As you may or may not be aware, combat mechanics were altered slightly in 1.9.1, but this small change really makes a difference. Combat has undergone many changes throughout the versions of 1.9, so I will take a little time to discuss 3 different versions of minecraft combat, pre-1.9, 1.9, and 1.9.1, and discuss the pros and cons of each system.

Pre-1.9

Pros: Simplicity. The sword says a damage amount on it. When you swing the sword, it deals that amount of damage. What you see is what you get. Some players prefer this system because they feel that minecraft was not designed around combat.

Cons: Lack of depth. You win a fight in minecraft 1.8 by swinging your sword at something until it dies. This means that unless you have good armor and a good sword, you will most likely lose to someone who has better gear than you. This system is not dependent on strategy so much as resources and status.

1.9

Pros: Strategy. This version of minecraft establishes the cooldown, and makes axes a viable weapon. This means that combat isn't so much about how fast one can swing their sword, but their timing. A sufficiently skilled player can defeat a diamond-clad juggernaut with proper timing and weapon choices.

Cons: Complexity. What you see is not what you get, which makes it confusing for new players and returning vetarans who attempt to use the pre-1.9 strategy, which is no longer viable. Similarly, because the attack indicator is off by default, it will leave these players wondering why they cannot deal any damage, as the charge mechanic is not immediately obvious.

1.9.1:

Pros: Visibility. In this upcoming version of minecraft, players will not be able to attack unless it is at least 70% charged. This makes the charge mechanic more obvious to the aforementioned players by visibly restricting them.

Cons: Spamming your weapon is now a valid strategy again. You can click your mouse as fast as you want and you get attacks that all deal 70% damage. With stone swords this is particularly obvious, as enemies will actually die faster by spamming a stone sword than by carefully timing it. This removes some of the depth that was apparent in the 1.9 version of combat.

Now some personal thoughts, I prefer the 1.9 version of combat over 1.9.1, because to me, the 70% change doesn't make a whole lot of sense. Why implement that, if in the same update, shields don't lose durability if you hit and it deals negligible damage? This is a safeguard against spamming, but truly spamming isn't even possible in the same update. The 70% change just seems tacked on.

What I feel should be done is that the 70% change should be reverted, as frankly it was a step backward. Because of this loss of visibility to the aforementioned players, I propose that the attack indicator simply be enabled by default.

Also, kudos to whoever can tell what the title of this page is referencing.