Wikipedia is one of those interface designs that almost anyone would be able to reproduce with their eyes closed. There are mainly three reasons. The first is that its design is quite simple (in a good way), lacking any ornamentation. The second is that if I ask you to remember, you will surely remember that he looks the same today as he always did. That’s actually not true, it has undergone some changes to its interface over its lifetime, although admittedly they have been few and far between. The third reason is, of course, the intensive use that many people indulge in throughout the day, which is why it remains among the ten most visited sites on the Internet for a long time.

Now, if I tell you that if you entered the English version today or in the last few days, the other language versions (not the Spanish version at the moment, that will save you), you have seen the new interface, what would you think? No, right? You would notice this especially if you are a regular user of the site. Well, the truth is that yes, the Wikimedia Foundation has been testing the new design and after validating it, they have finally made the jump to the English version of Wikipedia and according to what they say its implementation in the remaining languages ​​is already underway.

And why do I say that many people didn’t notice? Because despite the fact that this is the first “major” redesign of its interface in more than ten years, the focus is not so much on the purely aesthetic side as on usability. For example, now the index of articles is always displayed on the left side, even if we scroll vertically through the record we are consulting, and we will also see the marked point of the article in which we are.

These are the main new features of the Wikipedia interface, according to the Wikimedia Foundation:

• Improved search, which now uses images and descriptions, makes it easier to find Wikipedia articles, resulting in a 30 percent increase in user searches, according to tests.
• More prominently placed language switching tools that allow multilingual readers and publishers to find their preferred language faster and switch between more than 300 languages.
• Updated sticky header with commonly used links like Search, Page Title, and Sections that move with logged in users when scrolling. This allows users to focus on reading and editing and reduces scrolling fatigue, with user tests showing a drop in scrolling speed of over 15 percent.
• Content that provides context about the article and the ability to navigate as you read.

As you can see, there are some very interesting new features in this new design, all aimed at improving the Wikipedia user experience. And personally, I think it’s sensational that design changes to a site like the great collaborative Internet encyclopedia are, in this sense, aimed both at improving the experience of those who already use Wikipedia regularly, and at helping those people whose poor usability makes their use difficult or impossible .

“Updating the Wikipedia desktop is one of the major improvements the Wikimedia Foundation is making to help people easily access the world’s knowledge, in support of our mission to ensure that everyone on the planet has free and equal access to the world. knowledge regardless of where they are. where they live or where they are from” said Selena Deckelmann, director of products and technology at the Wikimedia Foundation.. “The changes make it easier for people to find and learn from the work of our amazing volunteers. These features were created based on feedback from readers and volunteers around the world to meet the needs of our increasingly diverse audience while maintaining the simple and straightforward feel that millions of people have come to rely on over the past few years. 22 years“.