Is it just me, or...

Auntie Crazy · 12-05-2010, 07:03 PM

... is this forum really bad about showing the proper "have read" and "have not read" thread indicators? (Thread titles are in bold if you haven't read a new post / not in bold if you have read all the posts.)

It's so frustrating to click on a thread because the forum indicates there are new posts that I haven't read, only to find out there aren't any (or, even worse, the last post was mine!!!).

Just as frustrating is to see a thread I don't think I've read and to click on it and VERIFY that I've never read it -- yet the forum indicates I totally HAVE read it.

Is it just me?

AC

**marie73** · 12-05-2010, 07:24 PM

I've had that problem since we changed over. Every time I read a thread I have to go up and click on the name of the particular forum, then read the next one. Annoying.

Susan · 12-05-2010, 08:55 PM

It's not just you...I have the same problems.

Quartermutt · 12-05-2010, 11:02 PM

Click on your 'refresh' button occasionally. That's what I do to see which threads I've read already as I scroll down and a thread I was on moves to the top.

icatguy · 12-06-2010, 11:25 PM

Quartermutt has the right answer.....it is a page refresh issue. This was discussed before, but I'm too lazy to look for it.

Auntie Crazy · 12-06-2010, 11:35 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by icatguy

Quartermutt has the right answer.....it is a page refresh issue. This was discussed before, but I'm too lazy to look for it.

I'm thinking it's a bit more than that, Icatguy, as I'm constantly popping in and out and all about CF and still have issues.

Clicking the "View First Unread" button doesn't consistently work correctly, either.

Weird.

AC

Heidi n Q · 12-07-2010, 12:05 AM

It isn't just you. I've noticed it won't properly list what I have and haven't read. I click into my favorite sub-forums to check because I cannot trust View New Posts to pull up every topic or new post I haven't read. The refresh button is useless in situations where it is telling me incorrect information to begin with. Refreshing won't make it tell me the truth, just whatever it thinks its' truth is.

icatguy · 12-07-2010, 11:45 AM

It depends on your browser settings. Most browsers will reload from the local cache on your next visit to the same page. So any objects on the page that may have change but are coded with the same file name will load from the local cache and not from the web server. You have to actually clear your local cache to get the proper object to reload on the next page refresh. The refresh button does not clear the cache. So, yes, it is at least partially a coding issue. If most browsers are set to reload from the local cache then when a web servers sends a new page, any changed objects on the page should have changed references to make the changed objects load.

If I remember right, Internet Explorer has a setting that forces all objects to reload on each and every page load. But it's been so long since I used IE I can't remember how to do that. And I can't find an equivalent option in Firefox.

icatguy · 12-07-2010, 11:59 AM

Thinking about this a bit more: I'm pretty familiar with phpBB but not vBulletin, but if vB works similarly, then a further complication is that a page is also cached on the server so that when a web browser requests the same page during the current active session, the server sends the browser the cached page.

If you're using IE, see if you can change that option to force reload each page request. If doing that fixes the problem for you, then my speculation on the cause above is correct. If that does not fix the problem, then it's something else.

icatguy · 12-07-2010, 12:18 PM

Actually, the more my brain turns this over, the more I suspect it's the server-side caching issue. I remember this used to drive me nuts when I was customizing a phpBB forum. I'd make a change in the code, refresh my browser, even clear my browser cache to see the change, and nothing changed. I had to go into the forum's admin control panel and actually purge the server cache to get the script to send me the changed page.

The pages you see aren't stored on the server as html code. They're assembled by a php script, retrieving the status of the objects on the page from a database. If the status of an object on the page changes, but you revisit the same page during your session, then the script might be set to send your browser a copy of the already-assembled page that it keeps, because if the script had to reassemble your page every time your browser requests it, then the forum would run a whole lot slower. Ideally the script would recognize when the status of an object had changed subsequent to the last request for that page and retrieve just the new status and insert that into the cached page, but that part of it is going way beyond my level of knowledge on the subject.

Get your admin to read this thread; he should know what's going on and what to do about it.

12-05-2010, 07:03 PM	#1 (permalink)
Auntie Crazy Cat Addict Join Date: Dec 2006 Location: Massachusetts Posts: 1,972	Is it just me, or... ... is this forum really bad about showing the proper "have read" and "have not read" thread indicators? (Thread titles are in bold if you haven't read a new post / not in bold if you have read all the posts.) It's so frustrating to click on a thread because the forum indicates there are new posts that I haven't read, only to find out there aren't any (or, even worse, the last post was mine!!!). Just as frustrating is to see a thread I don't think I've read and to click on it and VERIFY that I've never read it -- yet the forum indicates I totally HAVE read it. Is it just me? AC __________________ AC's Crew: Allen, Rachel, Meghan, Spencer, Heather & Ralph CatCentric.org: A nutrition, raw feeding, general care and health blog, article and resource site dedicated to all things cats.

