Changes to Forum Editing Format

ScottG

Some of you have noticed that recent posts are displaying oddly with unintended carriage returns and occasional large gaps in comments that were not intended.

Apparently this has to do with continued use of an outdated editing format. On the advice of Vanilla (thank you Sharon_is_SAM for pursuing this) we have made a change to a newer editing format. The biggest difference you will notice is that the window in which you type and edit your comments looks a little different. Functionality is the same, but the manner in which you access functions is a little different, and in many ways more intuitive.

Give it a try and feel free to comment here if you notice any peculiarities, encounter any difficulties, or just have questions about how something works.

MuttonChops

Win-10 system with Firefox Browser.

a] I don't see a 'quote' button option . . . . I had to Cut & Paste this: then set to Quote indent??

"The biggest difference you will notice is that the window in which you type and edit your comments looks a little different. Functionality is the same, but the manner in which you access functions is a little different, and in many ways more intuitive."

b] Can we still access the HMTL code to control our on <CR>, etc ?formatting?

So far all I can find is B, I, strike out, a smaller font, and link

No full page option, no preview option . . . . seems like we have less control and longer post will be even more difficult.

H2 used on left side paraSymbol

Hey, you knew someone would comment/complain about change. But improvement is hard to see here

ScottG

Good observations, @MuttonChops. I only did a cursory initial test and I hadn't noticed the loss of the quote and preview features. I'm currently on Mac using Chrome and I don't see them either.

I did notice that access to the HTML code was no longer available.

Let's let this run for a bit and see what else floats up as members test the new interface. It's easy enough to switch it back if that's what we decide to do. Keep the comments coming.

Bayliss

@ScottG, I am using WIndows 11 with Chrome. The text formatting features (i.e., bold, italic and underline) are no longer available. Same for the strike-out, smaller font and link (as mentioned by @MuttonChops.) Also, on a post I just made, the first T@B member I mentioned in that post (using the @ character) is highlighted, but in black rather than the hyper-link blue color. Two additional members I mentioned in the post are not highlighted (although, oddly, I see that it appears just the opposite in this post that I am directly addressing to you.) I like the text formatting for emphasis. I like the highlighted member names (when added to a post), because I often mention other T@B members if they made an earlier post that I am commenting on and I want them to be alerted that I commented on what they wrote. Now, I wonder if those other members will see (up at the "notifications" icon and drop-down list) that they were mentioned in a post.

Thanks for addressing these issues and working to improve the experience on this wonderful forum!!

UPDATE: I just made another post and the only user name I mentioned, at the beginning of the post, is not highlighted (i.e., it looks the same as your user name appears above in this post.) Funny..........I wanted to emphasize "this," but that function is no longer available. 😉

AND THERE'S MORE! I discovered that when I cut and pasted a portion of a post, when I pasted it into a Word document, it displayed in bold in that document, so I had to unbold the words. AND, another discovery I just made while bolding "bold" in this message, that if you scroll over or highlight a word, the "bold", "italic", "strike-through", "smaller font" {...} and link formatting features pop up in a small window above the word(s) you scrolled over/highlighted. I feel like Columbus discovering a new world.

MuttonChops

Some Playing with different features of editor; Bold text & paragraph with <enter>

H2 heading with <enter>

H3 heading with <enter>

H4 heading with <enter>

H5 heading with <enter>

• bullets list <enter>
• second bullet (intent only)

paragraph with <enter>

1. bullets ordered . . numbered
2. second bullet

paragraph with <enter>

Quote feature

second line of quote {would cut & paste from source?}

paragraph with <enter>

code block
<u>ABCD</u>  {nothing except color,size,intent change}

paragraph with <enter>

Spoiler Warning

ABCD

paragraph with <enter>

abcd abcd abcd abcdabcd

😐️🤔😥

nice.jpg

= = = = =

REMAIN DISAPPOINTED in NEW EDITOR

SOMETHING BETTER MUST BE AN OPTION

ScottG

@Bayliss, did you try highlighting a word or phrase? That should bring up a pop-up that allows you to bold, italicize, hyperlink, etc.

I will note that while I did get notified that you had commented on this discussion, I did NOT get notified that you "mentioned" me in your comment.

At present I'm on Windows 10 using Chrome and am not noticing any differences from Mac or from what either you or @MuttonChops have pointed out.

Forum traffic tends to be slow this time of year, and right now nobody else seems to be commenting on this either way. Regardless, I'm leaning toward switching it back to the old format until we have a better opportunity to vet this.

Unfortunately, according to Vanilla the odd spacing problems relate to the outdated format, and their developers are no longer addressing these issues. There is a high likelihood that those peculiarities will increase in frequency until they are no longer tolerable and we will have little choice but to switch formats.

