Links to posts depend on "correct" #posts per page to work

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There is a post (described here solely to demonstrate the problem) by BudP at 3:05 (Eastern) time today in the thread "EnABL - Technical Discussion" which has links to posts earlier in the thread. However, the links didn't work for me. It took a moment to figure it out - the links were apparently generated at 20 posts per page, but I view the forum at 50 posts per page, and the forum software does not correctly "convert" between these. I set the forum (User CP->Edit Options-> Number of Posts to Show Per Page) to 20 posts, and the links then worked.

This appears to be a bug in the forum software.
 
The bug comes because the URL format is like this:

http://www.diyaudio.com/forums/[forum section name]/[thread id + thread name]-[page number].html#post[post number id]

By following the above, if you simply remove the page number (and its preceding dash) then it all works and redirects properly, I believe.

For example:

http://www.diyaudio.com/forums/vend...t-audio-dac-kit-usd89-95-a-7.html#post3327763

and

http://www.diyaudio.com/forums/vend...bit-audio-dac-kit-usd89-95-a.html#post3327763

Should take you to the same post. If a link isn't working for me I will generally copy and past the link I am given into the url bar and remove the page number, then all is well.

I do agree that this could be fixed in the forum software to no longer put the page number in the url that is provided in the direct link to the post. I am not sure how easy this is for the admins of this forum to fix or whether it needs to be fixed in the forum software that they use.

Chris
 
http://www.diyaudio.com/forums/foru...-correct-posts-per-page-work.html#post3328174 has this in the address. "227905-links-posts-depend-correct-posts-per-page-work.html#post3328174"

http://www.diyaudio.com/forums/foru...-correct-posts-per-page-work.html#post3327779 has this in the address. "227905-links-posts-depend-correct-posts-per-page-work.html#post3327779"

http://www.diyaudio.com/forums/foru...-correct-posts-per-page-work.html#post3327569 has this in the address."227905-links-posts-depend-correct-posts-per-page-work.html#post3327569"

The three links should take one to posts 3, 2 and 1 of this Thread.

There is no "page" in any of the addresses. All links have a common 227905 which I guess is the Thread ref.
 
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Those links all work for me Andrew.

I just tested this in safari 6.0.2, opera 12.12, chrome 24.0.1312.52 and firefox 13.01 and my method posted above works in all of those. The only other browser that I can think of is IE. For internet standards compliance and security I use predominantly chrome unless there is a REALLY compelling reason to use something else.


Chris
 
I use
right click to see drop down menu.
I select
copy link location.
I then paste that link location into my post.
I then check that the link works AFTER I have posted.

There appear to be other ways to insert a link to a post, but I don't lnow what they are.
Many get the post links wrong. I don't think it is a Forum software bug. I think it is poor posting and poor editing of posts.
 
The three links should take one to posts 3, 2 and 1 of this Thread.

There is no "page" in any of the addresses. All links have a common 227905 which I guess is the Thread ref.
Links to posts on the first page will ALWAYS work. That's not where the problem shows up.
I use
right click to see drop down menu.
I select
copy link location.
I then paste that link location into my post.
I then check that the link works AFTER I have posted.

There appear to be other ways to insert a link to a post, but I don't lnow what they are.
Many get the post links wrong. I don't think it is a Forum software bug. I think it is poor posting and poor editing of posts.
I presume you mean right click on the post #, which is the way I and presumably everyone else does it. As far as I can tell, that IS the only and "correct" way to do it.

Get the address of a post in longer thread past the first page, such as #51 or greater. Links to THOSE posts include the page number in the URL, and THAT creates a problem when someone who clicks the link is set for a different number of posts per page than the person who generated the link. If you TEST the link it will ALWAYS work for YOU, unless you change your Number of Posts to Show Per Page, as I described in the first post here.

I like to read threads at 50 posts per page, but apparently others have posted links at the forum default of 20 posts per page,

Here is post #101 of the "Sound Quality vs. Measurements" thread, generated at 20 posts per page (the post is at the top of page 6 of the thread):
http://www.diyaudio.com/forums/lounge/200865-sound-quality-vs-measurements-6.html#post2833740

Here is the same post #101 generated at 50 posts per page (this time it's at the top of page 3):
http://www.diyaudio.com/forums/lounge/200865-sound-quality-vs-measurements-3.html#post2833740

Only ONE, at most, of the above two links will work. If you're at 20 posts per page, the first will work. If you're at 50 posts per page, the second will work. If you're at something else, I don't know if either would work.

hochopeper has "a solution," but it's a kludge everyone (or many people) would have to go through, either when making a link to a post or when trying to get to the post the link points to.


ETA: Okay, BOTH of those worked for me just now. I suspect there's some Javascript stuff going on, as I don't always have it fully enabled.
 
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frugal-phile™
Joined 2001
Paid Member
It is not a bug, it is just insufficient understanding of the link structure of the forum.

