iOS 10 Safari Tabs - Undelete

[AbblePC]

How many times have you been using Safari on current and previous versions of iOS for iPhone, when viewing multiple open tabs and accidentally swiped away a tab that you did not want to remove?

I wished Apple would allow the "Shake To Undo" feature as in many other Apps to allow the option to bring back an accidentally deleted tab. What a pain as it is now to go back through history and seek out the missing page, especially if the page was opened months or weeks prior.

Yes, I've used "Read It Later" feature or created bookmarks with a "home" icon to quickly go to a URL that is used often or to reference, but just leaving the tab in my safari in the background is much simpler and an "undo delete tab" after shaking the iPhone would just seem more fluent across the board and seems like it should have been there all along.

 

[C DM]

If you press and hold the "+" at the bottom center that will usually give you a list of recently closed tabs from where you can select to restore the tab you recently closed (accidentally or not). It's been in iOS for at least some time now.

 

[AbblePC]

If you press and hold the "+" at the bottom center that will usually give you a list of recently closed tabs from where you can select to restore the tab you recently closed (accidentally or not). It's been in iOS for at least some time now.

That's a nice feature, however a bit hidden and I will certainly make use of it in the future. However that only adds another issue, not being able to slide a previously closed tab item in that list and choose to delete it. Do they disappear automatically in 30 days or less or does it only list removed tabs from the last session?

I would still like a shake to undo as it would seamlessly work as does all other shake to undo actions built into stock and 3rd party apps.

 

[lagwagon]

I will never understand those who ask for something they think doesn't exist yet, get told that it is possible already and then complain it isn't good enough.

 

[Armen]

I will never understand those who ask for something they think doesn't exist yet, get told that it is possible alread and then complain it isn't good enough.

I never understood why people keep so many tabs open in Safari to begin with.

 

[AbblePC]

I will never understand those who ask for something they think doesn't exist yet, get told that it is possible already and then complain it isn't good enough.

Lagwagon, what I am asking for does not exist as Shake to undo tab delete.

I never understood why people keep so many tabs open in Safari to begin with.

Business work with great many details/clients and across multiple devices. Not your typical just browse Facebook and forums and that's it.

 

[Armen]

Business work with great many details/clients and across multiple devices. Not your typical just browse Facebook and forums and that's it.

Would you provide me an example? I'm really trying to understand the use case here.

 

[thebro20]

If you press and hold the "+" at the bottom center that will usually give you a list of recently closed tabs from where you can select to restore the tab you recently closed (accidentally or not). It's been in iOS for at least some time now.

This is pretty cool, I had no idea about this feature!

 

[lagwagon]

Lagwagon, what I am asking for does not exist as Shake to undo tab delete.

Not sure why you need it to be be some clunky Shake to Undo gesture. It's a phone with a touch screen, not a maracas. Apple has made it easy enough to bring back an accidentally removed tab with a specific option for that purpose. No searching through the History, most recent removed tabs appear at the top.

 

[Armen]

It's a phone with a touch screen, not a maracas.

You're killing me dude.

 

[AbblePC]

Not sure why you need it to be be some clunky Shake to Undo gesture. It's a phone with a touch screen, not a maracas. Apple has made it easy enough to bring back an accidentally removed tab with a specific option for that purpose. No searching through the History, most recent removed tabs appear at the top.

Just take a moment and step aside from your sarcasm a moment and do a little research into iOS history to see instances where this "clunky" feature, as you called it, has existed throughout iOS as an undo/redo last event for most typing fields and other activities or events, and has worked well for many people since iOS 3, it just feels missing in Safari tabs.
On the iPad it's a bit different as most people probably wouldn't pick up their iPad to shake for an undo as intuitively as they may on an iPhone that is already in hand.