Bayliss

@ScottG, you may have not seen the updated part of my post. I did discover that those options pop up when highlighting a word, or string of words. I'm OK with that, now that I understand how it works, but it won't be obvious to users until they actually highlight a word. Also, unless you use a "Ctrl-B" (for bold type) or "Ctrl-I" (for italics) short-cut using Windows, you may not realize you can bold or italicize words as you type (as opposed to typing out the words and then going back and highlighting them to make those specific formatting changes.

Since you and @MuttonChops are using Windows 10, and I happen to be using Windows 11, I wonder how that factors in to the equation?

On another note, I was sending a private message to another user this morning. I had pasted in the links to a couple prior forum discussion threads and wanted to click on them to make sure I was sending the correct links. When I did that, instead of taking me to the discussions I was linking to, my message was sent - - - TWICE. Once for the first time I clicked on the first link and a second time when I clicked on the second link. Also, rather than take me to the discussion like it has in the past, an individual post from each of those discussions popped up in the private "Message" box, along with a link to view the post. That has never happened before. I was not aware that was causing my messages to be transmitted. I figured that out later when I reviewed the messages in my in-box. However, when I then tried to send the message (which would actually be the third transmission), a red warning box popped up, which warned:

• "You have posted 2 times within 30 seconds. A spam block is now in effect on your account. You must wait at least 60 seconds before attempting to post again."

I've never had any of the above happen previously.

ScottG

I've flipped the switches back to the old format. We'll see what happens with the formatting peculiarities going forward. Right now it seems like the updated format causes more grief than it solves.

Stay tuned.

dfblack8

Help, cannot edit my post to change . Need to change it 

ScottG

@dfblack8, try it now. I think I know what the problem was and have fixed it. Post back here or PM me if you still encounter difficulties.

Denny16

Thanks @Bayliss, the forum now works with keyboard commands for type face choice and formatting commands.  Sweet, much easier than having to go to the top of the editing window to choose a bold italic or underscored text.  Highlighting also allows you to go back to normal ext if you italic a word in error.  

I like the new change.  Just need to add new instructions for formatting the posts.
 Cheers 

Michigan_Mike

Must be that man behind the curtain!  😂

ScottG

Hmmm, probably should have stayed in front of the curtain for a while...

Anyway, things are reset and should operate as they did prior to format change, with one exception. If you go back and try to edit a comment made from approximately 9:00am on the 18th to 5:00pm on the 19th, you will be editing using the new (and now abandoned) format.

Apparently forcing comments already posted in the new format to revert back to the old format renders them unreadable in the editor. This was the problem @dfblack8 encountered and brought to my attention.

For the techie-geeks out there who care about such thing, the "new" format is Rich and the old format is Wysiwyg. A simple switch in the forum settings allows Admins to change from one format to another. Apparently the outdated nature of Wysiwyg is responsible for the added returns and other oddities. These things should not occur in Rich, but unfortunately Rich seems to have limitations and problems of its own. I expect this will be a continuing story.   
  

dfblack8

Thank you  I was able to edit again ! 

Denny16

The Mac/iPad keyboard text formatting still works.
cheers

MuttonChops

ScottG said:
Anyway, things are reset and should operate as they did prior to format change,  . . .

For the techie-geeks out there who care about such thing, the "new" format is Rich and the old format is Wysiwyg.

Thank You now the nüCamp T@B forum is backkkkkkkk.

Michigan_Mike

All is well in T@B town as the residents are all snug in their beds next to their Aldes!  👍🏻 😀 🛌

ChanW

Hmmm. Rats. Missed the whole trial.  (concerned, not.)
Thanks for the efforts @ScottG & @Sharon_is_SAM et al.

===============

Now testing the 'unwanted CR/LF after a control sequence' conundrum once more. 
Edit: Oh dear, still there.
Interesting oddity... Editing the post corrected the unwanted CR/LF. 

2nd edit: So testing one more edit, adding a bold sequence.
Hmmm. Editing and adding the bold code  did not introduce the CR/LF this time...

Curiouser and curiouser...

(Android 'Brave' browser - uses Chrome)

ChanW

Trying once more a new post with a bold sequence.

ChanW

The new post produced the error again. The bold adds a CR/LF. 

edit: Sysop: this is tedious. Feel free to delete it.

ScottG

I appreciate the testing @ChanW, but I agree it is probably pretty tedious to try to get to the bottom of (particularly when the official word is that there is no solution). Feel free to keep passing along whatever discoveries you are inclined to uncover.

Lets see if editing this post does anything...

And look at that. There was a CR after "@ChanW" but it went away when I edited to add these additional comments.

ChanW

Yeah. Dumb.

The fact that it's always only the very last control sequence in the posting makes me wonder if it has to do with the footer somehow. Just a thought.