Yes but it's not really in keeping with how Wikidot operates.

Well, Wikidot is self-contained software:

• Possible to be a member of many communities.
• Private messaging system.
• Forums.
• Profiles.

So, it would seem natural that watching a thread would come with that package.

Most wikidot users (including myself) are now using the new forum standard anyway (like this one) which gives a lot more scope for customisation. It would be nice, though, if it was as easy to set up one of these new types as the old one.

Well, my point is that watching a thread does come with the package, because threads have RSS feeds by default.

Whether you'd click a "watch" link or the orange RSS icon brings the same result - you'll get a notification on new posts. The only difference is that RSS is the better way to do it. It won't clog your inbox. And if you insist on receiving email notifications anyway, you can still make RSS feeds produce emails, there many tools for that purpose.

So to achieve the same result as the rest of Wikidot's functions you must:
- Click the RSS icon.
- Find a reader you would like to use for all your RSS needs. Maybe you will have to find out what RSS is if you are new to that game.
- Set up a tool to email you on new replies (I would have to research this as I do not have that function set up on my reader).
- And then finally you are receiving notifications similar to pushing "watch this page" as you would with the rest of Wikidot pages.
¬

Well, things change and users would happen to learn new things much to their (or majority's) distaste to learning. With Windows 7 users have to learn to work with a new version of the OS. On Wikidot we happen to need learn new things as the platform evolves and adds new functionalities.

The case with RSS is that it is already a well established standard and once you come to use it, could save you really a lot of time. Not to speak of the great opportunities it provides impossible without it.

So users would have to:
1) know what RSS is - no need of complicated explanations, all they need to know is that this is a way to watch a thread;
2) click the RSS icon;
3) find a reader: not necessarily as most if not all popular browsers have built-in readers. But, anyway, they'd have to this only once. Same thing with opening an email account - you do have to find an email service provider first. Otherwise I recommend http://www.rssowl.org.

If your users subscribe via RSS they do not need to set up a tool to email them new replies. If they had to, there'd be no point in RSS at all. It is an option for those who insist to receive notification in their mailboxes. It does not come with readers. There are separate tools for this, just google "rss to email". Wikidot provides integration with one of them: http://community.wikidot.com/howto:be-notified-rss-feed-guide#toc5

Finally you are receiving notifications which are not clogging your mailbox where you expect important replies from people, you have a great variety of options how to be notified (pop-up, sound, tray icon effects) per feed and per folder, you can set check intervals, you can aggregate all different feeds into one, you can view the notification message on your desktop reader faster and easier than you would on most web based emails and most importantly - you do not receive each notification as a new message in an inbox but as a new post to a feed - that is a dramatic difference in terms of clutter.

You are preaching to the converted. My main point is that Wikidot should use one standard: either watch stuff or RSS it: ideally we should get the choice.

As for email clutter: labels and filters… easy. That's what I've done since day one of joining Wikidot.

Well, my point is that watching via email should be a dying standard and Wikidot need not invest time in that (even though the opposite is happening, with watching page changes and then you are right Wikidot is not following a single standard, nor providing both completely).