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Your presence on here seems to be increasingly belligerent, hectoring, intolerant, borderline trolling/rude. I'm not sure that you are actually helping anyone TBH.
Which is weird as folk have been saying that for years now.
The big drop-off was after the new site when it was basically unusable for a long time, it seems to have fluctuated since then.
it was basically unusable for a long time,
Nope. Don't recall that bit either. I know I'm getting old and my memory isn't what it used to be though.
It's nice that you try Cougar but honestly it's probably not worth raising your blood pressure over. Those of us that experience various issues are not convinced that the problem is browser/config related for reasons that have already been shared, those that do not experience issues say it can't be the site.
We are at an impasse which generally needs some co-operation from both ends of the problem. Since you don't work for STW and presumably don't have access to a site admin type role or backend infra, with the best will in the world there is very little you can do to help. If the site owners don't want to work with users to resolve the issues then there is little to be done.
I think that folk in general are trying to be constructive and are genuinely trying to help make the site a better place for everybody, but constantly being told (by other users) there is no problem when there clearly is something not right gets a bit frustrating.
Trying to make out this site doesn’t have significant ongoing problems is just ridiculous, frankly.
I get logged out once or twice a month. Life-changing, I know.
At the end of the day, there are issues which affect some users. No-one is saying otherwise because that would be, well, ridiculous as you say. But the fact that these issues don't affect everyone raises questions that those vocally complaining aren't prepared to accept.
There is something that those affected are using or doing which is different from those who are unaffected, there has to be. Yet I suggest this and the reaction is "SO YOU'RE TRYING TO BLAME ME; I DON'T SEE WHY I SHOULD HAVE TO CHANGE ANYTHING; MY KID BROTHER MADE A FORUM FOR HIS POKEMON AND IT DOESN'T HAVE THESE PROBLEMS; YOUR SITE IS SHIT; YOUR DEVELOPERS ARE SHIT; I WAS JUST ABOUT TO BUYT A SUBSCRIPTION WHEN THE FONT CHANGED COLOUR; I'M TELLING YOUR MUM!"
Yes, I'm exaggerating for (hopefully) comic effect. Point is, somewhere along the way there's a compatibility issue between something on the site and something that is (or isn't) on the user's device that isn't (or is) on most everyone else's. Until someone pins that down, your "significant ongoing problems" are not going to be fixed.
Your presence on here seems to be increasingly belligerent, hectoring, intolerant, borderline trolling/rude.
Nah, that's not new either. Well, maybe the hectoring, I don't think I've ever hectored. What even is that, some character out of Breaking Bad?
We are at an impasse which generally needs some co-operation from both ends of the problem.
Precisely what I was trying to say, yes.
Since you don’t work for STW and presumably don’t have access to a site admin type role or backend infra, with the best will in the world there is very little you can do to help.
I don't and never have. Despite some folk's preconceptions perhaps, STW is very protective of its site and there's also GDPR issues around non-staff having access to things (which is why suggestions like "hey, some users know a bit about tech" are cold ideas - trust me, I've been down this road).
What I can do is work with people who are experiencing issues to try and suggest workarounds or look into what's going on. But I've suggested this many times over and either had no takers or received defensive replies about blame. What's that Betty Rae May quote about the definition of insanity, again?
Seems to have fixed itself now so thank you either to someone at STW Towers for doing something clever, or to the magic Interweb fairy who probably switched something off and on again (stop me if I'm getting too technical for you).
As for some of the other stuff above, personally I'm happy to pay for what is an excellent magazine and a generally very useful forum. Yes some of the technical bugs drive me up the wall at times, but I also appreciate it's a small scale operation with a low budget so there are going to be hiccups. And I have to say that the few times I've had to deal with any of the staff they've been brilliant.
Point is, somewhere along the way there’s a compatibility issue between something on the site and
something that is (or isn’t) on the user’s device that isn’t (or is) on most everyone else’scertain common browser configurations. Until someone pins that down, your “significant ongoing problems” are not going to be fixed.
FTFY. If the site is playing up on a bog-standard, up to date iphone, and a standard, clean Chrome installation on Windows 10, and Chrome on Windows 7, and Edge on a different windows 10 PC then it’s broken.
Rather than tell us there isn’t a problem, turn around and tell the tech people that a significant minority of users are experiencing a common issue. If you can’t do that, perhaps one of the moderators can.
it was basically unusable for a long time,
Nope. Don’t recall that bit either.
Post-upgrade the new editor was problematic if you pasted formatted text into it, you ended up with <div>random markup</div> all over the <span>place</span>. I'm assuming that's what he's referring to, though "basically unusable" is something of a stretch. I need to check my calendar, is it Hyperbole Monday again already?
FTFY. If the site is playing up on a bog-standard, up to date iphone, and a standard, clean Chrome installation on Windows 10, and Chrome on Windows 7, and Edge on a different windows 10 PC then it’s broken.