Here is a brief list of a few instances where it is very applicable and handy to use:

1. Typing an entire paragraph and if editing the text by backspacing you went too far deleting more text than you expected, no worries jut "shake" to undo.
2. You paste an HTML based email signature or other text item into an email, but the format changed from the original, just "shake" and select undo format changes.
3. You accidentally delete an email, just "shake" and select undo delete.
4. While using an Apple Pencil or stylus and a drawn line is not wanted or made by mistake or it needs to be drawn or written differently, "shake" to undo last drawing change.
5. "Shake" to shuffle a playlist in iTunes. (No longer available since iOS 8.4 and later).
6. "Shake" to undo pasting or cutting an item or text.
The list goes on.

To answer Armen's question; While working with different clients and utilizing their web pages that have data sheets or other information pertaining to the current work flow, I will have each one in a tabbed page being referenced or accessed multiple times over a period of time, whether long or short, then deleted once the job or contract is completed never to be used again. If I would want to have it long term, that is when it would be bookmarked or added to the read it later option. Sometimes the tab is just there until I open it on another device using the "hand off" feature. Why I may have multiple tabs open at any given moment is not all that relevant. The main issue is when I accidentally delete a tab, my automatic muscle memory while using an iPhone is to just give a quick shake and select Undo, as I am very used to this feature. A feature that Apple purposefully placed into iOS as a means for a quick undo or redo without needing to navigate to other buttons or perform multiple taps or selections. It just feels faster to shake and hit undelete, than it does to go to the bottom and hold on + and wait for the list to appear, then to locate that page in the list and reopen the page. Also, after trying this option, I've noticed the recently closed tab items in the list disappear after the last safari browsing session was closed. Either way works, I'm just used to the shake feature and as ridiculous as it may seem or not, to some people it's very useful and intuitive, especially being that it is so widely available throughout iOS.

 

[oftheheavens]

This is pretty cool, I had no idea about this feature!

I didn't either. I have always wondered why apple didn't include a little book with hidden features such as this or include them on the website somewhere. If it wasn't for this forum I wouldn't know a lot of little hidden features.

 

[stooovie]

I didn't either. I have always wondered why apple didn't include a little book with hidden features such as this or include them on the website somewhere. If it wasn't for this forum I wouldn't know a lot of little hidden features.

But it does - in the free iOS manuals in iBooks and the Tip app!

 

[stooovie]

Undoing closing a tab is a nicety, not something everyone uses all the time. Touch interfaces are built for what most users use most of the time. Special features like these need to be hidden to not clutter the UI with superfluous controls that rarely get used. It's always a compromise.

 

[Skika]

There is no problem, its fine how it is. It doesnt make sense on the ipad, so then people would start shaking their ipads expecting it to work like on the iphone and it would be a mess.

 

[psionicsin]

So, @AbblePC...

To get this straight, you didn't realize that there was the press/hold "+" to undo deleting recently closed tabs. You were made aware of it. But you, instead, want it to be an already familiar function, shake to undo?

IF you are on iOS 10, which I'm assuming you are because you're in this forum, why not just report back on your issue? GRANTED, it has nothing to do with the beta functionality of iOS 10 and will probably get side stepped for more important functionality and feature refinements. Or, just send an email to Apple's iOS team.

Now with that being said, I came into the iPhone foray with an iPhone 4, and the press/hold "+" to undo recently deleted tabs was there. Just 1 generation after when you said iOS 3 used "Shake to Undo". My point in this is that just how "Shake to Undo" is a familiar gesture to you, so is the press/hold "+" for the people that knew about it.

So there are two very familiar things that have been integrated into iOS for some time now, given that we're on 10. I doubt that Apple will be changing that anytime soon. And there are many people, myself included, that turn off the (what I find annoying) "Shake to Undo" feature. So what does someone then do if "Shake to Undo" is turned off? Would they then revert to the current default press/hold "+"?

