Forum list display bug

[moomin]

I've noticed a curious bug with the forums list several times. Now it's there again: the Candle'Bre forum is marked as having a new post (lighbulb is lightened) and Solver as last poster. Entering the forum, I see no new posts, and Solver is nowhere to bee seen.

This has happened a few times, and I think it's always the Candle'Bre forum that's weird.

[Solver]

It's because it has the private sub-forum, and I've posted there. Yes, it's a bug, forums with private subforums show as new in such cases... improper vb code.

[Lucilla]

Then almost every forum (at least the Civ3 ones) must have subforums, because I get the same effect.

I also mentioned some time ago in a different thread, that sometimes I get the yellow icon for a thread, where the last post has been early in the morning (I'm on GMT+1) although I haven't read the post yet, because it's the first time I logged in on that day.
The other way around happens quite often as well: A thread is marked red, although I'm the last poster. That happens most of the times when I close the browser window and open up a new one. It must have to do with the cookies, apparantly.

Unfortunately I didn't get an answer on that post, so I re-post it here. Maybe Solver, you know what's causing that as well?

[Solver]

Lucilla,

These issues are different. What moomin mentioned is clearly due to a subforum (and I know it). As for your problem, I'm also sometimes experiencing this, red threads with me as last posters, and it surely has to deal with cookies. While I can not tell you exactly what events cause it/how to avoid it, this is also a known issue, but apparantly one that won't be solved.

Also has to deal with the way browser opening/closing/newwindowing affects cookies, obviously.

[Lucilla]

Thanks for the answer, Solver.
At least somebody confirmed my observations and I know now that it doesn't have to do with any uncommon browser settings that make my browser(s) behave different from other people's browser.

[Solver]

By the way, Lucilla, what your browser is? I feel fine with IE 6, and would like to know if any browser doesn't have the problem.

[Lucilla]

I use IE 6.0 (W2K and XP at home) and 5.5 at the office, and they all have the same problem. I think 5.5 is generally a crappy version, because it treats JavaScript and css sometimes differently than 5.0 or 6.0. Sometimes it's more fault tolerant concerning sloppy HTML code, sometimes it's more restrictive than other versions. I didn't upgrade that version yet, because that way I can easily test the webpages we develop on different IE versions (IE 5.5 on my PC, 5.0 and 6.0 on my colleagues' PCs). Generally, I prefer IE6.
I think, I have Netscape and Opera installed at the office, too. If I have time, I will check how these browsers behave concerning the "new post" issue, next week.

[War4ever]

i have noticed when you refresh the page even after viewing the new threads, that the lightbulb is still there

[Lucilla]

This is a test post, done with Opera

[Lucilla]

Hi Solver,
I've done some tests:

1) I logged out yesterday night short before midnight. (local time, all times I use here will be GMT+1)
2) when I logged in this morning, I had 5 new replies to threads I posted in. All of them were posted between midnight and 9:30.
3) I viewed one of them and the icon changed to yellow but stayed in the list in the control panel.
4) I closed the browser and opened a new instance: the thread was marked as unread again. That happens with all browser versions I tested on (IE5.5, Opera 6.0, Netscape 6.2), which means that this information gets lost when you open up a new session.
5) The list of unread posts stayed in my control panel, until I rechecked at 12:00. Suddenly all the threads were gone, even the ones that I haven't read yet. Again, this happens in all browsers. There seems to be a sort of cut-off time, when the server (or the cookie?) decides, which threads can be regarded as read, although you never touched them. I also get the impression, that it has to do with the timezone you are using.

Do you know which timezone the server is in?

Cheers, Lucilla

PS: If you have more things you would like me to test, feel free to contact me on icq.

[zulu9812]

I've noticed the same thing, with the Republican Gunship thread: was last poster but on the Files page it said CivFan01 was last poster

[Solver]

Thank you Lucilla for the tests, this can lead to some understanding of what happens.

Right, the Control Panel does also show read threads with new posts from some time, and there seem to be those "checkpoint times".

No idea about server time... I'm positive you got to ask Markos. Maybe check-point times use your timezone, set through the forum preferences.