Notifications
=============

Notifications keep you in the loop without making the platform noisy. The **bell icon** in the header is your control centre.

The notification bell
---------------------

When you're signed in, the header shows a small **bell** with an **unread badge** if anything is waiting. The badge counts up in real time as new notifications arrive.

* **Click the bell** to open a dropdown with your most recent notifications and an action bar.
* Each notification shows a **type**, a **short description** ("alex commented on your post: …"), a **timestamp** ("5 minutes ago") and a **link** to the related content. Click it to open the post – the notification is marked as read automatically.

What you get notified about
---------------------------

We try to send only notifications that are actually useful:

* **New comment on your post** – someone commented on a wanted poster you wrote.
* **New direct message** – someone messaged you (also surfaced as the **chat icon** badge in the header – see :doc:`messaging`).

The notifications page
----------------------

For the full list with pagination and bulk actions, open the **notifications page** (``/notifications``) – the **View all** link in the dropdown takes you there.

.. screenshot:: notifications-page
   :alt: Notifications page
   :width: 100%
   :caption: The notifications page lists every notification with bulk actions.

On this page you can:

* **Mark all read** – removes the unread badge in one click.
* **Clear all** – deletes every notification (asks you to confirm).
* **Refresh** – reload the list.
* **Load more** – page through older notifications.

Empty list, fewer notifications
-------------------------------

* If there's nothing waiting, you'll see *"No notifications yet"*.
* The bell hides its badge when the unread count is zero.
* You don't currently get notifications for your own actions.

Privacy and visibility
----------------------

* Notifications are **only visible to you**.
* Each notification only links to content you would already be able to see.
* No e-mails are sent unless we say so explicitly. Your inbox stays calm.

Troubleshooting
---------------

* **No notifications at all** – make sure you're signed in. Check the network connection. A page refresh usually fixes a stale dropdown.
* **Wrong unread count** – use **Mark all read** to reset, then refresh the page.
* **Can't open the page** – verify you're signed in; the page is private. If the issue persists, see :doc:`troubleshooting`.

What's next?
------------

* :doc:`comments` – the comments that often trigger a notification.
* :doc:`messaging` – the chat icon and its own unread badge in the header.