A Profile page identifies a user and lists that user's articles. Use it to review basic information and change whether you follow them.
Follow another user
The follow task belongs on the Profile page, alongside the user's basic information and article lists.
| If you need to… | Go to |
|---|---|
| Open an existing user's profile | View a profile |
| Read the user's posts or favorites | View My Posts and Favorited Posts |
| Follow or unfollow the user | Before you start, then Follow or unfollow the user |
| Change your own profile settings | Update settings |
| Sign in before changing the relationship | Sign in |
Before you start
Prerequisites
- Know the username for the profile you want to open.
- Open a profile that has loaded before selecting Follow
or Unfollow . - Sign in before following or unfollowing a user.
Open the user's Profile page using their username. If you select Follow
Find and open the profile
Use this task to open an existing user's profile. The profile route accepts the username as its parameter; creating a user is a separate task.
Steps
- Open the Profile route for the user whose username you want to view.
Result: The user's profile page opens when the profile data is available.
Read the profile header
The profile header is the area that identifies the user before you change the following relationship.
| Information | What appears on the page |
|---|---|
| Profile image | The user's image, with a default image applied when needed |
| Username | The user's username |
| Bio | The user's biography, or an empty area when no biography is available |
The article area provides two destinations:
| If you need to… | Select |
|---|---|
| Read articles created by the user | My Posts |
| Read articles the user has favorited | Favorited Posts |
For another user's profile, Follow
Follow or unfollow the user
Use this procedure when the profile header shows Follow
Prerequisites
- The user's profile is open and its profile information is visible.
- You are signed in.
Steps
-
Select the control that matches the relationship you want:
If the control says… Select it to… Follow Follow the displayed user Unfollow Stop following the displayed user
Result: The profile page receives the profile returned by the selected follow or unfollow operation.
Handle the profile and authentication branches
The available action depends on whose profile you opened and whether you already follow that user.
| What you see | What to do | Outcome |
|---|---|---|
| Follow | Select the button | The follow operation is used for the displayed user |
| Unfollow | Select the button | The unfollow operation is used for the displayed user |
| Edit Profile Settings | Select the link | Update settings opens for your own profile |
| Follow | Select the button | Sign in opens and the follow or unfollow operation is skipped |
Steps
- Select the button in the row that matches what you see in the profile header.
Result: The selected Follow
When the profile cannot load
The page lists a profile-load fallback when the profile request fails. A server-provided profile error can also appear in the page's error list.
| What you see | What it means | What to do |
|---|---|---|
Failed to load profile | The profile request returned without a usable profile error list | Read the displayed message |
Each value in `error.errors` | The profile request returned a server-provided profile error | Read the displayed message |
| No follow or unfollow success message | The page does not display a success message for that relationship operation | Check the profile header for the returned profile state |
| No follow or unfollow error message | The page does not display a relationship-specific error message | Check the profile header for the returned profile state |
After either relationship request, the page clears the submitting state on success or error. On success, it uses the returned profile; it does not display a follow or unfollow error message.
Know what happens next
After a successful relationship operation, the profile page receives the returned profile and updates its profile value. The next destination depends on the branch you took.
| After this branch… | Continue at… |
|---|---|
| You opened your own profile | Update settings through Edit Profile Settings |
| You are not signed in when you select Follow | Sign in |
| You followed or unfollowed another user | View a profile or return to the profile's article list |
Prerequisites
- The relationship operation has returned the profile page to its normal state.
Steps
- Select the next destination in the row that matches the branch you took.
Result: The destination named in the selected row opens, or the profile's article list is available again.
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