As mentioned in this thread:
[webmasterworld.com...]
I'd like to see linking to specific posts fixed. Note, the link I posted above *should* bring you to my specific post, on page 3 with 30 posts per page... but it won't if your preferences are not configured for 30 posts per page.

I'd like to see linking to specific posts fixed

That would be great. At first when I saw the Msg#: in the message header I thought clicking it would possibly open a post text box with the link already in place, no such luck.

But if that Msg# link could offer a choice of "Report message" or "Link to this comment" that would be nice.
.

'My Flags' on the main menu too. And is it only me who thinks the main menu font is too small?

Responsive design too? It doesn't bother me, cos I know the site and that the content is worth reading, but may be a new visitor would be put off the site if they came across it first on a mobile device? Just saying.

But if that Msg# link could offer a choice of "Report message" or "Link to this comment" that would be nice.

Hear, hear. I've recently seen at least one case where a poster thought he was including a helpful link to a specific post, when instead the link opened a "report this post" window :)

Incidentally: Table-based layout and responsive design are by no means mutually exclusive. You just change cell display to {block} below a certain screen size. (I do this myself in situations where the content really warrants a table.)

Actually I think that linking to a specific post in a thread does work..I noticed this last night..

Strange thing is it only seems to work if the links are in sticky mail messages..

You can test this..click on your own "send sticky mail" icon.. Copy and paste the part of this post which is between the * * *, and send it to yourself..now open the sticky mail..and click the links..it doesn't work in "preview"..( it appears to try to work, then the tab "flashes" and it redirects to the first post in thread ) and may not work in an actual post ( I'll know if it does when I've posted this ;)..but it does work in sticky mails..

tested it..doesn't work in an actual post :( again the tab "flashes" and redirects..But it works in sticky mail..iBill ?

* * *
this link..
[webmasterworld.com...]

Takes me to my last post on page 1 ( post 29 ), message #4725089 in that thread..

If I substitute ronin's message number ( #msg4724989 ) at the end of the link..
[webmasterworld.com...]

The link now takes me direct to his post..

To get this "direct link"..add #msgxxxxxxx directly after the .htm ( do not leave a space ) at the end of URL of the thread you are linking to.

* * *

I think that linking to a specific post in a thread does work.

I don't think anyone was saying that links don't work. It's just that the "Msg: #blahblah" link isn't it.

I don't think anyone was saying that links don't work. It's just that the "Msg: #blahblah" link isn't it.

What the "Msg: #blahblah" link does,( if it was to be the "link to message" link, as well as the "report" link ) would have to be contingent on who was using it, for senior members it would have to be "dual use" ( with "choice" as to which we were intending ) ..doable..but depends on how busy incrediBill is, and one "multi-use" link for some members is a bit "kludgy"..

Separate links for each "function" would be better, but as I think that WebmasterWorld was originally written in PERL, and I know very little about PERL, I'll "wait and see";) ..Just thought it was weird that it works in stickies but not in posts..

My biggest gripe would be the short time limit on editing your own post. At the very least make it 24 hours.

My biggest gripe would be the short time limit on editing your own post. At the very least make it 24 hours.

I would be OK with allowing edits until someone replies. Once you change the post after replies it can break the context of the replies and make the thread confusing.

re:Links and pagination:

The real problem is there's no way to get a link to a specific message in the first place, esp. on multi-page threads. There needs to be a way to get the exact link, like on YouTube with a 'share' icon that gives you options.

Displaying a specific message in a multi-page thread is another issue. One solution is to force everyone to use the same pagination, like 50 per page, and remove the option so we're no longer dealing with apples and oranges. The other idea I'm tossing about is to make those links that go to a direct message force 50 lines per page just for that link so I can compute the page in advance. The other option is to simply view the whole thread. Not sure which way will make the most sense in the code yet, but those are the possible fixes.

FWIW, WebmasterWorld even supports a method to HIGHLIGHT the specific post, which shows in orange, when the link comes from certain places which would make it easier for people to spot but it's currently not easy to create those highlighted links.

One solution is to force everyone to use the same pagination, like 50 per page, and remove the option so we're no longer dealing with apples and oranges.

This would seem the easiest ( from the point of view of one who isn't having to code it ;) and best way..gets my vote :)

I think that linking to a specific post in a thread does work.

I don't think anyone was saying that links don't work. It's just that the "Msg: #blahblah" link isn't it.

No, I am saying that the links don't work. That is, I can't link to a message that appears on, say, page 3 of a thread and have that link be accessible by everyone else. It may work for some users, but not all. That's partly because each person can have their own preference for how many posts to show on a page.

And while we're talking about it, I think that having the "report" function as the link that says "Msg#: nnnnnn" is counter intuitive.

BTW, if you're curious about what's coming real soon I'll give you one hint: webmasteRWorlD

No, I am saying...

Heh. I was replying to leosghost, who may have used the identical words :)

Someone on an unrelated forum once explained to me how the seemingly redundant links in {well-known forums software} work. The ones that look like

/blahblah/post12345#msg12345

The first half tells the php to find the page that contains post 12345. The second half is the in-page anchor of that specific post.

But then you get the fun of either making links from existing posts backward-compatible, or changing the entire database. (I know someone who did this on yet another forum. They were down for the better part of a day while the database was being updated-- and it wasn't a very big forum.) Come to think of it, you're already doing this, aren't you? The very oldest subforums started out being identified by number instead of name, but you can still get there from here.

webmasteRWorlD

You've been looking up domain names on {free lookup}, haven't you. They use some kind of automated, best-guess CamelCase which can be quite wild and wonderful.

