Five skins

[ChrisGreaves]

Now that we are cut back to five skins, it might be a good idea to produce a short list, 3 primary characteristics per skin (if I say "5 characteristics" we'll never stop arguing) that helps to distinguish one skin from another.
I'm not thinking of cosmetic characteristics, such as color, as much as functional e.g. "Fits more data per screen" or "Great contrast for unread posts".
Perhaps this boils down to an informal not-a-poll of users and their reasons for choosing one of the five skins over another.
Then some poor schmuck would have to summarize the thread.
And then get castigated for their efforts, I suppose?

[HansV]

There's already a short description and a set of thumbnails in Tutorial: select a board style (skin). If people come up with succinct descriptions of functionality and usability, I could add them there.

[ChrisGreaves]

There's already a short description and a set of thumbnails...

Thanks Hans. I'd missed that, but still and all it does talk more about color rather than functional impact (now THERE'S a 90s term!) on the user.
In my Copious Free Time^(TM) I'll do a quick review and post it here; maybe we can then knock it into shape?

[HansV]

The contemporary term for "functional impact" is "user experience"...

[ChrisGreaves]

The contemporary term for "functional impact" is "user experience"...

Speaking of user experience, ... what else might I do about this logout problem?
It's obviously not life-and-death (yet!), but it goes against the most basic principle of using computers - they should be doing the boring and repetitive tasks for us. It's starting to be a pain, Open All In Tabs then log in, then Open All In Tabs again.
(I think this is the first time I've hijacked one of my own threads towards a more pressing issue).
Pilgrim has mentioned "disabling referrer checking"; whatever that is, is it worth a try?

[HansV]

Referrer checking had already been turned off shortly after we went live.

I can only suggest using fewer tabs. I haven't had any problems remaining logged in both at home and at work as long as I tick the check box "Log me on automatically each visit", but I usually have only one tab open on Eileen's Lounge, sometimes two.

[ChrisGreaves]

I can only suggest using fewer tabs.

Nice try, but even with just two tabs "Lounge Matters " and then "VBA", Open All In Tabs sets me as logged OUT in the first, leftmost tab, and logged IN in the second, rightmost tab.
To rub salt into the wound , when I click on the link in the email notification (to reply to your kind post), a third tab opens, with me logged OUT, even though I'm already logged in and what is now the second or middle tab.

I can see no rhyme or reason yet. There is a bug out there with my name on it. Maybe if I went back to 80-column punched cards ...

[StuartR]

I wonder if this could be a timing issue. Maybe when you try to open multiple tabs the first one locks access to the lounge cookie for long enough that the second one cannot gain access.

[Bigaldoc]

I wonder if this could be a timing issue.

That's why I suggested at the start of Chris' problem that he open a single tab first. I suggested the Board Index which Chris said he doesn't use, but really I think you're right. My experimentation shows that it doesn't matter what that first tab is. After that window opens, selecting "open all in tabs" on another bookmark seems to work.

[stuck]

I wonder if this could be a timing issue. Maybe when you try to open multiple tabs the first one locks access to the lounge cookie for long enough that the second one cannot gain access.

I don't have any problems here, I tend to open only one tab but I do regularly see FF fail to open correctly the last tab of a series of four identical bookmarks when I cntrl click / wheel click on the bookmark folder. Stuart's idea would explain this unconnected but related behaviour as well.

Ken

[ChrisGreaves]

I wonder if this could be a timing issue. Maybe when you try to open multiple tabs the first one locks access to the lounge cookie for long enough that the second one cannot gain access.

Stuart, thanks for the insight.

This is a terrible thing to say, but I'll say it "It didn't used to happen" but then, who knows where lies the timing problem?
Perhaps this lounge software is blindingly fast (Hooray!) and my old 2GB 2GHz laptop just can't cut it anymore; maybe the old (lounge) software was sluggish by comparison.
If that is so, then a series of parallel runs on both the old and the new might provide some data.

And if it is a timing problem (at my end), it probably has to do with Firefox and the way it is scheduling calls to cookies. One (i.e. me) should take a walk through about:config to see what might be tweaked.

