Major upgrade coming soon: Styles/Theme will change

[TheCotMan]

Re: Major upgrade coming soon: Styles/Theme will change

Jeff was having trouble with the mail server, so he took it offline and moved to another mail server at another IP address. The forums, pics and TEW are configured to use the other mail server, but firewall rules need to be reloaded in at least one space for internal access to the other mail server. I'll schedule a bounce and reoad of rules on the host. If that does not fix this, then another firewall, or application configs in smtp server will need changes to allow mail from our servers for email relay to work again.

I'll announce a scheduled bounce for later this evening in the other thread.

It should now be working. You may not get an email because of this message, because of the previous reply since your last visit, but next time, after you are logged-out and someone replies, I think you should get an email message.

[TheCotMan]

Re: Major upgrade coming soon: Styles/Theme will change

We'd already discussed this, off line, but I just made extra sure, and checked again. I've always had that option checked.

As a test, would you try making sure it is selected, and "save" and check to see if the edit options are still missing?

I am not currently receiving the forum notification emails when replies are made to something I've subscribed to, so I did not see this. In case you see the Forum first, rather than your email, I had started a test account registration, but am still awaiting the auth email for it. I control the servers that the email would arrive at (for this account, and for my test account also).

Jeff was having trouble with the mail server, so he took it offline and moved to another mail server at another IP address. The forums, pics and TEW are configured to use the other mail server, but firewall rules need to be reloaded in at least one space for internal access to the other mail server. I'll schedule a bounce and reoad of rules on the host. If that does not fix this, then another firewall, or application configs in smtp server will need changes to allow mail from our servers for email relay to work again.

I'll announce a scheduled bounce for later this evening in the other thread.

As an interesting aside, if you are setting up a new account, during the time the account is waiting for authorization, you cannot browse the forums at all, even though the same posts are visible if you are not logged in. It seems odd to make everything "private" when it is normally visible. I understand not permitting someone to post, but I suspect the inability to even view posts for new accounts may be an unintended change.

That is by design, to encourage people to validate their email addresses -- it really helps cut down on spammers, too.

[shrdlu]

Re: Major upgrade coming soon: Styles/Theme will change

Maybe it is an account setting in your account, then?

While logged in, please visit:

https://forum.defcon.org/profile.php?do=editoptions

Scroll down to "Message Editor Interface:"

Click radio button for "Standard Editor - Extra formatting controls"

Scroll down and click "Save Changes"

We'd already discussed this, off line, but I just made extra sure, and checked again. I've always had that option checked.

I am not currently receiving the forum notification emails when replies are made to something I've subscribed to, so I did not see this. In case you see the Forum first, rather than your email, I had started a test account registration, but am still awaiting the auth email for it. I control the servers that the email would arrive at (for this account, and for my test account also).

As an interesting aside, if you are setting up a new account, during the time the account is waiting for authorization, you cannot browse the forums at all, even though the same posts are visible if you are not logged in. It seems odd to make everything "private" when it is normally visible. I understand not permitting someone to post, but I suspect the inability to even view posts for new accounts may be an unintended change.

[TheCotMan]

Re: Major upgrade coming soon: Styles/Theme will change

I'm now replying from the Mac, and I have to believe it's somehow account related.

Maybe it is an account setting in your account, then?

While logged in, please visit:

https://forum.defcon.org/profile.php?do=editoptions

Scroll down to "Message Editor Interface:"

Click radio button for "Standard Editor - Extra formatting controls"

Scroll down and click "Save Changes"

Try posting a rpely and see if you have the same edit options I am seeing.

Thanks!

The editing buttons are still not there, and I've never used this browser to access the forums before. I almost never use the Mac, except when I travel, and I try like crazy to avoid traveling.

If this fixes it, then when the "quick reply" was enabled, it may have altered all user's settings to disable this user account setting, but I doubt this, as my account did not lose this setting when quick-reply was disabled, and the edit options enabled.

If you visited that section of your setting while quick-reply was enabled, and chose "save" when the option for editing preferences was not available, then it could have caused the forums to not revert to the old editing options when quick-reply was disabled.

I don't have any further suggestions. It may or may not be a cookie blocking issue on my part. I don't *block* any defcon.org cookies, but I may block cookies from something that the forums is using that is *not* defcon.org (I certainly block *bing* for example).

Though we have a search form to bing, the forums does not use bing for any cookie or tracking information. Any cookie information they have is for their use, not ours. (Cookies from the forums use either defcon.org as a domain or forum.defcon.org. I think We configured them to use forum.defcon.org so as to be specific to the forums and decrease the risk of authentication cookies across services being used/exploited, to leverage exposure/access to other services if any service has a weakness.)

