@ovasileva @Jdlrobson @Pginer-WMF @Amire80 — here is a simple sketch in order to get the conversation going:

Some questions that come to mind:

• When the links are shown could/should the language button be simplified (e.g. "95 more", remove the icon, etc.)?

The number that actually interests me is the total number of languages. As a user, what I don't like about the current sidebar button design is that when I want to know in how many languages is an article available, I have to calculate x + 9 (or x + 7). I'd prefer to just see the total number (including the current language).

I think that this is the number that is useful to most people, but you're welcome to test it properly.

• Should we make the links and the language button feel more like a single element?

Whatever works best for users, no opinion from me here.

• When will we show the links (e.g. only after you've switched languages once, etc.)?

Always show some languages if any languages are available. Don't wait for the first click. My hypothesis is that names of languages are the most important discoverability anchor. Not necessarily the word "languages", and certainly not the icon. They will help people who never clicked the languages button find it.

• Which links will we show? (this might already be handled by the existing compact language links logic?)

Yes, starting from these languages is probably a good idea. I am somewhat concerned that because we have 9 (or 7) in the current sidebar and much fewer (2 or 3) in the upcoming design, this may cause some issues, but that's just a feeling. Actual user testing will show if there are real reasons to be concerned. For now, pick the first X languages you want from ULS's algorithm.

The algorithm is described in English here:
https://www.mediawiki.org/wiki/Universal_Language_Selector/Compact_Language_Links#How_do_you_decide_which_languages_are_shown_to_me_in_the_initial_compact_list?

And in JavaScript here:
https://gerrit.wikimedia.org/r/plugins/gitiles/mediawiki/extensions/UniversalLanguageSelector/+/refs/heads/master/resources/js/ext.uls.compactlinks.js#252

On line 23 you can see that it's set to 9 languages by default. You'll have to do very little modification to get 2 or 3 or whatever number you need.

I do suggest considering making the number of initially shown languages to show responsive and not just hard-coded 2 or 3. Something like this:

• If there's one other language, easy: show the one.
• If there are 50 other languages, but you only have room for one on the screen, show one, but make it clear that there are more. (Not just "50 languages", but something extra, like a gradient, an ellipsis, or an explicit "More" label.)
• If there's room for 5 languages, show 5. But the obvious issue is how to define "room" without making it cluttered. I'd say that around 30% of the corner opposite the heading can be taken by languages, but I trust Real Designers to find the optimal number.

I kind of mentioned it already, but I have to reiterate: It's important to make people understand that there are more languages and not only the two or three that you show initially. Please check this in user testing.ranslatio

Finally, one more thing to consider is the Content Translation / Section Translation entry point.

• Will there be any user preferences that give the ability to configure how this works? Or perhaps the ability to set preferred languages (like the apps have)?

It's the most frequently asked questions from Wikipedians :)

The answer for the current Compact Language Links code is that every time you click a language, it is added to the top of your priority languages, and that's the way to select the languages you want. It's stored in preferences for logged-in users and in a cookie for anonymous users.

Nevertheless, Wikipedians keep asking about this. I guess that some people prefer a more explicit method to select things, for example a field in Special:Preferences (or maybe something else). I don't think it's really necessary, but I'm not opposed to it either. I'll leave it to the product manager.

• Will this only be for logged-in people? If so, why?

NO! Almost no one is logged in. It must be discoverable by everyone.

I also want to put another thought in your head: I know that it's specifically not what you're doing here, but nevertheless, how would you make something similar on mobile web?

• Should we consider using this space for variant switchers (for wikis that have variants)?

It may be a very good idea, but run user testing with users who read and write in such languages. (This must include users are experienced Wikipedians and users who are casual readers who never edit.)

Input from other Language team members (and everyone else) is very welcome.