Right now, using the note markup for spoilers is frowned upon. I presume there is a good reason for this beyond "you're supposed to use the spoiler markup".
In any case, the way people use the spoiler markup now, including hiding gender-specific pronouns and short phrases within longer sentences, I doubt forcing all spoilers to work like the note markup is practical, and wouldn't completely avoid the Self Fulfilling Spoiler.
The current spoiler code has it's problems, but that'd be about as annoying. My favourite way of handling spoilers is to have hovering over it display the text
Hi
![[up]](https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/smiles/arrow_up.png "[up]"){kind=icon}
I don't think I'd mind switching to that format.
Still just awesome like that
The problem there, though, would be that mobile users would get the short end of the stick there.
Insert witty 'n clever quip here.
TVT is getting a mobile version of the site though, isn't it? Maybe the mobile version can use a different method.
Trans Siberian Anarchestra (it/they)
Mobile version already got the short end of the stick - at least in iOS, highlighting spoiler text doesn't make it visible. You have to copy it to a textbox in order to read it (possibly causing the page to refresh when you come back). :P
At least there's a toggle switch on the left side of the page now, though, which is already a fantastic step forward.
The Revolution Will Not Be Tropeable
This should be reposted in Query Wishlist, closing here.
"For a successful technology, reality must take precedence over public relations, for Nature cannot be fooled." - Richard Feynman
With the site undergoing a major rehaul in the near future, I'd like to propose a change to the way that the spoiler tags work. The current set of white bars does look kind of ugly, especially if it makes large sections of the trope pages look like classified documents. This is also part of the reason for the current spoiler policy, which I find less than ideal.
My proposal is to change the spoiler tags to work more like the note tag, being invisible until clicked on. This solves the issue of the white bars, and prevents people from being spoiled by links to trope pages within the spoiler bars.
Here's an example.
or
Perhaps the little "note" section can be used to write in context for the spoiler within, in case people want to know what part of the series the spoiler is for before clicking on it. So, for instance, in the example above, the words "Spoilers for Empire Strikes Back" can be written in by the troper making the example. Then, once it's clicked on, it will list the full spoiler.
So, what do you think? Is this idea feasible?