"Shake to Undo" is specific to text. Even on Android from what I last remember when I had one YEARS ago. It's meant to make the editing of text faster. And while I agree on the unification of gestures, this is one case where I don't think "Shake to Undo" would work. And I'd like to believe that people mistakingly close tabs a lot more than they "Shake to Undo". So if they integrated that, the whole world would get to shaking that device around for everything.

That shaking would then cause a stability problem because you can't always control if something remains in your hand or not. Violently shaking your phone for everything would increase your risk of dropping the device. And then insurance prices would be a lot higher for these devices because there will always be "THOSE PEOPLE".



After typing all of this out.........I think Apple needs to get rid of the "Shake to Undo", and replace it with a more elegant solution.

 

[Natya Sadella]

Shake to undo was EVER the first thing i disabled. Thanks to god that you are not working at apple

 

[psionicsin]

Shake to undo was EVER the first thing i disabled. Thanks to god that you are not working at apple

I said many people, not all. You were obviously not one of those people, which renders your response a bit perplexing.

Secondly, my suggestion of it's removal for a more elegant solution was based on my opinion and experiences. And you went further to insult me passively (or rather directly) to thank God I don't work at Apple because of my suggestion.

We should all strive for better. I'm a working, and very successful user experience designer for a Fortune 100 company. My team and I are responsible for solutions like this on the daily. I can assure you that I'm not the only one that shares those sentiments on a more elegant solution.

Unless...you just love to get all Shake Weighty with your phone.

 

[AbblePC]

I never said to remove the press and hold + to view recently removed tabs from iOS, merely just add in the shake to undo feature which is already used system wide.
A good example of adding a new feature which is system wide and does not need to be used if the end user chooses not to utilize or they don't have the hardware that supports it, is press and pop view.
The shake feature however is already a type of master undo - redo for multiple items on currently used iPhones for both stock and 3rd party apps alike and was the only option for a long time for undo delete or redo functions, until undo or redo buttons have been added to soft keyboards, which are not widely used and are in a less than likely visible area of the soft keyboards. And by the way, Shaking is not as violent a move as some have suggested, all it takes is just a slight jarring motion, like if you were flicking a fly away from your screen type movement. I find it amusing how people are over reacting to a simple feature that has pretty much always been there and behaving as though it takes a paint mixer to bring up an undo prompt on their iPhone.

I barely notice anymore when using the shake to undo move myself and a when used daily for editing and such, becomes quite handy and I have come to rely on or expect it to be there for any if not all undo-redo situations within iOS. More so on the iPhone than the iPad just for use reasons alone.
I think that shake to undo should be unified, not left out where it seems unlikely to be used. This way it's left to the end user to disable the feature system wide if they do not choose to use it.
Pressing and holding down on the + symbol is not very intutuitive (handy yes) but not very obvious, also tapping the + seems like a more likely function however that is already used to add a new tab to the browser. Without reading a manual it would probably never be found other than by accident, unlike shake to undo which is system wide and utilized for more than just editing text.

Honestly I think people that are not liking the suggestion of placing an already used feature into an area that just feels normal to us who have been using this feature all along, are just not fully aware of how much can and is done with the shake feature. Maybe the term "shake" is too direct and should be named more subtly, as in shift or bump to undo redo tasks. The accelerometer is not going away anytime soon, so why not make use of it as it was designed or intended and not just for gaming either. Which reminds me of another point, that most gamers would not want to use strictly just on screen actions when they can tilt or move the device to have a multitude of actions and without covering or touching their screen In the middle of a game. No more than I would want to shift the way I'm holding the phone and reach to the bottom of the screen and press and hold a button, instead of just shake, select undo. If you want, the option to press and hold the + is still there and can be used if desired.

FYI: This was reported on by me in the Apple Dev Reporter and I am glad I did mention something here in the forums, because I was made aware in the meantime of a function I was not previously aware of. I just wanted my input here and wished to see others as well, however did not expect a feature so widely used across many version of iOS to be met with so much friction. Just google shake to undo redo iOS feature and most links take you to pages that are there to merely explain the way to turn off the feature. Just surprising as I personally find it very useful and not just with my Safari tab suggestion as you can clearly see from my explanations above.