12-05-2010, 07:24 PM	#2 (permalink)
marie73 Super Moderator Join Date: Jul 2006 Location: San Diego, CA Posts: 27,456	I've had that problem since we changed over. Every time I read a thread I have to go up and click on the name of the particular forum, then read the next one. Annoying. __________________ Marie, and Always in my heart, my lovely Cinderella, running free at the Bridge. http://www.catforum.com/forum/member...signature2.jpg

12-05-2010, 08:55 PM	#3 (permalink)
Susan Premier Cat Join Date: Mar 2010 Location: Ontario, Canada Posts: 4,632	It's not just you...I have the same problems. __________________ Dogs have owners. Cats have staff.

12-05-2010, 11:02 PM	#4 (permalink)
Quartermutt Jr. Cat Join Date: Jun 2010 Posts: 47	Click on your 'refresh' button occasionally. That's what I do to see which threads I've read already as I scroll down and a thread I was on moves to the top. __________________ ...............................Dancer, the Travelling Cat

12-07-2010, 12:05 AM	#7 (permalink)
Heidi n Q Premier Cat Join Date: Nov 2006 Location: Monroe, GA Posts: 17,088	It isn't just you. I've noticed it won't properly list what I have and haven't read. I click into my favorite sub-forums to check because I cannot trust View New Posts to pull up every topic or new post I haven't read. The refresh button is useless in situations where it is telling me incorrect information to begin with. Refreshing won't make it tell me the truth, just whatever it thinks its' truth is. __________________ Spay it forward. (neuter, too!) I have the ability of single-minded determination and focu... Hey look, a cat! =^..^=

12-06-2010, 11:25 PM	#5 (permalink)
icatguy Tom Cat Join Date: May 2010 Posts: 299	Quartermutt has the right answer.....it is a page refresh issue. This was discussed before, but I'm too lazy to look for it.

12-07-2010, 11:45 AM	#8 (permalink)
icatguy Tom Cat Join Date: May 2010 Posts: 299	It depends on your browser settings. Most browsers will reload from the local cache on your next visit to the same page. So any objects on the page that may have change but are coded with the same file name will load from the local cache and not from the web server. You have to actually clear your local cache to get the proper object to reload on the next page refresh. The refresh button does not clear the cache. So, yes, it is at least partially a coding issue. If most browsers are set to reload from the local cache then when a web servers sends a new page, any changed objects on the page should have changed references to make the changed objects load. If I remember right, Internet Explorer has a setting that forces all objects to reload on each and every page load. But it's been so long since I used IE I can't remember how to do that. And I can't find an equivalent option in Firefox.

12-07-2010, 11:59 AM	#9 (permalink)
icatguy Tom Cat Join Date: May 2010 Posts: 299	Thinking about this a bit more: I'm pretty familiar with phpBB but not vBulletin, but if vB works similarly, then a further complication is that a page is also cached on the server so that when a web browser requests the same page during the current active session, the server sends the browser the cached page. If you're using IE, see if you can change that option to force reload each page request. If doing that fixes the problem for you, then my speculation on the cause above is correct. If that does not fix the problem, then it's something else.

12-07-2010, 12:18 PM	#10 (permalink)
icatguy Tom Cat Join Date: May 2010 Posts: 299	Actually, the more my brain turns this over, the more I suspect it's the server-side caching issue. I remember this used to drive me nuts when I was customizing a phpBB forum. I'd make a change in the code, refresh my browser, even clear my browser cache to see the change, and nothing changed. I had to go into the forum's admin control panel and actually purge the server cache to get the script to send me the changed page. The pages you see aren't stored on the server as html code. They're assembled by a php script, retrieving the status of the objects on the page from a database. If the status of an object on the page changes, but you revisit the same page during your session, then the script might be set to send your browser a copy of the already-assembled page that it keeps, because if the script had to reassemble your page every time your browser requests it, then the forum would run a whole lot slower. Ideally the script would recognize when the status of an object had changed subsequent to the last request for that page and retrieve just the new status and insert that into the cached page, but that part of it is going way beyond my level of knowledge on the subject. Get your admin to read this thread; he should know what's going on and what to do about it.

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