# New messages and new replies

**URL:** <https://boards.straightdope.com/t/new-messages-and-new-replies/75558>\
**Category:** About This Message Board\
**Created:** [August 9, 2001, 5:02am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/new-messages-and-new-replies/75558 "2001-08-09T05:02:26Z")\
**Posts on this page:** 3\
**Page:** 1

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**Author:** ![Road\_Rash](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/a8b319/32.png) [@Road\_Rash](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Road_Rash)\
**Post date:** [August 9, 2001, 5:02am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/new-messages-and-new-replies/75558/1 "2001-08-09T05:02:26Z")

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The sdmb general questions is the link in my “favorites” list. I go there and the whole page has new questions or responses. I click to MPISM, which I know can be just as busy or busier, and I see maybe three or four new q’s or resp’s. I guess my cookie being placed first in the GQ clears out the other boards as well. Is this true? Or what’s up?

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**Author:** ![StephenG](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/7feea3/32.png) [@StephenG](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/StephenG)\
**Post date:** [August 9, 2001, 5:12am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/new-messages-and-new-replies/75558/2 "2001-08-09T05:12:38Z")

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I think what you’re asking is why, after reading GQ, there only seem to be a few threads marked unread in MPSIMS?

You are correct, sir, if what you’re hypothesizing is that the time you last visited the board would be when you opened your last GQ thread, not when you last visited MPSIMS.\*

I find it somewhat frustrating too, that threads/posts are only unread if they’re new since your last access of the SDMB _anywhere_, rather than your last access of that particular thread/post. But, such is life…

[sub]\* And if that’s _not_ what you’re hypothesizing, I think you’d be wrong… [/sub]

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**Author:** ![Coldfire](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/a587f6/32.png) [@Coldfire](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Coldfire)\
**Post date:** [August 9, 2001, 11:55am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/new-messages-and-new-replies/75558/3 "2001-08-09T11:55:54Z")

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What works, to an extent, is to open the board at the front page. You log in, and after reading each forum, make sure you go back to the front page by means of the back button. That way, your cookie settings _might_ still work in the next forum you decide to read.

It’s not a guarantee, but it works for me in 90% of the cases. Sometimes, the main page will reload anyway, and the trick is gone. It does help to remember the “you last visited” time that is displayed when you log on. Helps you remember how far to read back in a forum.