[shrdlu]

Re: Major upgrade coming soon: Styles/Theme will change

As I'd said before, including after I saw your image, NO, I do NOT see those items. I'm still thinking it's somehow account related, since it doesn't matter which machine or browser I use. Maybe I'll fire up the Mac, next time I think about it, just to verify absolutely that it's consistent.

I'm now replying from the Mac, and I have to believe it's somehow account related. The editing buttons are still not there, and I've never used this browser to access the forums before. I almost never use the Mac, except when I travel, and I try like crazy to avoid traveling.

I don't have any further suggestions. It may or may not be a cookie blocking issue on my part. I don't *block* any defcon.org cookies, but I may block cookies from something that the forums is using that is *not* defcon.org (I certainly block *bing* for example).

[shrdlu]

Re: Major upgrade coming soon: Styles/Theme will change

I will include an image. With the change I reverted back, I see several editing options. Do you see these same options?

Even if they are not in the same style as the old editing options, do they at least provide the same function for the features you look to include in posts and replies to posts? (Circled in red.)

As I'd said before, including after I saw your image, NO, I do NOT see those items. I'm still thinking it's somehow account related, since it doesn't matter which machine or browser I use. Maybe I'll fire up the Mac, next time I think about it, just to verify absolutely that it's consistent.

[TheCotMan]

Re: Major upgrade coming soon: Styles/Theme will change

I will try to be as clear as possible, so as not to add more work for you. I have NOT seen the editing menus I am referring to, FROM ANY BROWSER, ON ANY MACHINE, since you switched to the new interface. I really miss the old one.

I will include an image. With the change I reverted back, I see several editing options. Do you see these same options?

Even if they are not in the same style as the old editing options, do they at least provide the same function for the features you look to include in posts and replies to posts? (Circled in red.)

The problem I've reported about being logged out of everywhere if I log out (even on another machine) is still going on. I understand about auth cookies and such. I have no explanation for why it happens, other than that it does.

I've tried to duplicate this, too, but have not been able to. I've tried from Linux with Chrome and Firefox as well as Windows 7 (64 bit) with MSIE and Firefox.

[shrdlu]

Re: Major upgrade coming soon: Styles/Theme will change

I've reverted one of the changes for posting and editing. Does this cause the feature you want back, back?
If so, or not, could you check to see if this change does not re-introduce the problem with replies that started this bug report and discussion?

I will try to be as clear as possible, so as not to add more work for you. I have NOT seen the editing menus I am referring to, FROM ANY BROWSER, ON ANY MACHINE, since you switched to the new interface. I really miss the old one.

The changes you just reverted (and are speaking of) permit me to reply to posts using the "reply with quote" and I just realized that there is no other option now.

The problem I've reported about being logged out of everywhere if I log out (even on another machine) is still going on. I understand about auth cookies and such. I have no explanation for why it happens, other than that it does.

So:

1. Yes, this fixes the inability to quote a reply, and removes the hourglass thing.
2. No, I do not see any of the editing buttons that I used to.
3. Yes, if I'm logged into multiple machines, and I log off any of them, I lose the authentication on all of them.

Back tomorrow...

Before I forget, I made this post from Chrome (very recent install).

[TheCotMan]

Re: Major upgrade coming soon: Styles/Theme will change

Interesting. Yes, it fixed the problem. Can you tell me if the menu stuff that I previously could choose from is just gone? I still have all the stupid smiley things (they make me want to punch my monitor, just looking at them), but it used to be there was the menu that had things like "block quote" and "bold, italic, underline" and so on. Is it just me that can't see it?

Because I am unable to duplicate the bug, I am unable to test to see which feature/setting cause dhte problem.

I've reverted one of the changes for posting and editing. Does this cause the feature you want back, back?
If so, or not, could you check to see if this change does not re-introduce the problem with replies that started this bug report and discussion?

I know how to do most of those things by hand, but suspect that others see the menu, and it's just me that doesn't.

Let's see if this change helps.

Anyway, hourglass problem and inability to quote are gone, and thanks very much.

Hopefully, the setting just changed now does not re-introduce the original bug.

Thanks for the report!
-Cot

[shrdlu]

Re: Major upgrade coming soon: Styles/Theme will change

Using this with some of the other information you have reported, I've disabled a recently added feature part of the major upgrade a montho or two back, which among other things, introduces, "Quick Reply" and "Quick Edit." It should now bring you to a new page when you choose either of these. (Edit post or reply to post.)

I'd like to hear if this fixes the problems you found when replying to posts or editing posts, for those of you that have encountered this problem.

Interesting. Yes, it fixed the problem. Can you tell me if the menu stuff that I previously could choose from is just gone? I still have all the stupid smiley things (they make me want to punch my monitor, just looking at them), but it used to be there was the menu that had things like "block quote" and "bold, italic, underline" and so on. Is it just me that can't see it?

