Just happened to me again. I never log out, BTW, and it happens to me on different computers.
Just now, opened ATMB which took a little longer than usual. Opened this thread in a new tab. Then hit my browser’s back button and opened GQ. Everything now marked as read.
I’m zapped with boring irregularity on a Macbook Pro.
Ok. Good to know/remember. I’m not surprised, since I’m still leaning towards this being a timing and synchronization issue between multiple servers. If that’s right, then there should be little difference from the user’s perspective to trigger it. The question would be why do some people not observe the problem.
Are there large groups of people who don’t even notice “new messages” the same way we do? Could it be happening to most everyone, but the browsing style lends itself to being noticed?
I am leaning towards this. I have had the very occasional zap but never thought anything of it.
If you never log out, then it’s not the same zaps as mine, which happen only upon login. Isn’t there a default setting where it logs you out after 30 minutes of inactivity or something like that?
I think it’s the same. I don’t log out either, but I do close the window. Part of the trigger is new activity, not logging in. Your first activity is logging in. My first activity is opening the web page. Both trigger the activity counter, which mysteriously is set wrong.
What are these ‘new messages’ you speak of? I’m actually being completely serious.
If it’s at all useful, I never noticed the ‘new posts’ button at all until this thread happened to catch my eye.
I just subscribe to threads I want to follow, which I why I gripe when the ‘new posts’ emails stop coming now and then.
Zapped! Third time in four days and I believe the fourth time total on this account. (Plus a time or two more during this period on my real account.)
I accept your seriousness…in fact, I suspect that many people have the same idea, and that’s part of why this issue isn’t more wide spread.
I browse individual forums by clicking on the icon next to the thread titles in the list. This takes you to the oldest message that you haven’t read, if the system is working properly. There is also a “View First Unread” link near the top of each page, which takes you to the same thing. Using these links makes it easy for me to find where to pick up the conversation.
The problem is that this is based on my last activity time, and the SDMB occasionally decides to reset the last activity time to the current time. This results in there being no “new” messages, and I have to sort through the thread manually to figure out where to start. We call that being “zapped.”
Are you talking about the envelope like icons to the left of the thread title? Because those aren’t even clickable for me.
Ah, no I see you were referring to the little down arrow.
Zapped. Seconds after reading this thread and scrolling down to click on ‘General Questions’. I know I should have gone to bed. That’ll learn me. No, it won’t. Grrr.
I don’t think the system logs you out like that. I think it refers to the online system display of what users are doing. This is turned off and not publicly displayed. If we had the display turned on the system would show what you are doing on the board, that times out after 30 minutes of inactivity on your part, I believe that’s the system default. Since the display is turned off it’s immaterial.
If you don’t have the “Remember Me” box clicked by where you log in, you may have to log in again when you call up another page in your browser.
Zapped again. The frequency seems to be picking up again.
I remember taking my time in Reply posts before, maybe something else came up to distract me, so that by the time I had made the post, 30 minutes had passed, and everything was reset. In those instances, that was my own fault.
For a data point, I’m one that wouldn’t really be aware if I’m seeing this problem, based upon my posting style.
I have occasionally experienced instances where, for instance, pulling up my CP page it will show no new threads, and then I hit the show all.
I also had one weird event where I refreshed my CP page and it listed a bunch of really old threads (like a year old) and nothing current. When I refreshed, it listed new threads again at current date. I actually made an ATMB thread on it.
But in general, I browse first by ATMB and Comments, then CP, then, if I have time, poke around one of the other forums by forum list. I don’t use New Posts.
Very likely.
You can always pull up your CP page. It displays your subscribed threads with new activity. There’s a link at the bottom to show all, which shows your subscribed threads to the dawn of time (or when you started subscribing).
See, I don’t use those features. I always go through the threads manually. Mostly due to posting inertia (I do what I’ve always done). I think I considered that, but wasn’t sure how reliable that would be, so never really gave it a go. My experience with the blue marked unread/vs read threads didn’t give me confidence.
I have come to the forum list, scroll down, and there might be unread posts in a thread that is marked read. Basically I roll down the unreads and check a few reads until I run out of unread posts.
But I don’t think I’ve seen that in a long time.
Yeah, but those are zapped too. I go to my CP page first, and very often everything is marked Read. I have to figure out where I left off in each one. It’s NOT just a New Threads issue. Subscribed threads are all zapped too. Everything is, in each Forum.
I know. StarvingButStrong was complaining about not getting emails. It doesn’t fix your problem, but there’s no reason he needs emails to follow his threads. If he’s subscribed, they’re readily accessible from CP.
I’ve not been paying attention to when the board says I last logged in but I have noticed that, on occasion, every single thread is greyed out as if there are zero new posts anywhere. When I haven’t been here in at least 8 hours.
Doesn’t happen to me frequently enough to be a problem so I never thought to report it.
Zapped again.