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s240779

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Suggestion to amend reply-to function 2
#27679297 - 03/02/22 07:55 AM (1 year, 10 months ago) |
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Currently when using the Quick Reply box, the default goes to the last post. One has the option to change it to default to the first post, but that requires a supporter account. The fact that such a basic option is reserved for paid accounts is silly, in my opinion, and it serves to degrade the presentation of the forum. I propose a unique amendment to the Reply-to function: allow both options to be used by all members, but make a third, premium option which defaults to your previous post. Not everyone likes the fact that this old-fashioned forum software forces every post to be tied to another one and replying to yourself is a way to neutralize the function.
And before anyone argues that all posts should be tied to another one, let me point out that OP might start making off-topic, disagreeable posts later in the thread that are quite removed from his first post: in such a case it does make more sense to have the reply to yourself.
Edited by s240779 (03/02/22 08:28 AM)
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Ythan
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Re: Suggestion to amend reply-to function [Re: s240779] 1
#27681045 - 03/03/22 01:20 PM (1 year, 10 months ago) |
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You know, I completely forgot that setting was reserved for supporters. Thanks for bringing it up. I agree that's an unnecessary restriction and I removed it so anyone can select "first post" or "last post". Your suggestion about adding an option for "my last post" is good, but more complex to implement for a few technical reasons. I'd need to make some changes to how the quick-reply list is generated and cached, so it's not something I can bust out right now in 10 minutes, but I may come back around to it later.
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s240779

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Re: Suggestion to amend reply-to function [Re: Ythan]
#27684565 - 03/06/22 03:42 AM (1 year, 10 months ago) |
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Great, thanks! It's still defaulting to the last post, even though it's set to first post. I even tried setting it to last post, saving, and setting it to first post again.
A simpler alternative to 'reply to my last post' would be an option to prevent the reply-to field from being generated. If you're not comfortable making that a global function, it could just be one of the check boxes...
Edited by s240779 (03/06/22 03:52 AM)
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s240779

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Re: Suggestion to amend reply-to function [Re: Ythan]
#27712476 - 03/29/22 05:25 AM (1 year, 9 months ago) |
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Maybe reply to your first post wouldn't require changing the caching? It's just a matter of getting your username up in the post box rather than have it be dirtied with someone else's. But as the current 'first post' option doesn't even work, I wonder if this liberating mod will ever be done.
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Ythan
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Re: Suggestion to amend reply-to function [Re: s240779]
#27713040 - 03/29/22 03:01 PM (1 year, 9 months ago) |
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Sorry, I missed that, the "Default quick reply" setting is fixed. There are a lot of corner cases with the quick reply menu that make it more complicated to modify the behavior than you'd think, but at least you can default to "first post" now.
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s240779

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Re: Suggestion to amend reply-to function [Re: Ythan]
#27714907 - 03/31/22 01:35 AM (1 year, 9 months ago) |
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I'd be curious for a detailed explanation as to why it's so complicated, because from a lay person's perspective, it seems like it would be pretty simple. Regarding eliminating the 'Reply to' text, what is the feasibility of doing that with a browser user script? There are extensions that allow a person to modify a web page before it's printed, one example is The Printliminator. It let's you instantly remove text, frames, and images simply by clicking on them (however, one cannot have the page load that way every time you visit it). Below is an example of me removing the entire left portion of the 'Reply to' section of your post using the extension.


If an extension like that can be made, I would imagine a user script that permanently makes such changes can be made, am I wrong?
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Ythan
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Re: Suggestion to amend reply-to function [Re: s240779]
#27715120 - 03/31/22 08:08 AM (1 year, 9 months ago) |
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You don't need a userscript for that. If you go into your display settings and click the "Custom style?" link near the top, you can paste this CSS into the box that appears:
Code:
.subjecttable>*, .newsubjecttable>* { visibility:hidden; }
Or, if you want to remove that space entirely instead of just making it blank:
Code:
.subjecttable, .newsubjecttable { display:none; }
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s240779

Registered: 12/07/10
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Re: Suggestion to amend reply-to function [Re: Ythan]
#27715139 - 03/31/22 08:37 AM (1 year, 9 months ago) |
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Wow. People have found that space to be an eyesore for 2 decades; I'm surprised that solution was right under our noses all along and I'm surprised it was given by the site founder. Of course, it's an all or nothing solution. For people who want to browse the site this way, perhaps you can add a weird, little option in preferences to have the Edit, Quote, upvote and '#27715139' appear in the Extras section.
My question is still relevant because obviously what we really need is a user script that just gets rid of the [Re: ...]
Edited by s240779 (03/31/22 08:43 AM)
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Ythan
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Re: Suggestion to amend reply-to function [Re: s240779]
#27715175 - 03/31/22 09:13 AM (1 year, 9 months ago) |
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For the fields you're trying to remove, this would probably work:
Code:
.subjecttable>*, .newsubjecttable>* { visibility:hidden; }
.subjecttable .small a, .newsubjecttable .small a, .plus { visibility:visible; float:left; }
.subjecttable .navigation, .newsubjecttable .navigation { visibility: visible; }
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s240779

