MGOBLOG 3.0 sticky for bugs

Submitted by Seth on

We are using this thread to collect all the (fixable) feedback for the new site in one spot, and if you're seeing it on the main page it means I've updated the OP content.

If you've noticed any bugs in the site post them here and if you have constructive criticism we very much appreciate it. The developers are also going to be in this thread. Even if we can't always respond, you're being heard.

UPDATE 8/23/2018:

We met at HUEL HQ today and worked through a lot of things.

THINGS THAT GOT FIXED

1. You are now able to edit your account info (and your avatar) by clicking on your account name while logged in. Eventually your history and more (see below) will be tabbed from a single user page but this was the quick fix for now.

2. The points issue is still the top priority that they're working on. We're one step further and testing a possible fix in a test environment right now.

3. Next week or so we'll have the ability to vote on Diaries and Board posts (the OPs) themselves. Could have launched today but we wanted to move it from where they were appearing but it works on the dev environment.

THINGS WE ARE FIXING

Please note that while this is a priority tree it's not necessarily the order things will get fixed. We have multiple developers who have their different skills and as each comes free from a project they grab the next highest one they can handle.

1. Points problems

The issue seems to be in the module we wrote for counting points:

Voting module.PNG

Now that they've narrowed it down we have high hopes of getting to the root of the situation.

Lastly IF YOUR POINTS WERE RESET TO ZERO please post in here and let us know 1) A little bit about your points history, 2) When you lost them (was it during the transition), and anything else that can help us track down whatever behavior is creating this. We can't fix this because we don't know why or to what class it's happening to.

(new) 2. User permission issues.

So right now at 100 points you should be able to vote and post new threads, and at 500 points you should be able to post diaries and edit wikis.

THIS IS NOT WORKING because of an issue with the core module. We are trying a fix that might make everything work right away.

It's a permissions issue. What's supposed to happen is once you hit a points threshold you are automatically bumped up to the next user level. It's not doing the bumping because of the "Actions" module, which comes with Drupal. Now that we've identified where the problem is we're working on a patch.

2. Embedding youtubes and tweets automatically by posting a link

So because of site security we have to use Oembeds. There is a module for Drupal 8 for this but it's a paid service, which with our volume is cost-prohibitive (like they want tens of thousands of dollars per month so screw those guys).

So we're going to develop something. We would prefer to have a system that automatically turns a link you post into an image or youtube or twitter embed. That's a better long-term solution and putting something in place in the meantime would cost us time and resources we'd rather put toward more permanent changes. It's a high priority so we just ask for patience now to be paid off with a better final product than the old site had.

For now you can still post these with regular html tags and most sites will give you the source code if you can't remember how to write <img> tags in html language. We had the option to change the post-a-picture box in the comment editor with the ability to post a link instead of upload an image to our site, but we didn't want to lose that ability to post to our site since it's a feature we really wanted for the new site.

3. Side rail becoming unglued. 

I've seen it and several users have as well but we haven't had a developer get into it yet because it doesn't happen too often.

4. "Continue Reading" links on front page will jump to the break tag, not the top of the article.

Another thing on the list for a dev to get to.

5. Comments bubble should link to comments

Right now it goes to the top of the article in article view.

6. Voting shows totals not aggregate

We have to rewrite the module ourselves.

7. (new) Latest post timestamp behavior

Haven't looked into it yet but it's a known issue that the latest post says there's something from a few minutes ago and there isn't. It may be bots causing this behavior.

8. (new) Clicking on a comment in a readers' post history should take you to that post.

Moderators need this.

9. (new) Some content is breaking containers

Design issue. When designer gets back from maternity leave we'll get an estimate.

10. (new) We are developing a "User Page" that will be tabbed thusly:

  • Change your user info (name, email, avatar, password)
  • See your recent post history
  • See replies to your posts
  • Your points history

Most excited about the second-to-last one, which is one of many new properties we plan to add that the old site missed.

Things Over the Horizon

1. Showing New comments in a thread as "New"

We got an estimate of big money to rent a specialist in order to build out this module. This is the next big project after we get the points figured out. Personally I wanted to address it sooner but more people complained about points so that got moved ahead. Be mad at the people who complained about points because it's all their fault.

2. Changing Scroll Behavior

We had a specialist look at this and what's happening is a problem with the order things are loaded. When you post a new comment the page DOES take you to your just-posted comment, but then it loads other comments and that pushes your screen down. If you use the up or down arrows it should take you right back to your comment. This is a problem buried deep and got another big expensive estimate to fix. So we have to wait.

(updated) 3. Apps

The process has begun. We might have a couple of light ones first then more developed ones later. FYI the problem with the old apps is they were not built to play nice with the site. If they worked great on your phone that was because they were downloading the whole site before you went to read it, and that was placing a huge drain on our resources and causing the site crashes. We will have apps and I hope to have a timeline in a few weeks. The latest is there's a drupal module we're going to try. Maybe it'll work the first time with no kinks.

