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Favourite Threads / Posts

Formerly "Lemon Fool - Improve the Recipe" repurposed as Room 102 (see above).
Maylix
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Favourite Threads / Posts

#242071

Postby Maylix » August 6th, 2019, 12:00 pm

DAK if there is a way to mark a particular post or a particular thread so that it can be found easily in future?
TIA
Maylix

Watis
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Re: Favourite Threads / Posts

#242076

Postby Watis » August 6th, 2019, 12:10 pm

Maylix wrote:DAK if there is a way to mark a particular post or a particular thread so that it can be found easily in future?
TIA
Maylix


Yes - click the spanner button at the top or bottom of the thread to reveal a drop down menu allowing you to either subscribe or bookmark a thread.

I believe that subscribing means you'll be emailed whenever a new post is added to the thread.

And bookmarking just makes it easy to find the thread again in the future.

HTH,

Watis

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Re: Favourite Threads / Posts

#242080

Postby PinkDalek » August 6th, 2019, 12:34 pm

Maylix wrote:DAK if there is a way to mark a particular post or a particular thread so that it can be found easily in future?


There's a number of ways, including:

1. Add to favourites on your PC/laptop/smartphone.

2. Send a PM to yourself including a link. Watch out for the storage limits (normally 50 per box or 100 if app.php/donate has been used).

3. Draft a reply but don't submit. Instead Save Draft. When done you should be able to find the saved drafts under Manage Drafts here ucp.php. When the draft is loaded you should be able to see at least part of the Topic.

4. Bookmarks as per the previous reply.

How do I bookmark or subscribe to specific topics?

You can bookmark or subscribe to a specific topic by clicking the appropriate link in the “Topic tools” menu, conveniently located near the top and bottom of a topic discussion.
from faq.php#f8r0 (the spanner)

5. Email yourself, also using the spanner drop down menu. When the email is received you'll have a link back to the Topic.

I'm sure there are more.

mc2fool
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Re: Favourite Threads / Posts

#242096

Postby mc2fool » August 6th, 2019, 1:33 pm

Watis wrote:
Maylix wrote:DAK if there is a way to mark a particular post or a particular thread so that it can be found easily in future?

Yes - click the spanner button at the top or bottom of the thread to reveal a drop down menu allowing you to either subscribe or bookmark a thread.

And you can then find them under Manage subscriptions & Manage bookmarks in your User Control Panel, which you can get to by clicking your username at the top right of any TLF page and selecting User Control Panel.

I believe that subscribing means you'll be emailed whenever a new post is added to the thread.

That depends on your notification options, which you can find under Board preferences in the User Control Panel.

Gengulphus
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Re: Favourite Threads / Posts

#242144

Postby Gengulphus » August 6th, 2019, 4:59 pm

mc2fool wrote:
Watis wrote:
Maylix wrote:DAK if there is a way to mark a particular post or a particular thread so that it can be found easily in future?

Yes - click the spanner button at the top or bottom of the thread to reveal a drop down menu allowing you to either subscribe or bookmark a thread.

And you can then find them under Manage subscriptions & Manage bookmarks in your User Control Panel, which you can get to by clicking your username at the top right of any TLF page and selecting User Control Panel.

I believe that subscribing means you'll be emailed whenever a new post is added to the thread.

That depends on your notification options, which you can find under Board preferences in the User Control Panel.

As an example of using those methods, I have almost none of the notification options set - just the ones for both email and notification if a moderator approves or disapproves of my posts (which AFAIAA are totally irrelevant on TLF, but I want to know if they become relevant in the future) and the one to be notified of new threads ("topics" in the terminology of the posting software) in boards ("forums" in that language) I'm subscribed to. When I get notified of a new thread, I read it and decide whether I'm interested in it: if I am, I bookmark the thread and if and when I later lose interest in it, I unbookmark it. So my list of bookmarks is the list of threads I'm currently interested in, either to keep up to date on them in the case of threads that are still active or because I think I'll want to find them again easily in the future

The other ingredient is that I've put Manage bookmarks on the 'Favourites Bar' in my browser, so I can click on it and go straight to the list of threads I'm interested in. From there, I usually just click on the circles to the left of threads for which those circles are red to bring my reading of them up to date, but occasionally I do some actual management of the list, most usually to unbookmark threads that seem to have fallen inactive and that I don't think I'll want to refer to in the future - this is basically just decluttering to make it easier to find the threads I do want to refer to in the future in a fairly long and growing list.