I know how to do most of those things by hand, but suspect that others see the menu, and it's just me that doesn't.

Anyway, hourglass problem and inability to quote are gone, and thanks very much.

[TheCotMan]

Re: Major upgrade coming soon: Styles/Theme will change

Here's an interesting piece of data. When using my ancient Firefox on FreeBSD, I experience none of the issues I'd had with any browser on Win7, and my Firefox browser on Ubuntu. Firefox just upgraded on Ubuntu, so it's pretty recent.

I think it's a permission problem...as in, you are trying to set cookies, or something similar, that I have blocked. I note that I have zero problems on this browser. Then again, I trust my BSD machine more than I do others (and I trust my crippled browser even more).

Mozilla/5.0 (X11; U; FreeBSD i386; en-US; rv:1.8.1.10) Gecko/20090104 Firefox/2.0.0.10

Another user reported this same problem with their FireFox, too. They encountered these with 9.0.1 and 10.x on Mac OS X.

Using this with some of the other information you have reported, I've disabled a recently added feature part of the major upgrade a montho or two back, which among other things, introduces, "Quick Reply" and "Quick Edit." It should now bring you to a new page when you choose either of these. (Edit post or reply to post.)

I'd like to hear if this fixes the problems you found when replying to posts or editing posts, for those of you that have encountered this problem.

I am still unable to duplicate the described problem. If I could do that, I would be able to check and test changes on my own.

Thanks!

[shrdlu]

Re: Major upgrade coming soon: Styles/Theme will change

Found and fixed in "High-Contrast Light"

When I have time, i'll back-fill fixes to "High-Contrast Dark" and Classic.

Several other bugs in header found and fixed and applied to all 3 primary styles. It is unlikely, but possible, one of these fixes to HTML in header will fix posting problems reported by Shrdlu, but doubtful. I am still unable to duplicate the posting problems reported by Shrdlu, but will keep looking for things that might cause that kind of problem.

Here's an interesting piece of data. When using my ancient Firefox on FreeBSD, I experience none of the issues I'd had with any browser on Win7, and my Firefox browser on Ubuntu. Firefox just upgraded on Ubuntu, so it's pretty recent.

I think it's a permission problem...as in, you are trying to set cookies, or something similar, that I have blocked. I note that I have zero problems on this browser. Then again, I trust my BSD machine more than I do others (and I trust my crippled browser even more).

Mozilla/5.0 (X11; U; FreeBSD i386; en-US; rv:1.8.1.10) Gecko/20090104 Firefox/2.0.0.10

[TheCotMan]

Re: Major upgrade coming soon: Styles/Theme will change

Only just noticed this by chance, but in Firefox and IE, under where it says "Main Defcon site" and "Past Defcon Pictures" in the top right of the header area, there is a text box below it. Next to that should be a magnifying glass image/button ( -> https://forum.defcon.org/images-3.0/buttons/search.png ), but in fact its WAAAAAAY off the far right hand side of the rendered screen (just check the size of the horizontal scroll bar across the bottom of the browser).

Found and fixed in "High-Contrast Light"

When I have time, i'll back-fill fixes to "High-Contrast Dark" and Classic.

Several other bugs in header found and fixed and applied to all 3 primary styles. It is unlikely, but possible, one of these fixes to HTML in header will fix posting problems reported by Shrdlu, but doubtful. I am still unable to duplicate the posting problems reported by Shrdlu, but will keep looking for things that might cause that kind of problem.

[Zorlac]

Re: Major upgrade coming soon: Styles/Theme will change

Only just noticed this by chance, but in Firefox and IE, under where it says "Main Defcon site" and "Past Defcon Pictures" in the top right of the header area, there is a text box below it. Next to that should be a magnifying glass image/button ( -> https://forum.defcon.org/images-3.0/buttons/search.png ), but in fact its WAAAAAAY off the far right hand side of the rendered screen (just check the size of the horizontal scroll bar across the bottom of the browser).

[TheCotMan]

Re: Major upgrade coming soon: Styles/Theme will change

One thing i'll say... am I the only person who feels unsettled down in their soul by the forum code now including a "Bing Search" box at the top? What's next, will there be a "download the talks to your Zune" button somewhere?

I added the bing search option as an experiment instead of google search a few months before the style change:
* Don't use a free service unless you are willing and able to walk away from it.
* If you understand and plan for this, make sure you have a backup plan.
For the above to items, I decided to try to use bin instead of google for off-site search of the site. I might try a third search engine in the future. Feedback on the results of these different search engines is welcome. (Is one superior to the other, etc.)