(updated) 4. Saving User Preferences

We want comment settings to stick permanently for each user. Right now it resets when you post a comment. This is a BIG fix so it comes after we get other things done.

 

Also they're working on a bunch of functions we need internally, like the process for creating breaks, windows live writer issues, and lightbox for UFRs.

mGrowOld

June 19th, 2018 at 2:00 PM ^

Well put.  I actually created a fairly long diary post today talking about my movement from being an active poster to being a lurker, largely due to the site just not being fun anymore.  You absolutely nailed the reasons why it isnt IMO.

It's like they fixed a whole lot of stuff that wasnt broken and broke a whole lot of stuff that worked just fine. 

mGrowOld

June 19th, 2018 at 2:59 PM ^

No I didnt post it.  I sent it directly to Seth instead.  But because the edit feature no longer exists I couldnt add that essential nugget to my post that I forget to write.

Take your post, expand it by a ton of words that probably arent that necessary, toss in some personal life examples of change from your past that nobody but you probably cares about and you've got it.

stephenrjking

June 19th, 2018 at 6:30 PM ^

Some things take time to install and some take time to get used to.

An important example: The tiles at the top to the so-called "stale stories" you mention.

Yeah, they're stale right now. It's June. Seth is busy trying to fix the site, several regular staff contributors are off-line, and Brian is using a crowbar to produce content almost every day while HTTV stuff is getting written up. It's going to be thin.

It won't be so in late August. I expect the week before the ND game to be as rapid-fire as ever, and when that time comes I look forward to how the tiles will help see content that might otherwise be missed. Game weeks regularly feature 3-6 front page posts per day, and being able to know that they're present will be a big boost.

That's not to say that there aren't things that can be fixed or that it will work great; just that the site has been designed for higher volumes, and we're getting this in the doldrums of the offseason when the only thing to talk about is what Maizen/Bluey thinks about how badly recruiting is going right now.

That kind of content volume also makes it easier to just not post (hey there, MGrowOld!) because there's not a lot to talk about anyway. I've certainly posted less, but I suspect what are currently minor site snags will feel irrelevant when we're busy woofing over a great win or calling for firings after an ignominious defeat.

That's when we'll know how the site redesign has worked out.

With this stuff all in mind, I feel a lot better about the decision to push back the site upgrade until the depths of the offseason. Putting up midseason, as many advocated, would have been a disaster.

stephenrjking

June 19th, 2018 at 6:41 PM ^

I would go back and edit my third paragraph, which as I re-read it sounds snarky or harsh, not something I intended to bring across. Alas, the edit doesn't work!

Anyway I still stand by my point about the tiles: It's new and not useful right now but I think we're going to want it in the fall. 

JWG Wolverine

June 20th, 2018 at 9:08 PM ^

Upload Images and gifs:

- Select image icon

- Select (Upload) at the top of the screen

- Select the image you want to embed among the fules on your computer

- Double Click the image when it appears in the window that you automatically end up on following your selection

- Use black box in corner to adjust size

- That image is now saved on that page that the image icon page you were on, ready to embed again at any time!

It takes some getting used to and I did little by little. 

I guess this new site will just improve over time as Brian said it now gives him the ability to change things a lot more easily. In many ways, I am just as frustrated. Please keep working at it guys, we believe you'll get there eventually, just please listen to user input on here (thanks Seth for responding)!

leftrare

June 19th, 2018 at 11:42 AM ^

Depth Chart by Class and Unofficial Two-deep are still stuck on older editions.  I've tried to delete old browsing files but that doesn't fix it.

 

 

DowntownLJB

June 19th, 2018 at 2:01 PM ^

I'm sorry if this is a repeat, I skimmed through the thread and didn't see it mentioned.

 

Is someone controlling which main-page articles become the little "feature article buttons/pictures" below the banner/main menu area?  because they have not changed for me in days and are currently, from left to right (not in any sort of date/time order): OFFAT for bball semi-final game (6/13, 6am); all-ancient team (6/12 noon); Spider Sims recruiting profile (6/12 4:54pm); HTTV kickstarter (which as I look closer may be a right hand menu item rather than a "feature" article - I'm not sure).

 

DowntownLJB

June 19th, 2018 at 2:04 PM ^

doh! I started this post sometime this morning, got interrupted by work (the nerve) and didn't realize it's been discussed recently & today before I finished my post.  so, from the redundant department of redundancy, I have made a stellar contribution which I cannot edit. :-\

julesh

June 19th, 2018 at 2:18 PM ^

I don't know if it's just me but tweets don't seem to embed when looking at the front page. I have to actually open the post to see them embedded.

Also, slight nit, could there be an accelerator or something so if you get to the end of a thread and want to comment you don't have to scroll to find where the comment box is?

thegotmac

June 19th, 2018 at 2:47 PM ^

Can you take a look at the navigation ribbon at the top in Microsoft Edge and IE? The stripe is 2-3x taller than it should/needs to be, and 

Separately, a design nitpick -- I have a 1920x1200 monitor, and with the browser at full screen … I can't see the title of the most recent post (non-highlighted) in any browser.