Registered: 12/07/10
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Re: Suggestion to amend reply-to function [Re: s240779]
#27715352 - 03/31/22 12:21 PM (1 year, 9 months ago) |
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That did it. However, I had to space each of the visibility things ahead 8 spaces, as they were in the first code you gave me. The site wouldn't even let me submit the form the way you have it. edit Woul it be possible to prevent the upvote tally from being hidden? The button is still there, but the numbers of upvoted posts are hidden. If it's not possible, a simple work-around would be to add a setting that would include the tally in the tooltip. It would be weird to add a setting like that because it would only be something that people who use this hack would want to use, but as many people have complained about the Reply to feature in the past, I suspect that many people will use it when it becomes more well known, so I'd say it's worth adding.
Edited by s240779 (03/31/22 02:09 PM)
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Ythan
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Re: Suggestion to amend reply-to function [Re: s240779]
#27715649 - 03/31/22 04:24 PM (1 year, 9 months ago) |
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Oh yeah I forgot about the counter, try this:
Code:
.subjecttable>*, .newsubjecttable>* { visibility:hidden; }
.subjecttable .small a, .newsubjecttable .small a, .plus, .count { visibility:visible; float:left; }
.count { padding-left:4px; }
.subjecttable .navigation, .newsubjecttable .navigation { visibility: visible; }
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s240779

Registered: 12/07/10
Posts: 12,880
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Re: Suggestion to amend reply-to function [Re: s240779]
#27715655 - 03/31/22 04:33 PM (1 year, 9 months ago) |
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Now it's almost perfect. Would it be possible to move the # post link next to the button/counter (several spaces to the right) and would that make the box thinner?
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s240779

Registered: 12/07/10
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Re: Suggestion to amend reply-to function [Re: s240779]
#27715664 - 03/31/22 04:52 PM (1 year, 9 months ago) |
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The majority of 'reply to's' on this site are probably false positives, so I'm thinking big: Why not make this a global feature and add a check box called 'Intentional reply' or something, haha, which will cause an alternative 'Re:' 'script' to be generated and said alternative will not be hidden. Think of the native 'reply to' as malware that is being killed for being greedy and infecting every single post on the site with itself (kind of like Agent Smith at the end of Matrix Revolutions). We've just figured out a way to remove it, but why not invite a more civil version to join us?
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Ythan
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Re: Suggestion to amend reply-to function [Re: s240779] 1
#27715815 - 03/31/22 08:23 PM (1 year, 9 months ago) |
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This is probably the best I can do for you. If you want to learn more about CSS so you can make your own tweaks to the site's appearance, mdn is a good resource.
Code:
.subjecttable>*, .newsubjecttable>* { visibility:hidden; }
.subjecttable .small a, .newsubjecttable .small a, .plus, .count { visibility:visible; float:left; }
.plus, .count { padding-right: 4px; }
.subjecttable .navigation, .newsubjecttable .navigation { visibility: visible; }
.subjecttable, .newsubjecttable { height: 0px; }
.subjecttable br, .newsubjecttable br, .subjecttable b { display: none; }
All replies need an explicit parent post to support threaded mode, that's why reply-to exists and can't be easily eliminated.
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s240779

Registered: 12/07/10
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Re: Suggestion to amend reply-to function [Re: Ythan]
#27715860 - 03/31/22 09:08 PM (1 year, 9 months ago) |
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Quote:
Ythan said: All replies need an explicit parent post to support threaded mode, that's why reply-to exists and can't be easily eliminated.
This entire thread is about a superficial modification to the reply-to configuration and so far it has worked out very well; I am simply talking about taking it to the next level. Although I greatly appreciate what you have done for me, it's not about accommodating me and the two other people who upvoted my first post; it's about everyone! The vast majority of reply-tos on this site are false; not to mention that the 'banners' that every post has makes the site look dirty. However, you won't make this mod global because you feel that that would be too extreme. So, what I'm proposing is a perfect hybrid between the old-fashioned default and this new modification: Make the mod that you've created global, but add a script that generates a new, independent Re: [username] thing when the person who knows what he's doing specifies for them to be generated My quip, above, 'Intentional reply' was a reference to what I'm talking about. People who really know how this site works can have the default setup, but the new default will be this new, hidden manifestation and we'll have something like 2-factor authentication to ensure that reply-tos are genuine. So, in order for the new, 'fake' Re: things to be generated, there will be a checkbox below that says 'This is a specific reply' and it will be grayed out unless any 'Reply' other than the one in the first post is clicked, or if the user changes the reply in the drop-down menu. The checkbox will not be checked by default, hence why I described it as 2-factor authentication: They have to specify a unique reply and they also have to check the box to verify that they really want to make a specific reply. Alternatively, we could do something like my 'Shutdown Guard' suggestion in my other recent thread (#27675799). We could put little locks next to the 'Quick reply' drop-down and all 'Replies' other than the first one. In order to use them, you have to click the icon, which unlocks the feature. And again, veteran members can simply have the default behavior.*
Essentially, what I'm describing is a way hide the waste that is constantly generated by the original structure, making the site look really clean and accurate (in terms of who's directing their statement to whom), while still preserving the desirable aspect of the original structure (veterans who know how to use the software).
edit I just realized that relies to the first post have to always be 'invisible', serving as the general or off-topic reply.
*If one wants to set it back to the default behavior, it can simply be one of the options in 'Settings.' This option should contain a notice like this one:
We trust you have received the usual lecture from the local System Administrator. It usually boils down to these three things:
#1) Respect the privacy of others. #2) Think before you type. #3) With great power comes great responsibility.
Edited by s240779 (04/01/22 04:15 PM)
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s240779

