Preview panes preserve reading flow

Andy Matuschak’s Notes taught me this: preview panes preserve reading flow.

When you hover over a link, you see a preview of what’s on that page. You can read ahead without clicking. This lets you stay in your current context while exploring tangents.

I often hover over 3-4 links in a paragraph, read the previews, and never click any of them. The previews gave me enough context to keep reading. Flow never broke.

This is a core UX principle for Commune. Don’t make people click blind. Let them see what’s next before committing.

The star system should follow this too. Hover over a star, see note-specific stats. “This note is starred because it’s the 2nd most linked note out of 583 notes.” Click to open a full pane with details.

The challenge is Mobile preview without breaking flow. Mobile doesn’t have hover. Need to find an equivalent interaction that matches the preview value.

This principle shapes every interaction decision. If a feature requires blind clicks, it probably needs rethinking.