This isn't the only way of using the facilities concerned, just one example of a way of using them, and there are also various other ways to try to get the software to present one with stuff one wants to read while minimising the amount it presents that one doesn't want to read. Which is best does depend on what one wants to read, how badly one wants to ensure one reads it, and how badly one wants to avoid being presented with other stuff to read. So all I can really suggest is experimenting with the facilities to look for the method that works best for oneself.

Gengulphus

Lootman
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Re: Favourite Threads / Posts

#242148

Postby Lootman » August 6th, 2019, 5:14 pm

I feel sure that the suggestions so far from my erudite colleagues all work. But there is another way of achieving this that requires no setting up. I haven't actually tried it on TLF but I have used it on another site and the beauty of it is that it is independent of the hosting software.

1) Pick a word that is highly unlikely to ever appear naturally on TLF. It can be a fake word, nonsense word or deliberately mis-spelled word. It could also be a string of digits.

2) Make a point of replying once in each thread that you like, even if only to commend someone. At the bottom of your text add "Search key:" followed by your special word.

3) Whenever you want to retrieve your list of favourite threads, simply do a search for your special word. A list will appear from which the one you seek should be easily found and selected, unless you do this far too much of course.

It does require the software to have a reliable search facility, although maybe even the right google search will reveal it. I cannot comment on how good TLF's search facility is as I rarely use it.

csearle
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Re: Favourite Threads / Posts

#242197

Postby csearle » August 6th, 2019, 7:27 pm

Lootman wrote:...But there is another way of achieving this that requires no setting up. I haven't actually tried it on TLF but I have used it on another site and the beauty of it is that it is independent of the hosting software...
Absolutely brilliant, thank you. C.

PinkDalek
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Re: Favourite Threads / Posts

#242199

Postby PinkDalek » August 6th, 2019, 7:42 pm

csearle wrote:
Lootman wrote:...But there is another way of achieving this that requires no setting up. I haven't actually tried it on TLF but I have used it on another site and the beauty of it is that it is independent of the hosting software...
Absolutely brilliant, thank you. C.


Yes but unless the (non?) word is not disclosed in some way (I don't mean hidden from view), if everyone starts using it, the search results will be far greater than hoped for.

Someone has already found/knows a way to make xyloturbot non searchable, I think. ;)

Lootman
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Re: Favourite Threads / Posts

#242235

Postby Lootman » August 6th, 2019, 9:43 pm

PinkDalek wrote:
csearle wrote:
Lootman wrote:...But there is another way of achieving this that requires no setting up. I haven't actually tried it on TLF but I have used it on another site and the beauty of it is that it is independent of the hosting software...
Absolutely brilliant, thank you. C.

Yes but unless the (non?) word is not disclosed in some way (I don't mean hidden from view), if everyone starts using it, the search results will be far greater than hoped for.

Someone has already found/knows a way to make xyloturbot non searchable, I think. ;)

Well yeah, I figured that each Lemon would come up with their own unique code rather than copy mine.

But maybe your cloaking device would mitigate the risk of others seeking to impersonate my randomness.

PinkDalek
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Re: Favourite Threads / Posts

#242240

Postby PinkDalek » August 6th, 2019, 9:57 pm

Lootman wrote:But maybe your cloaking device would mitigate the risk of others seeking to impersonate my randomness.


Not my cloaking device. Use the hidden word in search. You should see two versions of it at Testing 123 but it appears three times over there (or at least it did when I last looked). [Not] My version is searchable on this board, just not really visible.

csearle
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Re: Favourite Threads / Posts

#242245

Postby csearle » August 6th, 2019, 10:24 pm

PinkDalek wrote:My version is searchable on this board, just not really visible.
I think you should aim to slip the word "pettifogging" into all your most interesting posts from now on old boy. In that way we can find them all. :)

PinkDalek
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Re: Favourite Threads / Posts

