769374 - Reader Mode: Long press on reader mode icon (and links) to add directly to reading list (feature request)

Status: RESOLVED WORKSFORME

(Firefox for Android Graveyard :: General, enhancement)

Description

[Kevin Ernst]

FEATURE REQUEST: Currently a long press on the AwesomeBar reader icon summons reader mode in full screen, *after which* you can add it to the reading list (subject to bug #766942). I (respectfully) request that the reader icon's functionality be enhanced such that a long press on the reader icon will directly queue the visible page for offline reading without rendering it on screen at that time. Also (and this may warrant a separate bug): that a long press on ALL page links offer an option in the pop-up to queue the destination page for offline reading. An example usage would be quickly adding multiple links to the offline reading list, e.g., from a news site's front page headlines.

Anyone who is a voracious consumer of news via social media and the web, who flies frequently or has a long subway ride or spotty mobile coverage, and has ever used a service/app like Instapaper will likely appreciate the requested workflow. 

POTENTIAL ISSUES:
- Rendering the "mobilized" version into offline storage in the background (preferred), or, if that isn't practicable, delaying rendering of the mobilized version until the user actually calls up the reading list (unintuitive and problematic).
- Re: long press for all page links, the question of how to deal with pages that reader mode can't parse: Load the whole page on demand and report problems immediately, report an error in the reading list when the user pulls it up later, or allow broken pages in the reading list (as Instapaper does, e.g., when an article is behind a paywall)? Whatever happens in this case, the originally requested link should be remembered so the user can either open it in the conventional browser view, or else try to re-fetch it for offline reading.

PRIOR ART:
Tapbot's Tweetbot and Reeder by Silvio Rizzi (both for iOS). Both register long presses for links, providing two-touch (long press, tap) support for various third-party "read-later" services.

Comment 1

[Tony Izzo]

+1 specifically with respect to the "Also" part - IE bypassing loading of the full page in order to get to reader mode, or at least queuing for background loading so you don't have to wait for the full page to load just to add it to the reading list.

Comment 2

[Lucas Rocha (:lucasr)]

This has been implemented in Firefox 24. Closing.