Forum upgrade

[hilary]

I upgraded the forum yesterday to version 3.7. This brings good news, and also mess-ups.

To see the mess-up, visit any user's profile page. The dinner of a big, hairy dog it is. I've asked Ewald to take a look, and he should have time tomorrow to sort things out. (This is a better solution than having me spend hours of trial and error flailing about in css code I don't understand. Believe me.)

There are elements on that page I want to get rid of, too - but that'll be easier when they're not all on top of one another.

Good news:

• nothing broke!
• there will be new 'social' functions in due course
• there are a couple of new and quite painless ways you can help the site...

You'll find these at the end of each thread: a 'tags' section and links to social bookmarking sites. If you take a few minutes to bookmark your favourite threads, that'll bring us fresh, interested visitors. And if you take a few seconds to add relevant tags to a thread, that'll help to make it a lot easier to find related threads.

Obviously we have a few years' catching up to do on the tagging, but ultimately this can give us a completely human-intelligence-generated way of finding related threads. This works better than a) the inbuilt forum search (which doesn't, of course, know that 'junzi' means 'noble one' or 'changing lines' means 'moving lines') and b) the broad division into different forums.

 

[mudpie]

Just want to note that on my aol screen, I can no longer post messages, I get the message that my post is too short . also on the aol screen, the little "search" tab at the top no longer works. on this internet access, which is not aol, i have no problem with either posting or using the search tab. dont know if it affects anyone else or maybe it is just AOL or maybe it is my version of aol

 

[hilary]

Hi Listener,

Ack. Explain a bit more to me about this, and I'll report it to the people at Vbulletin. What's an AOL screen? A special AOL browser on an ordinary computer? Something running on a handheld device?

 

[Trojina]

When i go to 'Talk' the screen has gone peculiar with the intro text all in a long line down the left side rather than accross the screen. Still usable but have to scroll a long way down to get to Shared area etc Doesn't bother me but thought I'd let you know

 

[hilary]

Oh yes... so it has. Of course I'm always logged in, so I hadn't seen that. Thanks. I'll pass this on to Ewald, too.

 

[mudpie]

AOL is just my most usual internet access, where I log on when i want to go online. but i can use Internet Explorer from another Internet Provider, which I am right now, so if no one else is affected, there is no concern. its probably just my 29 karma, what else is new

 

[hilary]

I expect you could also use Internet Explorer after connecting with AOL, couldn't you? Not that I ever had an account with them, but a friend did, and she could use any browser once connected.

Just to make sure I have this straight: you're using an ordinary computer (Windows or Mac?) and connecting with AOL, and then using their default browser? And it gives you this message that your reply is too short to post? (Weird...)

Ah. Karma. I think I must have done something really bad to a computer in a past life. Highlights of the past week include munged forum pages, hacked blog, and not one but three problems cropping up simultaneously with the order system.

 

[mudpie]

I
Ah. Karma. I think I must have done something really bad to a computer in a past life.

LOL

 

[mudpie]

and yes, an ordinary pc, windows xp, with aol installed on it ( and aol uses internet explorer as default browser).

but my internet is from cable, optimum online, so I dont HAVE to use AOL, i just do because all my bookmarks are there etc...

it is interesting because If i write a post (on clarity, while on my aol screen), the post doesnt register, I get the message one would get if you tried to submit an empty post.
but again, dont trouble yourself about it, it seems to be peculiar to my computer, else you would have heard of trouble from others!

 

[hilary]

I think I did specifically bad things to a web server, or possibly a MySql database.

I've heard from two people now that when they log in here, they're seeing someone else's name. This sounds like a pretty severe problem, and now I really need more information to take to the help desk people.

• If this happens to you, which page are you on?
• Try clicking through to your amember profile page as well as the forum pages. Does the problem persist?
• Who are you logged in as?

Please contact me asap to let me know. (Click my username above this post and choose 'send email to Hilary'.)

 

[hilary]

OK, that should be fixed now - turned out to be a trivial personal mess-up, not catastrophic database corruption after all. That's nice, isn't it? :bag:

 

[dobro p]

When i go to 'Talk' the screen has gone peculiar with the intro text all in a long line down the left side rather than accross the screen. Still usable but have to scroll a long way down to get to Shared area etc Doesn't bother me but thought I'd let you know

Gee, I'd thought that it was a new, trendy webdesign feature of the site. I'm always giving people credit for knowing what they're doing even when they're not. Except me lol.

 

[hilary]

Right. A subtle imitation of Chinese calligraphy written top-to-bottom, that's what it was. (Now restored to something more conventional.)

As far as I know, the only thing still bust is the menu positioning on the profile page. I have an idea of how to fix it, and I'll get to it very soon.

Update: fixed! Hooray!

 

[proserpine]

AOL and problem? perhaps myself too

I'm not sure it's just listener.
I use AOL but receive it through Verizon now, it's no longer "really" AOL, (I know that sounds silly to say it that way).But I remember yesterday? maybe? answering something and it did say something about making the post longer than [whatever]to be able to be posted.
Since I rarely say only a few words, that was no problem.

 

[proserpine]

computer problems here with Aol(?)

Ai.Might've not bothered to chime in here--you fixed it anyway, Hilary.

 

[hilary]

No, I didn't fix anything AOL-related - only those pesky profile page menus. I was thinking this might be a peculiarity of Listener's set-up somehow. If not, then (please!) I need to know:

- where you were typing ('Quick reply' box or the 'Go advanced' reply page, or starting a new thread?)
- your browser (Internet Explorer? Firefox? Something else?)
- your computer (Mac/ Windows) and operating system

Then I'll have enough information to pass on to Vbulletin's help desk so they can reproduce the problem and find a solution.

 

[mudpie]

the problem is fixed now and has been for days, so i wouldnt worry, HIlary. for the record, it happened when I was respondng to a thread. try to post a thread that has no words in it, you will get the same message. I think it may well have been an aol peculiarity because many times, I am told I cannot use AOL for things, like my online banking e.g., aol is a weird thing. but all is wellnow, thanks

 

[hilary]

That makes it a self-fixing problem - my favourite kind.