 

[lagwagon]

I never said to remove the press and hold + to view recently removed tabs from iOS, merely just add in the shake to undo feature which is already used system wide.
A good example of adding a new feature which is system wide and does not need to be used if the end user chooses not to utilize or they don't have the hardware that supports it, is press and pop view.
The shake feature however is already a type of master undo - redo for multiple items on currently used iPhones for both stock and 3rd party apps alike and was the only option for a long time for undo delete or redo functions, until undo or redo buttons have been added to soft keyboards, which are not widely used and are in a less than likely visible area of the soft keyboards. And by the way, Shaking is not as violent a move as some have suggested, all it takes is just a slight jarring motion, like if you were flicking a fly away from your screen type movement. I find it amusing how people are over reacting to a simple feature that has pretty much always been there and behaving as though it takes a paint mixer to bring up an undo prompt on their iPhone.

I barely notice anymore when using the shake to undo move myself and a when used daily for editing and such, becomes quite handy and I have come to rely on or expect it to be there for any if not all undo-redo situations within iOS. More so on the iPhone than the iPad just for use reasons alone.
I think that shake to undo should be unified, not left out where it seems unlikely to be used. This way it's left to the end user to disable the feature system wide if they do not choose to use it.
Pressing and holding down on the + symbol is not very intutuitive (handy yes) but not very obvious, also tapping the + seems like a more likely function however that is already used to add a new tab to the browser. Without reading a manual it would probably never be found other than by accident, unlike shake to undo which is system wide and utilized for more than just editing text.

Honestly I think people that are not liking the suggestion of placing an already used feature into an area that just feels normal to us who have been using this feature all along, are just not fully aware of how much can and is done with the shake feature. Maybe the term "shake" is too direct and should be named more subtly, as in shift or bump to undo redo tasks. The accelerometer is not going away anytime soon, so why not make use of it as it was designed or intended and not just for gaming either. Which reminds me of another point, that most gamers would not want to use strictly just on screen actions when they can tilt or move the device to have a multitude of actions and without covering or touching their screen In the middle of a game. No more than I would want to shift the way I'm holding the phone and reach to the bottom of the screen and press and hold a button, instead of just shake, select undo. If you want, the option to press and hold the + is still there and can be used if desired.

FYI: This was reported on by me in the Apple Dev Reporter and I am glad I did mention something here in the forums, because I was made aware in the meantime of a function I was not previously aware of. I just wanted my input here and wished to see others as well, however did not expect a feature so widely used across many version of iOS to be met with so much friction. Just google shake to undo redo iOS feature and most links take you to pages that are there to merely explain the way to turn off the feature. Just surprising as I personally find it very useful and not just with my Safari tab suggestion as you can clearly see from my explanations above.

You say long pressing the + isn't intuitive. Long press is one of the longest standing gestures for iPhones and provides multiple uses out of a single button. In this case Tap to add a tab, long press to add a recently deleted tab. Two functions related to tabs.

You say it's hidden. While not all long press features are known by every single user, it is still a gesture everyone knows and is extremely common in iOS or any smartphone/tablet for that matter. It's been around since day 1. It's used literally everywhere. Shaking your phone is NOT a common knowledge gesture at all. And quite honestly not as widely used in iOS as you keep saying it is, not by a long shot. It's mostly only used for undoing something in a text field. Go to a mall, walk up to 100 people you see with an iPhone, ask them if they use or even know about "shake to undo". I can almost guarantee the vast majority will have no clue it exists. Ask 1 000, 10 000, 100 000, 1 000 000, it wouldn't matter. So it's really funny you say that long press no one would discover and need a manual, but shake to undo is so widely used and system wide(which it's not) makes it more discoverable.