And yes, I do hate having to go in search of an administrator every time I discover after 61 minutes that I inadvertently said "always do X" when I meant to say "never do X". Sometimes the existence of a reply isn't even relevant, because they may have been replying to a different paragraph, or to the post immediately above mine. It's most vital in the Code & Content subforums, where people might be searching a year later for a specific how-to. Especially when, cough-cough, we've specifically told them to look up existing posts instead of asking the identical question all over again.

Let us post screenshots. Not links to screenshots, but upload actual screenshots. We have topics on here all the time talking about new ad designs, and new layouts for the serps, when a picture is so obviously useful that it is nuts not to let us post them,
The argument against them that is always given, is that the picture might disappear someday, and when people re-read the topic in 6 months time they won't understand it, but if it makes the topic 10x better today, which is when 99% of people need it, and it attracts more posters to it, then that is worth it

When sites like searchengineland talk about new serps changes, they always uses images to illustrate.

If you look at how stackoverflow does code as well, it is so much clearer than this place. Given the amount of code that is posted on this site, you need to make it appear clearer. They automatically colour things like variables and attributes, and scroll the code box so you can post really long stuff without it appearing to go on for pages and pages.

This place has been losing traffic for ages. Maybe you could allow guests to post, to get more discussions.. It cant be that difficult to stop spammers with the amount of moderators you've got and putting captcha on. Automatically blocking guest posts that contain anything that looks like a URL will stop 90% of them. You could stick a report button on individual posts as well, and maybe automatically hide any posts if ten established users flag it. Then you won't have to rely on mods spotting it

Oh yeah, code formatting is needed.

Let us post screenshots.

I think it would be better for WebmasterWorld itself to host the screenshots. You'll need to include some size limits. It's probably safest to set it up so screenshots aren't displayed until approved by a moderator. Posts requiring a screenshot aren't frequent. Especially if you exclude the posts where someone linked to a screenshot of a document that could perfectly well have been copy-and-pasted as text.

This place has been losing traffic for ages.

Everyone's been losing traffic for ages.

Subscription/notification bug.

Like two months ago I checked the "notify me" box on one thread (as I did a few times before) but I couldn't stop it. The forum would send me emails each time a new post was published. Tried everything to remove the subscription and even as the checkbox check was removed, I was still receiving the notifications. Had to notify a moderator asking for a fix.

What about like/dislike? or thumb up/down?
WebmasterWorld has been awesome but there have been a few occasions (starting like 2-3 years ago) when some users just seem trolls, no real contribution at all or are rude with new/old members, when WebmasterWorld has always been an example of manners and politeness.

or are rude with new/old members

My personal experience suggests that being 'rude' doesn't always equal to being 'wrong.' In real (business) life those people who may be considered rude are more often than not the ones who know much more than the polite and nice types. It seems most corporate CEOs are considered 'rude and impolite' by their employees, but nobody really cares as long as they bring the true knowledge and results. The 'ruder' they are, the more insightful their talk is ;).

A working quote system.

Regards...jmcc

Great suggestions, thank you.

Keep 'em coming. :)

A working quote system.

Ooh, interesting. D'you mean a "quote" that in some way connects back to the actual post being quoted (like an iFrame) as opposed to the ordinary Forums "quote" (not just here, but most forums I can think of) that's really just a formatting markup? Or did you only mean "add something to make it easy to say who's being quoted" like the php/bb [quote="name-here"] locution?

webmasteRWorlD

It's about time ..

Definitely a php/bb style quote function.

Regards...jmcc

On another forum I frequent when you click on the thread title it takes you to the first unread post. They used to have a separate icon for that function, but after the last update it's automatic.

That's a nice feature, especially on long threads.

Definitely a php/bb style quote function.

One php/bb function I'd love to swipe is the notification option. When you get email notifying you of a StickyMail/PrivateMessage, the email includes the full text of the message. In php/bb's version there are some glitches in formatting, but it's still a useful feature. (It's also one of the very few php/bb2 add-ons that wasn't incorporated in the php/bb3 core. It's still an add-on. Or mod or whatever they call them.)

We don't have to steal their exact code. Just the concept.

Yes please to both "view all" and seeing all the edit options on quick reply.

One suggestion: when new discussions are automatically held for moderation, hold notification emails until a new discussion has been approved.

the email includes the full text of the message.

While I love that idea. The problem with it is that the member doesn't have any incentive to actually return to WebmasterWorld. There's no engagement if they discuss the email, WebmasterWorld is out or site, out of mind.

The whole idea behind the way sticky mail works is to bring a member back to WebmasterWorld and perhaps they'll look at the topics being discussed and join in while on the site.

It's a possible option, but would it help or hurt the site to have it?

In the php/bb version, you can't reply directly to the email; if you want to answer the Sticky ("Private Message") you have to go back to the originating forum. It's just an expansion from "So-and-so sent you a Sticky" to "So-and-so sent you a Sticky that says such-and-such". So if you do get a Sticky, you can check whether it's something requiring further action, possibly involving reading other threads, or just a file-and-forget. And then you can budget your time appropriately.

In the light of this thread*
[webmasterworld.com...]
( and many others in the past touching security on sites or webmasters machines used to access them)

How about a security forum..that way all the various CMS platform alerts,( wordpress, drupal , joomla, etc ) and OS alerts etc could be all in the one place ( divided into server ( subdivided into OS types ) and desktop or mobile device ( again divided into various OS types )..Some of us keep upto date with security issues..many don't..

At the moment security issues are spread out, or in Foo, which IMO isn't really the best place for them ( many do not visit Foo, many do not often step outside the adsense forum )..there is a lot of security knowledge here..and a lot of miss-information "out there"..

* I've actually been thinking about proposing this idea since before WebmasterWorld changed hands, but never got around to it..and appreciate it would mean tweaking the code to create new fora..