If you look at a post you will see a number in the top right corner -- the post number of the thread. It is a link to that same post. If you command-click on that you can copy the URL of that specific post (i guess right clik if you have a computer from the dark-side).

http://www.diyaudio.com/forums/foru...-correct-posts-per-page-work.html#post3328976

If you give me a link to the post with the page based link i can fix it.

dave
 
frugal-phile™
Joined 2001
Paid Member
Here is post #101 of the "Sound Quality vs. Measurements" thread, generated at 20 posts per page (the post is at the top of page 6 of the thread):
http://www.diyaudio.com/forums/lounge/200865-sound-quality-vs-measurements-6.html#post2833740

Here is the same post #101 generated at 50 posts per page (this time it's at the top of page 3):
http://www.diyaudio.com/forums/lounge/200865-sound-quality-vs-measurements-3.html#post2833740

Only ONE, at most, of the above two links will work.

Both work for me, taking me to the same post #101. Now, for some reason, in the middle of resolving the URL, i see post #51 with the 1st link, and post #21 on the 2nd link... which i guess if you clicked on might stop the process of resolving the URL, or maybe if you have a flakey browser.

dave
 
Switches things on and off again
Joined 2000
Paid Member
The correct way to copy a link is to use the link in the post number at the top right of every post. Right/command click on that and away you go.

If you use a link which has a page number in it, that is going to be relative to how many posts in a page the personal clicking the link has set in their options. Because everyone can have a different number of posts per page set in their options, it's pointless to try and send someone to a specific page number. [Insert analogy about number of steps, different size legs or length of gait, etc..].

The only universal way to link to a post is to link to the post itself, not the page number that you happen to be seeing it on due to your posts-per-page setting.

If I'm missing something or there is some other bug, let me know.
 
Jason,

Some browsers do not forward you automatically to the correct page to compensate for a custom post/page. IMO the bug is in the browser, I posted my 'hack' that I use often because I know that removing the page number from the link does tend to work more often with those browsers. I've never been able to replicate it myself but I have a hunch the browser causing problems is IE.


Cheers,
Chris
 
Switches things on and off again
Joined 2000
Paid Member
I did just notice something else too. The URL used by the forum software in the hyperlink generated when someone quotes a post does not include any sign of the page number that this post is on, it only refers to the thread name and unique 'post id'.


Chris

Correct. You should never use URLs with page numbers in them, and never post them. They exist *solely* for *your own* navigation purposes (and providing you don't change your own posts-per-page setting).
 
To repeat the edited portion of my most recent post:
ETA: Okay, BOTH of those worked for me just now. I suspect there's some Javascript stuff going on, as I don't always have it fully enabled.
I consider this a (mostly) settled issue - links DO work, though the BBS does some extra work and forwarding to the "correct" post when page numbers are different, and all the Javascript stuff has to be enabled to do that. I surf with NoScrip running in Firefox to try to keep viruses and stuff away, and it sometimes stops "normal functionality" of websites as well.
 
Hi
Been struggling with this issue in the Subwoofers section, Single Sheet TH Challenge thread today Post 1928 and onwards. None of us seem to be getting the right links to refer to other posts. Would someone check it out?
The links generated in the first post seem to have the same format and works for me.
h-t-t-p://www.diyaudio.com/forums/subwoofers/170771-single-sheet-th-challenge-74.html#post2509736
Is this related to not having Javascript enabled?
Regards Xoc1
 
It is not a bug, it is just insufficient understanding of the link structure of the forum.

If you look at a post you will see a number in the top right corner -- the post number of the thread. It is a link to that same post. If you command-click on that you can copy the URL of that specific post

The correct way to copy a link is to use the link in the post number at the top right of every post. Right/command click on that and away you go.

I consider this a (mostly) settled issue - links DO work, though the BBS does some extra work and forwarding to the "correct" post when page numbers are different, and all the Javascript stuff has to be enabled to do that.

If I'm missing something or there is some other bug, let me know.

I'm afraid that yes, you are all missing something.

Firstly, the link that is created when clicking on a post # in the top-right of a post does have the page number embedded in the URL, if the post in question is not on page one of the thread.

For example, in Bob's Power Amplifier Book Thread, if I hover over the link at the top-right of post #4066, the link I get is:

http://www.diyaudio.com/forums/solid-state/171159-bob-cordells-power-amplifier-book-82.html#post3563342

So, this post resides on page 82 for me, because I've got the forum set to show me 50 posts per page rather than the default 20 posts per page.

If you give this link to someone set to 20 posts per page, and their web browser does javascript properly, they should indeed ultimately end up in the correct place. The browser first goes to page 82 and then realises that post id 3563342 doesn't reside there and then some javascript kicks in and figures everything out.

HOWEVER, if someone who is set to 20 posts per page also hovers over the post number link in the top-right of post #4066 in Bob's power amplifier book thread, they will get this link:

http://www.diyaudio.com/forums/solid-state/171159-bob-cordells-power-amplifier-book-407.html#post3563342

Now, if that is given to someone who is set to 50 posts per page, the link might not work, because, for them, page 407 doesn't exist and this confuses the browser/javascript. On my computer with the forum set to 50 posts-per-page, the above link does not work in Safari or Omniweb (I just end up at the top of my page 82, which is post #4051) but it does work in Firefox.

If the number immediately preceding .html in the above links (the page number) is removed, both URLs lead to the same post, regardless of web-browser and post-per-page settings. It would be good therefore if the forum's automatic link-parser (enabled by default), when parsing URLs and changing them to proper links when a user submits their post, would remove the page number from URLs before turning them into links.

Thank you for your time.
 
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