You say the accelerometer was designed and intended for shake to undo? Ummm, no it wasn't. It's a leftover gimmick from iPod shuffle days.

You keep saying it's so system wide and used everywhere. It's not. And you also say that googling it, most links take you to sites that explain how to disable it. I wonder why that is...couldn't be because no one uses it. (Not literally no one, but it is a very small percentage. Like single digit percentage) So thanks for proving that most search results on it are about how to turn it off.

Your poll asks "would you like an "Undo Tab Delete" feature in iOS 10?". The feature exists and has existed for a long time already. A feature you thought didn't exist, now is apparently not good enough because it isn't how you want it to be.

 

[oftheheavens]

But it does - in the free iOS manuals in iBooks and the Tip app!

touche'

 

[AbblePC]

You say long pressing the + isn't intuitive. Long press is one of the longest standing gestures for iPhones and provides multiple uses out of a single button. In this case Tap to add a tab, long press to add a recently deleted tab. Two functions related to tabs.

You say it's hidden. While not all long press features are known by every single user, it is still a gesture everyone knows and is extremely common in iOS or any smartphone/tablet for that matter. It's been around since day 1. It's used literally everywhere. Shaking your phone is NOT a common knowledge gesture at all. And quite honestly not as widely used in iOS as you keep saying it is, not by a long shot. It's mostly only used for undoing something in a text field. Go to a mall, walk up to 100 people you see with an iPhone, ask them if they use or even know about "shake to undo". I can almost guarantee the vast majority will have no clue it exists. Ask 1 000, 10 000, 100 000, 1 000 000, it wouldn't matter. So it's really funny you say that long press no one would discover and need a manual, but shake to undo is so widely used and system wide(which it's not) makes it more discoverable.

You say the accelerometer was designed and intended for shake to undo? Ummm, no it wasn't. It's a leftover gimmick from iPod shuffle days.

You keep saying it's so system wide and used everywhere. It's not. And you also say that googling it, most links take you to sites that explain how to disable it. I wonder why that is...couldn't be because no one uses it. (Not literally no one, but it is a very small percentage. Like single digit percentage) So thanks for proving that most search results on it are about how to turn it off.

Your poll asks "would you like an "Undo Tab Delete" feature in iOS 10?". The feature exists and has existed for a long time already. A feature you thought didn't exist, now is apparently not good enough because it isn't how you want it to be.

You are completely missing the boat on the purpose of this thread and at this point I believe you're just trolling or attempting to debate something that was not opened for debate to begin with, and just to get a rise from me personally. I think I've made it abundantly clear that this is a system wide feature that already exists and was merely inquiring if it should be used as suggested. Perhaps the poll I titled incorrectly but made up for that in my initial post regarding how it would be used and I did mention shake to undo as one of the response options of the poll. Also your entire argument is moot as to the basis of this poll and decided to go entirely off topic and poke fun at mine and others knowledge of features hidden throughout iOS. The shake to undo is not going away any time soon, is not just a gimmick and is actually an intended feature which remains useful by many others regardless of the guesstimate you provided in your fictitious mall survey. If you do not like its function you can opt not to use it or disable it as I can opt not to use long press or choose to use both when I wish to do so. I really don't think either is effecting you and see no other reason for you arguing anything here other than to devalue another persons ideals and to make yourself appear more intelligent than others.

 

[iphonedude2008]

Wow this got out of hand pretty quick. OP shake to undo is a bad idea for recently closed tabs because it's not designed for that type of interaction. Shake to undo works with text because you're just popping the last action (inputting or removing text) off the stack, requiring no extra user input after initiating the 'undo request', so to speak. With recently closed tabs, Apple presents a list of tabs you recently closed so that you can choose any of them to bring back. Shake to undo does not allow for that behavior, as it's not simply popping something off the stack; it needs a person to tell safari which tab they want back. Plus I can see that getting really annoying in actual use as it don't keep my phone still all the time while web browsing like I'm do while typing.