#242249

Postby PinkDalek » August 6th, 2019, 10:37 pm

csearle wrote:
PinkDalek wrote:My version is searchable on this board, just not really visible.
I think you should aim to slip the word "pettifogging" into all your most interesting posts from now on old boy. In that way we can find them all. :)


You didn't see it? ;)

It had crossed my mind and, if I ever write an interesting post, I'll think about it again.

csearle
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Re: Favourite Threads / Posts

#242250

Postby csearle » August 6th, 2019, 10:43 pm

PinkDalek wrote:...if I ever write an interesting post, I'll think about it again.
They are all interesting, otherwise you wouldn't've written them, I was thinking of your most interesting ones. :)

Gengulphus
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Re: Favourite Threads / Posts

#242264

Postby Gengulphus » August 7th, 2019, 12:18 am

PinkDalek wrote:
Lootman wrote:But maybe your cloaking device would mitigate the risk of others seeking to impersonate my randomness.

Not my cloaking device. Use the hidden word in search. You should see two versions of it at Testing 123 but it appears three times over there (or at least it did when I last looked). [Not] My version is searchable on this board, just not really visible.

Not my cloaking device either, despite my having tested it with the codeword you used - the cloaking device is well-known on viewforum.php?f=73, or at least about as well-known as anything on that board can be. I merely copied it from its first user there, who might be UncleEbenezer but I'm not at all sure that memory is reliable. And indeed, the codeword I used isn't original either, though in that case the last time I saw or heard someone else use it is over 35 years ago.

The tests were basically just intended to try to work out how unobtrusive the use of the codeword could be made. Test 2 is potentially the least obtrusive-looking way of putting a codeword into a post, I think, but unfortunately it also seems to make the codeword unsearchable, defeating the whole point of putting it into a post.

The biggest drawbacks I can see to the technique are (a) copycat uses by people who don't realise that one is supposed to use a codeword that no-one else uses, and just copy the codeword they've seen someone else use; (b) uses by people who don't realise that one is supposed to use a codeword that no-one else is even likely to come up with coincidentally; (c) uses by people who don't realise that using one of their passwords as their codeword in order not to burden their memories with another random nonsense word is a very bad idea; (d) it becoming too popular a technique, resulting in threads becoming stuffed full of essentially zero-content posts submitted merely in order to mark the thread for searching rather than to add meaningfully to the thread's content.

Gengulphus

Itsallaguess
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Re: Favourite Threads / Posts

#242273

Postby Itsallaguess » August 7th, 2019, 6:01 am

Gengulphus wrote:
(d) it becoming too popular a technique, resulting in threads becoming stuffed full of essentially zero-content posts submitted merely in order to mark the thread for searching rather than to add meaningfully to the thread's content.


I'd like to think that the majority of posters could be trusted not to engage in such blatent contrafibularities...

Cheers,

Itsallaguess

Gengulphus
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Re: Favourite Threads / Posts

#242295

Postby Gengulphus » August 7th, 2019, 8:28 am

Gengulphus wrote:The biggest drawbacks I can see to the technique are (a) copycat uses by people who don't realise that one is supposed to use a codeword that no-one else uses, and just copy the codeword they've seen someone else use; (b) uses by people who don't realise that one is supposed to use a codeword that no-one else is even likely to come up with coincidentally; (c) uses by people who don't realise that using one of their passwords as their codeword in order not to burden their memories with another random nonsense word is a very bad idea; (d) it becoming too popular a technique, resulting in threads becoming stuffed full of essentially zero-content posts submitted merely in order to mark the thread for searching rather than to add meaningfully to the thread's content.

A couple more have occurred to me: (e) irreversibility - one cannot unmark a thread for being no longer of interest after the 15-minute editing window has expired, short of getting moderator assistance - which I suspect would become hard to get if the technique became at all popular; (f) malicious use - someone out to annoy one who knows (or guesses) about the technique can easily include one's codeword in all sorts of posts to swamp one's favourites with fake favourites.

Gengulphus

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Re: Favourite Threads / Posts

#242302

Postby Gengulphus » August 7th, 2019, 8:52 am

Itsallaguess wrote:
Gengulphus wrote:(d) it becoming too popular a technique, resulting in threads becoming stuffed full of essentially zero-content posts submitted merely in order to mark the thread for searching rather than to add meaningfully to the thread's content.