And yet. I have various combinations of both vanilla and heavily customised versions of Chrome, Firefox and Edge scattered across, hang on while I count... four laptops and one desktop PC, one W11 and the rest W10; two current Android phones and an Android 7 tablet; countless older phones over the last decade including a Windows phone; and I have never seen the issues that some people are describing despite actively trying to replicate them.
So once more with feeling: what are we doing that's different from each other?
Rather than tell us there isn’t a problem, turn around and tell the tech people that a significant minority of users are experiencing a common issue.
No-one is denying that some users are experiencing ongoing issues. But if issues cannot be replicated by the developers than it doesn't matter how "significant" or "common" you may think it is, they're not going to get fixed because it's simply not possible.
But if issues cannot be replicated by the developers than it doesn’t matter how “significant” or “common” you may think it is, they’re not going to get fixed because it’s simply not possible to diagnose.
If a lot of people with diverse but standard setups encounter an issue with cookies, then maybe the developer could look at the bit of code that deals with cookies and see if there’s any parts that look like they might trigger the problem, or if there’s an alternative way of implementing something. Not bound to work, but probably better than just trying to gaslight the users.
Again - “I don’t have a problem, so it must be you”
No-one is denying that some users are experiencing ongoing issues. But if issues cannot be replicated by the developers…
Getting the developers to acknowledge that there is an issue and to get involved to *try* and replicate it would be a step forward!
Getting the developers to acknowledge that there is an issue and to get involved to *try* and replicate it would be a step forward!
They did recently and did something with the cookies and it’s refresh time. But as mentioned it’s really difficult to fix when they can’t locate a specific issue due not being able to replicate it.
And, as if by magic, the problem has disappeared. At least for me. At least today …
Again – “I don’t have a problem, so it must be you”
And again again, "I’ve suggested this many times over and either had no takers or received defensive replies about blame."
It works fine for me. It doesn't work fine for you. Why might that be? I have no idea, have you? Has anyone?
Getting the developers to acknowledge that there is an issue and to get involved to *try* and replicate it would be a step forward!
You're assuming that none of this has already happened. Repeatedly.
You’re assuming that none of this has already happened. Repeatedly
I put the gentleman to proof (other than the recent adjusting the cookie settings referred to by Drac).
Some ongoing narrative of how the issue being actively addressed would go a long way to easing my frustration. Resolution will probably require some proactive monitoring / reporting by all parties (I think that there is a 3rd party involved in the cookies/advert loop, isn’t there?).
I put the gentleman to proof (other than the recent adjusting the cookie settings referred to by Drac).
What, you think I'm lying? On your bike, no-one owes you proof of anything. The discussion threads still exist if you're that bothered.
It's not being "actively addressed" as far as I'm aware and is unlikely to be so for reasons I've already explained (and the fact that the Development to-do list is already in the order of years). If you / anyone has something to add beyond "it doesn't work properly" which might help with a diagnosis then that may well change. As it stands I'm ****ed if I know what causes it - though I have my suspicions - and to the best of my knowledge STW's devs are likewise.
I put the gentleman to proof
Cookie Killer.
As it stands I’m **** if I know what causes it – though I have my suspicions – and to the best of my knowledge STW’s devs are likewise.
Spill the beans then! Surely that might help move things forward?
Spill the beans then! Surely that might help move things forward?
Well, I did, and it didn't. Do you genuinely want me to try again? I'm kinda bored now of getting a mauling for caring.
In any case, they're just that - my suspicions, I have no visibility of either the STW codebase or affected users' systems. I could be wildly off the mark.
I have also experienced the re occuring cookie pop up message even after accepting. What i've just done is cleared all data from singletrackworld in chrome (android) and it seems to have fixed it.
UNfortunately you don't get as much fine grained control on chrome on a mobile as you do on a desktop. On a desktop you can see the cookies being set and see a list for all sites.
some character out of Breaking Bad?
Monarch of the glen, surely?
That's a crossover episode I'd pay good money to see.
Well, I did, and it didn’t. Do you genuinely want me to try again?
Must have missed it, but no point reposting if it didn't work. In case it's not clear, I'm not being arsey - I know you are trying to help.
If you / anyone has something to add beyond “it doesn’t work properly” which might help with a diagnosis then that may well change
I offered to help the tech team troubleshoot the issue with pages freezing, fans spinning, etc. but got no response other than "thanks, we'll get back to you".
But as mentioned it’s really difficult to fix when they can’t locate a specific issue due not being able to replicate it.
These kind of things are always really hard to pin down, which is why it needs participation from both ends of the problem. If the devs have an appetite to fix it then asking the community for help would be a good start. If they don't, then that's fine too, as long as everyone understands that.
I have no visibility of either the STW codebase or affected users’ systems
Yet you keep needlessly putting yourself in the line of fire. You have no access to the codebase or platform, you have no access to the end user devices, and you are not experiencing the issue yourself. This kind of problem needs data and the only real information in this thread is anecdotal "it doesn't work for me", "it works for me" claptrap that is no use to anyone.