Also +1 to having a site background separate from a text background.

tnixon16

June 19th, 2018 at 3:20 PM ^

I'm still not seeing voting capability on any apple device (regardless of browser). This goes for both iOS and regular desktop OS (Sierra, or whatever we're up to now). I refuse to believe a thumbs-up or -down exists until someone screencaps it for me.

ruthmahner

June 19th, 2018 at 8:04 PM ^

Thanks, Seth, for putting so much work into this and keeping all of us informed about the progress.  I admit to pretty much dropping off the site when 3.0 showed up and I immediately couldn't log in.  I probably didn't come back for the better part of a week.  But then I took a peek, and I waited a while and tried again.  And now I'm checking a couple of times a day.  Still not near the usage from a month or two ago, but I'm heading in the right direction.  By Notre Dame day?  I imagine the addiction will be back in full swing!

JWG Wolverine

June 20th, 2018 at 9:18 PM ^

Blue voting icons indicating you've already voted on a comment turn back to transparent. Voting totals stay the same, but it takes another click to realize you've already voted on said comment.

pz

June 21st, 2018 at 8:54 AM ^

Not necessarily a bug, but can we get the Amazon support link back on the front page?

I used to use it pretty regularly and now to have to do a bunch of clicking and scrolling makes it a lot less convenient; sometimes I even forget because it isn't as top of mind seeing it every time I visit mgoblog.com.

Just a suggestion - not sure if it is a meaningful source of income for the blog or if it has gone down since the 3.0 launch, but I figure every little bit helps.

darkstar

June 21st, 2018 at 10:47 AM ^

FWIW I have had previous issues with Chrome running slow, too many ads, etc. and it only got worse once the new site came on-line.  Reading some of the comments below I realized that the issue wasn't as much with me and my preferences as it was with Chrome in general.  Makes sense as I just read that ultimately Google is a marketing/advertising company so less interested in users than with the businesses that actually pay them big $.

So after looking into it, reading some recent articles I decided to make the switch to Firefox.  Firefox has spent the last few years revamping their browser by making privacy and user experience better since they aren't as beholden to their advertisers. 

Also they have a mobile browser - Firefox Focus - with built-in privacy settings - think Chrome Private Browsing.

So far so good. 

jamesjosephharbaugh

June 21st, 2018 at 1:15 PM ^

not a bug, but is there something with the new platform that's changing the content posting times? it seemed on the old site that new posts generally showed up around noon, or just before.  I thought this was smart because of all the old curmudgeons like me who wanted to get caught up at lunch time.

maybe it's just offseason, or fighting new site fires, or who knows what else, but it seems like new posts are going up mid-late afternoon and into the evening a lot of times now.  not the biggest deal but i was curious if it's related to the new platform.

 

also wanted to just chime in that my biggest issue with the mobile site is that the board takes too much effort to get to.  i used to be able to zoom in on the board feed on the right hand side in mobile to see the new posts.  the new "adaptive responsive" design means the board is hidden behind the menu on mobile.  1. click menu 2. click mgoboard dropdown 3. click mgoboard again 4. scroll down past the 5 stickies to see the newest post.  

 

also i'm not sure why the top content on mobile, which fills the screen, is the 2nd newest post instead of the newest, and why it's just a link you have to follow to read the content.

personally i keep updated here daily so i'd love the newest post.  but i understand if it makes the most sense to have it be something else.  but either way i just want to scroll and read.  not click another link and wait for another page to load.

Sam1863

June 22nd, 2018 at 8:32 AM ^

Sorry if this isn't the right place for this, but I didn't know where else to go.

I've noticed that my point total hasn't changed, even though I've posted a couple of responses to other threads. I tried clearing my cache, but that did nothing. I checked this thread for answers, but the only "point problems" I've seen were from people who weren't able to post, even though they had the required number of points.

Is there a new system in place, where you don't get points for responding? Or is this some other problem?

Any answers/guidance would be much appreciated.

stmccoy

June 25th, 2018 at 1:29 PM ^

Hi, not sure if this is the right place to post this, but will there be another mobile app?  If so, when is it expected to be available?  

 

greatlakestate

June 25th, 2018 at 4:45 PM ^

Has anyone had their points issue fixed.  I still can't start a thread or vote....and my points have been stuck for days.  Just wondering if that was still be worked on or if I'm the only one still stuck...

mp2

June 26th, 2018 at 12:29 PM ^

52F14064-0C77-401F-A15A-D531E19E94A0.pngOn mobile I cannot access the bottom of the useful stuff menu. I can’t get it to scroll down. I see the page contents scroll down underneath but not the menu itself.

Oldadguy

June 26th, 2018 at 2:44 PM ^

I am no longer getting points for posting. This is a new thing. Still no up/downvote icons on either a Microsoft laptop or apple gear