"New anwwers" bug update

The "New answers" bug that I mentioned several months ago has

obviously been addressed during the recent forum software upgrade,

but it's not yet quite ready for prime time.

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While I can now visit a forum, and click the "New answers" link, and

see the threads with recent followup activity since my last visit,

there is still a major showstopper problem.

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The problem is that when I visit <i>another</i> forum, it tells me

there are no new answers, even though there are.

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What is happening, apparently, is the "last visit" flag is being set

<i>globally</i> rather than on a per-forum basis. So, I get to pick

ONE forum to check for new activity since my last vist, and the rest

of them are hopeless.

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For reference, the <i>old</I> behavior was extremely strange. It

seemed to accurately track my "last visit" flag for each forum, but

<i>only</I> within a timespan of a few hours at the most. There

seemed to be some internal rollover point of unknown (to me)

duration, after which, it would go nuts.

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For example, if I came back the next day, it would tell me that

my "last visit" was <i>now</I>! (e.g., my "last" visit had the

identical timestamp as my <i>current</I> visit.) As long as I stayed

online reading articles, the system would accurately track my "last

visit". If I left, and came back a few hours later, it would

<i>still</I> remember my "last visit". But, if I left for

<i>more</i> than a few hours, it lost the "last visit" timestamp, and

acted as if my <i>next</I> visit was my <i>first</I> visit. (e.g.,

the very first time you visit a forum, your "last" and "current"

timestamps were assumed identical)

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It appears that when <i>that</I> bug was repaired, something

<i>else</i> broke. The system can now remember the correct "last

visit" timestamp for more than a few hours at a stretch.

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These "fix one thing and break another" are common in any software

development milleu. Hopefully it will be repaired, rather than left

in the hopper to be addressed in the next major revision. As it

stands, the "New answers" function is useless, which is a major

disappointment, as it makes it well nigh impossible to keep track of

threads receiving any activity.

I still get the java script errors which locks up my computer. The critique forum is the worst. Thanks.

Your last visit doesn't get reset by looking at "New Answers". It gets reset by logging out and logging back in. It also gets reset based on time. But what you do, apart from logging in, doesn't affect your last visit time.

The thing is, I <i>haven't</I> been logging out and back in! I set it up to keep me logged in all the time.

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I do agree that it will wipe the slate based on time -- but the amount of time is absurd -- it's something less than 24 hours!

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The only way to stay abreast of "new replies since your last visit" is to literally live on the forums 24/7, and continue activity so that it maintains the flag. Heaven forbid you <i>sleep</I> one night, because when you come back in the morning, that time threshhold will have elapsed, and your "last visit" flag will be wiped clean!

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Now, that madness explained, I <i>have</I> managed to come up with a quasi-workable workaround, but it is crude as a... well, it's bloody crude.

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What I have to do, to be able to see the recent-activity threads in reverse order (most recent at top) is to block the photo.net cookie!

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Then, when I want to <i>post</I>, I have to <i>un</I>-block the cookie, and re-log in.

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This is nuts. There really shouldn't be such a connundrum over something as simple in concept, but significant in <i>impact</I> as a last-read flag. I will make no hackneyed references to the technology of Goddard or von Braun, but the implications are clear. :)