Tell HN: Don't Link to GitHub Template Repo's /Generate URLs

2 points

3 years ago

Github allows you to mark a repository as a template repository. E.g., [1]. A template repository can be used to quickly create a repository, and used by all sorts of project starters etc. If it is a template repository they show this nice big green button, "Use this template". The "Use this template" button is the most important button, if I send any traffic to a template repo, I want that to be the primary Call To Action on that page.

But this button is only visible to people who are a. logged in users and b. using desktop and c. have wide enough browser. If you are not logged in, or using mobile app, or desktop browser is not wide enough, the "Use this template" is hidden.

Github also has a URL for creating a new repo from a template action, which is linked to by the big green button (`<repo-url>/generate`, e.g., [2]). You would think that it's alright if the Github UI is not showing the button, I will just link to it from the README etc, but unfortunately Github has decided to show 404 if you are not logged in user.

Even if the user is logged in on Github mobile app (I have only checked it on iOS), the mobile app does not intercept this link, and takes you to your device browser, which I, and I presume many, typically leave in private browsing mode, where you may not be logged in on Github, leading to a 404 in your README.

It's quite baffling series of product decisions by Github. The make it a really large green button when it shows up, so they do consider it an important action, and yet it's given such a step button treatment everywhere.

[1] Example template repo: https://github.com/fastn-stack/fastn-template [2] Example template repo's generate URL: https://github.com/fastn-stack/fastn-template/generate