINTS

Twitter has announced a new feature it is testing
The feature involves changing the layout to help users see who is talking to whom
The company is testing it via iOS app and web users

Twitter has announced that it is rolling out a new layout designed to help users read and follow conversations within the app. The new layout makes use of threaded conversations, similar to how conversations look like in other popular forum sites like Reddit.

The announcement comes by way of a tweet from the official @TwitterSupport account, which said the new layout will rollout to some iOS users as well as some who use the platform via the web. The new layout, it said, will feature lines and indentations intended to “make it clearer who is talking to whom” and to “fit more of the convo in one view.”

As seen in a GIF image accompanying the announcement, the new layout will look like this: tweets seen in the Home page will look the same, complete with timestamps and the number of likes, retweets and so on. Tapping or clicking on one particular tweet, however, shows the changes.

Selecting any tweet from the Home page opens a “Conversation” page with the chosen tweet on top. Replies to to that tweet will be shown beneath. Tapping on a certain reply with “Show replies” will show replies made to it.

The replies are arranged according to who they are meant for. These will be grouped according to branches, and will be connected using lines or threads so that users will easily see “who is talking to whom.” Sub-replies will be indented to indicate they all fall under the same branch (i.e. are talking to the same person).

Your conversations are the 💙 of Twitter, so we’re testing ways to make them easier to read and follow.

Some of you on iOS and web will see a new layout for replies with lines and indentations that make it clearer who is talking to whom and to fit more of the convo in one view. pic.twitter.com/sB2y09fG9t
— Twitter Support (@TwitterSupport) May 5, 2020

This new layout was first spotted by reverse engineer Jane Manchun Wong last year when Twitter first tested the feature its web app, after it appeared in the twttr app for iOS.

More changes

Those who take a good look at the new layout will notice that the Reply and Retweet icons are missing on the screen. That's because Twitter said it is also testing hiding these behind a tap for replies. The company also said that it is trying out a new feature that will let prompt the user to rethink and revise their replies if it contains “language that could be harmful.”