I'd like to think that the majority of posters could be trusted not to engage in such blatent contrafibularities...

I'm not certain just what a contrafibularity is, but the technique explicitly says "[/I]2) Make a point of replying once in each thread that you like, even if only to commend someone. At the bottom of your text add "Search key:" followed by your special word.[/I]" - i.e. it tells people to make a point of replying in a thread they find interesting even if they're adding no very meaningful content. Which is no problem if just a few people use the technique (without naming names, I can think of an existing poster or two who regularly post replies with no meaningful content and it's at most a minor irritation), but if it becomes popular, I can easily imagine large numbers of threads each getting dozens of variants of "Thanks for raising this subject - I'll watch the debate with interest. Search key: bendrofluoxane" posted in reply to their OP...

I.e. it's a bit much to expect posters to use a technique without doing what it tells them to do! And by the way, on a related point about the "f) Malicious use ..." drawback I posted a short time ago, on that one I would not just like to think that the majority of posters could be trusted not to do it, but be pretty certain they can. Unfortunately, though, it only takes one poster indulging in it to thoroughly sabotage one's list of favourites...

Gengulphus

Itsallaguess
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Re: Favourite Threads / Posts

#242310

Postby Itsallaguess » August 7th, 2019, 9:24 am

Gengulphus wrote:
I'm not certain just what a contrafibularity is..


Ach, I was just mucking about -

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hOSYiT2iG08

Bloody hell -1987!!

Where do the years go?

Cheers,

Itsallaguess

mc2fool
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Re: Favourite Threads / Posts

#242331

Postby mc2fool » August 7th, 2019, 9:54 am

Gengulphus wrote:
Gengulphus wrote:The biggest drawbacks I can see to the technique are (a) copycat uses by people who don't realise that one is supposed to use a codeword that no-one else uses, and just copy the codeword they've seen someone else use; (b) uses by people who don't realise that one is supposed to use a codeword that no-one else is even likely to come up with coincidentally; (c) uses by people who don't realise that using one of their passwords as their codeword in order not to burden their memories with another random nonsense word is a very bad idea; (d) it becoming too popular a technique, resulting in threads becoming stuffed full of essentially zero-content posts submitted merely in order to mark the thread for searching rather than to add meaningfully to the thread's content.

A couple more have occurred to me: (e) irreversibility - one cannot unmark a thread for being no longer of interest after the 15-minute editing window has expired, short of getting moderator assistance - which I suspect would become hard to get if the technique became at all popular; (f) malicious use - someone out to annoy one who knows (or guesses) about the technique can easily include one's codeword in all sorts of posts to swamp one's favourites with fake favourites.

(g) lots of extra hits 'cos people Reply with quote to the post (and others Reply with quote to those replies, etc, etc), and don't remove (maybe even don't notice) the codeword. And some could become "incorrect" hits if the thread drifts beyond the codeworded point of interest and is then split to another thread, even board, with some of those replies

Lootman
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Re: Favourite Threads / Posts

#242516

Postby Lootman » August 7th, 2019, 6:23 pm

mc2fool wrote:(g) lots of extra hits 'cos people Reply with quote to the post (and others Reply with quote to those replies, etc, etc), and don't remove (maybe even don't notice) the codeword. And some could become "incorrect" hits if the thread drifts beyond the codeworded point of interest and is then split to another thread, even board, with some of those replies

Yes, for this purpose it would be better if the TLF search gave just one result for each topic, i.e. if it worked at the topic level rather than the comment level, and hid duplicate results. Of course, that might be worse for other purposes.

Instead it yields one result for each post within a topic, and so if someone did requote your codeword then you'd get a result set of two rather than one.

For that reason this would be best done by making a minimal post which is less likely to garner any direct replies, to avoid the problem you pointed out. I gave the example earlier of making it a simple commendation to the author.

As for (a) to (f), they seem to arise mostly because Lemons behave either thoughtlessly, negligently or even maliciously. I hold my fellow Lemons in high esteem and so would like to think that would not happen. But whilst not probable outcomes, they are certainly possible outcomes. All the more reason then, perhaps, to do this in a low profile manner and to employ the cloaking ideas being suggested.

Or perhaps I should have kept quiet about the idea altogether, and just do it on the down low ;)


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