Registered: 12/07/10
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Re: Suggestion to amend reply-to function [Re: s240779]
#27715888 - 03/31/22 09:37 PM (1 year, 9 months ago) |
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Also, I just realized that the dates, times, and titles are missing from the modded versions of the page. I know you just suggested that I should learn to do it myself, but as my original request was just to get rid of the 'Reply to' text try to adjust it so that only that text is eliminated, if it's not too much trouble. My Printliminator screenshots threw you off.
edit Latest code breaks the jump-to-post!
edit 2 The #27715839 in this post is invisile for some reason. This is using the second-to-last code, which still has 'jump-to-post'. The # is visible with the latest code. https://www.shroomery.org/forums/showflat.php/Number/27715839#27715839
Edited by s240779 (03/31/22 09:59 PM)
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s240779

Registered: 12/07/10
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Re: Suggestion to amend reply-to function [Re: s240779]
#27716536 - 04/01/22 12:58 PM (1 year, 9 months ago) |
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Seems like it's because the link is the same color as the header highlight:
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s240779

Registered: 12/07/10
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Re: Suggestion to amend reply-to function [Re: s240779]
#27716606 - 04/01/22 02:09 PM (1 year, 9 months ago) |
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Also, here's a simplified version of the extended mod that I'm proposing: The mod in this thread is fixed so that title and date are no longer hidden. Said mod is implemented for the entire website. Reply headers ([Re: ...]) are generated by a new, custom code, and these are the only headers that will ever appear on the site again.* These headers can freely be used the way we want them, because they're not constrained by Threaded Mode. Individual users control whether or not they want to generate a reply header in their post, the same way they control whether or not they want to include a quote in their post. False positives are prevented by having two different layouts: restricted and the current one. In the restricted one, Replys and QR drop-down cannot be freely clicked. Anyone has the option to switch to the old layout, but surely add a warning notice about misuse of the reply-to feature. And replies to the OP never have reply headers (and consider moving OP's 'Reply' outside the box).
...This would be so sweet.
*Or maybe we don't even need to do all of that; maybe we can just be selective about what is affected by the invisibility mod and what isn't. Everything is invisible by default, but the user can specify when his post ignores the CSS mod and as such his full header will be displayed.
Edited by s240779 (04/01/22 02:37 PM)
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s240779

Registered: 12/07/10
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Re: Suggestion to amend reply-to function [Re: s240779]
#27716946 - 04/01/22 06:20 PM (1 year, 9 months ago) |
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Quote:
s240779 said: Seems like it's because the link is the same color as the header highlight:

Nope. Something else is going on.
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nektar61
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Re: Suggestion to amend reply-to function [Re: s240779]
#27721729 - 04/05/22 04:30 AM (1 year, 9 months ago) |
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I added the first one, but then I could not edit a post. Is there a variation where I can still edit a typo if I see one? Also, is there a way to do it so I still can reply to someone if I'm answering them?
Thank you. I used this one:
Code: .subjecttable, .newsubjecttable { display:none; }
-------------------- -NEW? Start here.
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s240779

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Re: Suggestion to amend reply-to function [Re: nektar61]
#27721748 - 04/05/22 05:43 AM (1 year, 9 months ago) |
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Currently, I don't recommend using this hack because it's incomplete, but if you want to use it, I recommend the second-to-last version.
On another note, I recently wanted to submit something to r/nottheonion and I noticed that their submission page has an interesting setup (only using the old reddit layout): When the mouse is moved over either submission box, a note appears ('Copy and paste...'). The bottom box in the below screenshot shows the same note when the cursor is moved over it. Perhaps it would be easy for Ythan to add this functionality for the headers of the posts. Ythan has me on ignore, which means he cannot see any of my posts or even my quoted posts, so if you want to relay this idea to him, you'll have to do it manually.
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