# Feedback and surveys

Use **Feedback** in the header to report a bug, suggest a change, or answer a survey. Submissions reach your instance admins. This is separate from **practice feedback**, which Hephaestus gives you about your work.

## Share an idea, report a bug, send feedback

1. Select **Feedback** in the header.
2. Select **Share an idea**, **Report a bug**, or **Send feedback**.
3. Enter the details the dialog asks for.
4. Choose whether to include your page and browser with **Attach the page and browser you’re on**.
5. Select **Send**.

Wait one minute before you send another submission. For a bug, describe the action, what happened, and what you expected. For example: “I selected Copy as Markdown on Activity, but the clipboard was empty.”

You can change the kind of submission in the dialog without losing your text. Your submission goes directly to instance admins, with your name and contact address so they can follow up. To discuss in public instead, select **Open an issue on GitHub** in the same menu. It opens the public issue tracker.

**Attach the page and browser you’re on** adds the page path and browser identification that the dialog shows. This helps reproduce a bug. It starts selected for bug reports and cleared otherwise. It never attaches query parameters, page contents, or logs.

If the submission goes through, the dialog clears your draft and says thanks. If it does not, the dialog keeps your draft and explains why. If you close the dialog, the draft stays until you reload, switch workspace, or sign out.

## Answer a survey

Surveys appear in the same **Feedback** menu, under **Surveys waiting for you**. Each shows its question count and approximate duration. A count on the **Feedback** button shows how many surveys are waiting. A short notice announces each new survey once but never opens it automatically.

Before the first question, the survey identifies who reads answers. Instance admins read **product** surveys, which are not research. A **Research** survey belongs to the research run by the organization named in the **Allow research use of your data?** question. It is available only while you allow research use. Its answers are research data, separate from product feedback.

You can withdraw at any time in **User settings → Research participation**. Withdrawal stops research survey invitations and new research use of your answers. [Your data in Hephaestus](/user/privacy.md#research-participation) explains what happens to data already collected. Your instance’s privacy contact handles questions about existing research data and your rights.

1. Select **Feedback** in the header.
2. Under **Surveys waiting for you**, select a survey.
3. Read who receives the answers.
4. If you want to take part, answer the current question.
5. To continue after an answer, select **Next**.
6. To leave an optional question unanswered, select **Skip**.
7. To return to an earlier question, select **Previous**.
8. On the last question, select **Send answers**.

The survey shows one question at a time. **Next** requires an answer. On the last optional question, **Skip** reads **Skip and send**. Some choice questions accept text under **Something else**. In a single-choice question, your text replaces an option. In a multiple-choice question, it adds to the options.

Where shown, number or letter keys select a choice. Enter continues, except in free-text answers, where it starts a new line. Press Ctrl+Enter, or ⌘+Enter on a Mac, to continue from a free-text answer. If you close the dialog, it keeps your draft and current question. A reload, a workspace exit, or a sign-out clears both.

To remove an invitation on all your devices:

1. Select **Decline survey**.
2. If you declined by mistake, select **Undo** in the notice.

If you close the dialog, you do not decline the survey. You cannot answer or restore a paused, ended, or deleted survey.

## Privacy and help

Your feedback and survey answers link to your account. They are not anonymous. [Privacy](/user/privacy.md) gives your instance’s privacy information.

1. Do not include secrets or personal data about others.
2. To object to processing or ask for a submission to be removed, use the contact in **Privacy**.
3. For urgent or confidential reports, use your established support or security-reporting channel.

## Email invitations

Email invitations are optional where offered. Product-survey and research-survey emails are separate choices. Both are off by default. Research emails do not allow research use for you. Research invitations also require that you allow research use.

1. Open **User settings → Email notifications**.
2. Choose **Product survey invitations** and **Research survey invitations** separately.

Your verified contact address comes from a connected sign-in provider. New email subscriptions require that address. You can turn off existing subscriptions if the address loses verification or you lose instance admin access. If new email choices are unavailable, you can still turn off existing subscriptions. Surveys still appear in Hephaestus without email invitations.

After sign-in, each invitation opens the survey in an eligible workspace. It no longer applies if you answered, declined, left the workspace, or the survey closed. Email acceptance does not count as a survey view or answer. Emails contain no tracking pixels or survey answers.

An instance admin may request one reminder with the invitation. It is sent at least 72 hours after the first email is accepted. You get it only if you are still eligible and have not answered or declined. It does not repeat. Unsubscribing prevents it. A survey pause cancels pending invitations and reminders, even if the survey resumes later.

Instance admins have a separate, optional **Survey summaries** subscription. These emails contain participation totals after a survey ends, not individual answers. Your survey-email preferences neither subscribe you to summaries nor change research consent.

To unsubscribe without signing in:

1. Select the unsubscribe link in an email.
2. On the page that opens, select **Unsubscribe**.

The link alone changes nothing. You can also change your subscriptions in **User settings**. Your mail app may offer its own one-click unsubscribe action. Your other subscriptions, essential account-security confirmations, and deletion confirmations do not change. You can opt in again in **User settings**. This does not restart invitations, reminders, or summaries requested before the new opt-in.