Some ongoing narrative of how the issue being actively addressed would go a long way to easing my frustration
Assuming the issue is being looked at then this. Communication is king.
Still happening for every new page for me with both Chrome and Opera. So, I've just downloaded and tried Firefox - straight off, same issue. Then, I noticed there's a link at the bottom that says 'Login/cookie issues?' so I followed that link via both Firefox and Chrome. It worked for Firefox but not for Chrome - I'm not sure what to make of that.
And, as if by magic, the problem has disappeared. At least for me. At least today …
This happened for somebody yesterday too IIRC - along with responses about how nobody changed anything therefore it's not my fault! Joking aside this is exactly why it needs a joined up effort, it's entirely possible that this isn't in site code or end user device config, but something in specific routes. Misbehaving load balancer for example that gets failed over at 3pm every day, or a routing loop somewhere in the path of specific users/locations/ISPs.
For those that complain that STW has a shitty attitude etc: I am on holiday with my kids, my job when I’m not on holiday is primarily to make sure there are words you want to read, and I am here commenting on this thread because I do care, as do the other staff.
Firstly, as others have noted, we have a very small tech team. They’re doing their best to bring you site wide improvements, and they’re now doing that with some programme management from me because a) that’s what my background is in and it helps boost their resources and b) it allows me to help prioritise work that will support more/better/easily findable and readable editorial content - which we think is what, ultimately, you want.
There is a necessary sequence to some of this work, and that means the tech team can’t always get to fixing x problem until they’ve done y development. Sometimes maybe they could fix x, but then they’d have to stop working on y, do x, go back to y, and then do further work on x because y requires a new fix to x. In a small team that’s a huge drain on resource, which means we’re trying to focus on the most efficient sequence. If we firefight all the x issues, we never get to the core of their cause - the y development.
In the last few weeks the tech team has taken a big leap in some of that development work, and there is a bit more to go that we’re hoping will be done quite soon. Getting this work done will pave the way for a bit less firefighting and more trouble shooting.
On to which… if you post in the forum it’s not actually bringing it to the attention of the tech team (unless I happen to spot it). The best way to report an issue is to email tech-support@singletrackworld.com with as much of the following info as you can:
Free user, or member?
Browser(s) affected
Hardware being used - Mac,iPhone, PC etc
Any relevant screenshots
If you report an issue this way, it goes on the bug list. Then the tech team can see if it’s happening for everyone all the time and wasn’t happening before (in which case it’s probably a fire that needs fighting now), something that’s happening to some people (in which case reports from each of you may help us identify a pattern of why), etc. I can’t promise it’ll result in a fix immediately, but at least this way it’s recorded and we will do our best to get to fixing them.
Hope that helps explain things a little.
Back to my holidays 🙂
Thanks Hannah, especially for posting on your holiday. It was me that made the shitty attitude comment, and I apologise if it offended - I'm sure you are all very committed and doing the best you can, however silence can be deafening and drives the perception that nobody cares. At the risk of adding to your no doubt long to-do list, to help with communication and avoid these kind of threads, perhaps a known issues list might help? Doesn't need to be too detailed but might help folk see that they are not alone and that there are other priorities.
In the last few weeks the tech team has taken a big leap in some of that development work, and there is a bit more to go that we’re hoping will be done quite soon. Getting this work done will pave the way for a bit less firefighting and more trouble shooting.
The problem STW has, Hannah, is that there is no visibility of this. It's one of the core things I tried to improve back as a moderator (and gods help me, still am for some reason) but most of the time we were as much in the dark as everyone else. Making the tracker visible to the moderation team was a paradigm shift in the right direction.
As a random example, the "continually logged out" complaint predates the big site upgrade, predates my membership even and I've been here 11 years.
And yes, I know that there's no obligation to keep the userbase in the loop, and christ knows that I've made that argument many times myself including earlier on this very thread. But on a forum which by its very nature is a communications platform and one which doesn't generally censor negative criticism, it can't come as a surprise when people moan about something they cannot see and don't know any better about.
The best way to report an issue is to email tech-support@singletrackworld.com with as much of the following info as you can:
Or if you use the form linked from the Help icon bottom-right, it solicits all that information.
Enjoy your hols, chuck. Anywhere nice?
Cougar doesn’t actually have a role with ST any more AFAIK but still feels the need to aggressively dismiss any perfectly legitimate and constructive complaints people make. It’s rather strange.
I know, he just straight up called me a liar for describing my experiences.
perhaps a known issues list might help?
I don't believe that such a thing would be a net positive.
I know, he just straight up called me a liar for describing my experiences.
Liar. 😁
As I recall you and Ranos (that's spelt wrong I think, sorry, I'm not good with usernames) both claimed that you were banned for criticising the site, I suggested that your trousers may be combustible for reasons as explained and I stand by that suggestion because it didn't happen.
If you thought I was referring to any other experiences you may have had, I was not and I apologise for any potential misunderstanding there if you did.