From a logical point of view I see no software-reason why one shouldn't open 20 tabs at once (200 might be overkill, but 20 is OK), and the software ought to be able to deal with it.
If Firefox is putting in asynchronous calls to a cookie, then yes, the Windows Policeman might be turning some away. If that is the case then better Firefox logic would be to queue each cookie call until the cookie becomes available.

Which would be better for me, for then I'd see the first tab fastest, and the rest of them could load at their leisure in the time it takes me to read the first.

I currently have just two tabs "Lounge Matters" and "VBA", in that sequence. First boot today they both opened logged in.

I'll go back to the other place and set up the same two tabs to Open All In Tabs, and run in parallel for a few days.

[ChrisGreaves]

... at the start of Chris' problem that he open a single tab first.

Al, opening a single tab has, as far as I can remember, always opened me logged in.
It's not a single-tab open that is a problem, it's the use of Firefox "Open All In Tabs", and that that produces apparently random results, e.g. yesterday when tab1 opened logged OUT, while tab 2 opened logged IN!
I know that opening a single tab, and then Opening All In Tabs works. There's no logical reason I can see why the extra step should be necessary, excepting to get around what appears to be a software flaw.
In particular, this computer is supposed to be doing the boring and repetitive tasks for me, and taking two steps to do what one should do is boring and repetitive.

I'm not sure that the lounge software or Firefox is going to change, but it sure is interesting to hear others come up with the same problem, once they get beyond one tab.

[ChrisGreaves]

...but I do regularly see FF fail to open correctly the last tab of a series of four identical bookmarks when I cntrl click / wheel click on the bookmark folder.

Four identical? Or four bookmarks from the same web source?
I'm willing to try anything that sheds light.
This, to me, would be four identical tabs.

[Charlotte]

This is a terrible thing to say, but I'll say it "It didn't used to happen" but then, who knows where lies the timing problem?

Perhaps this lounge software is blindingly fast (Hooray!) and my old 2GB 2GHz laptop just can't cut it anymore; maybe the old (lounge) software was sluggish by comparison.
If that is so, then a series of parallel runs on both the old and the new might provide some data.

...
I'll go back to the other place and set up the same two tabs to Open All In Tabs, and run in parallel for a few days.

Just remember, Chris, that the software is entirely different in the two lounges and this is not a high priority since there are workarounds. Most of us never encounter the problem because we don't do it that way. It is on the todo list, assuming anyone can figure out the real cause.

[ChrisGreaves]

Just remember, Chris, that ...

I know, I know, ,and I've just realized that I'm still in the wrong thread ...
If nothing else my intention is to leave a trail of suggestions for others who experience the Intermittent log out problem.
Pilgrim started this all (grin), but he says it's fixed for him now.

Why aren't others opening their "daily dose" in tabs? It seems to me to be an efficient way to view any set of forums, not just this lounge ....

[Charlotte]

Why aren't others opening their "daily dose" in tabs? It seems to me to be an efficient way to view any set of forums, not just this lounge ....

It's more efficient to gulp too, but many people prefer to savor it slowly, a sip at a time.

[viking33]

Why aren't others opening their "daily dose" in tabs? It seems to me to be an efficient way to view any set of forums, not just this lounge ....

It's more efficient to gulp too, but many people prefer to savor it slowly, a sip at a time.

Excellent response!

[Pilgrim]

Pilgrim started this all (grin), but he says it's fixed for him now.

Why aren't others opening their "daily dose" in tabs? It seems to me to be an efficient way to view any set of forums, not just this lounge ....

Chris,

Just a suggestion... it appears that your preferred browser is Firefox, yes? Aside from my aversion to Firefox, it may be prudent to visit the board using IE, open 4 or 5 or xxxx tabs and see if the same logout issue rears its ugly head. IF the problem doesn't occur, then perhaps... just perhaps the problem is not the board software, assuming others, even those using Firefox aren't experiencing this problem, is your version of Firefox or an addon you have, or a corruption in the browser itself?

[ChrisGreaves]

Pilgrim

I replied here