# Read/Unread timer resetting c. 5 minutes into a session **URL:** \ **Category:** About This Message Board\ **Created:** [January 8, 2013, 12:26am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/read-unread-timer-resetting-c-5-minutes-into-a-session/646423 "2013-01-08T00:26:17Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 6
**Author:** ![CandidGamera](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/candidgamera/32/2878_2.png) [@CandidGamera](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/CandidGamera)\ **Post date:** [February 26, 2013, 4:54pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/read-unread-timer-resetting-c-5-minutes-into-a-session/646423/101 "2013-02-26T16:54:07Z")
Just hit me again, along with some really slow responses from the board. ---
**Author:** ![Hershele\_Ostropoler](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/h/e47c2d/32.png) [@Hershele\_Ostropoler](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Hershele_Ostropoler)\ **Post date:** [February 26, 2013, 9:53pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/read-unread-timer-resetting-c-5-minutes-into-a-session/646423/102 "2013-02-26T21:53:56Z")
Happened again, not on the first page of new posts, but on the second – all of a sudden the threads below had not been updated since my last visit but still contained unread posts. All the threads I opened from subscribed and the first page of new on which my last visit was yesterday also listed my last visit as a few minutes ago. ---
**Author:** ![Askance](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/askance/32/8281_2.png) [@Askance](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Askance)\ **Post date:** [February 27, 2013, 1:03am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/read-unread-timer-resetting-c-5-minutes-into-a-session/646423/103 "2013-02-27T01:03:26Z")
> [@Askance](#): > > The other vB forum I frequent doesn’t ever automatically mark threads as read. I find it annoying to go to lunch and come back and find everything marked as read. When I’m finished with the board for the day I just use the \*\*Quick Links - Mark Forums Read \*\*facility. > > **Can’t we just turn this automatic thing off entirely?** > [@TubaDiva](#): > > I have reported this. I will report it again. > [@twickster](#): > > And it’s not that the staff doesn’t care, it’s that we haven’t figured out what the problem is. _points to solution quoted above_ ---
**Author:** ![Canadjun](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/76d3ee/32.png) [@Canadjun](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Canadjun)\ **Post date:** [February 28, 2013, 12:06am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/read-unread-timer-resetting-c-5-minutes-into-a-session/646423/104 "2013-02-28T00:06:16Z")
And again. ---
**Author:** ![Turek](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/turek/32/18782_2.png) [@Turek](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Turek)\ **Post date:** [March 7, 2013, 2:06pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/read-unread-timer-resetting-c-5-minutes-into-a-session/646423/105 "2013-03-07T14:06:01Z")
This just happened to me again: Went into ATMB, didn’t click on any threads, hit the back button, when into GQ… bam, every thread marked read. ---
**Author:** ![TubaDiva](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/tubadiva/32/507_2.png) [@TubaDiva](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/TubaDiva)\ **Post date:** [March 7, 2013, 3:47pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/read-unread-timer-resetting-c-5-minutes-into-a-session/646423/106 "2013-03-07T15:47:02Z")
> [@Askance](#): > > The other vB forum I frequent doesn’t ever automatically mark threads as read. I find it annoying to go to lunch and come back and find everything marked as read. When I’m finished with the board for the day I just use the \*\*Quick Links - Mark Forums Read \*\*facility. > > Can’t we just turn this automatic thing off entirely? I can try this … I’ve hesitated because I didn’t want this to be one of those things where the complaints of the few outweigh the needs of the many. 🙂 I’m sorry that you’re going through this. It must be incredibly annoying. Comments are solicited on this situation. We know how you feel about it – we don’t need more of that! – but we do need to know how you as a user of this system handle this situation. Maybe turning this off is the way to go for everyone. But you tell me, please. ---
**Author:** ![Canadjun](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/76d3ee/32.png) [@Canadjun](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Canadjun)\ **Post date:** [March 7, 2013, 3:56pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/read-unread-timer-resetting-c-5-minutes-into-a-session/646423/107 "2013-03-07T15:56:40Z")
> [@TubaDiva](#): > > I can try this … I’ve hesitated because I didn’t want this to be one of those things where the complaints of the few outweigh the needs of the many. 🙂 > > I’m sorry that you’re going through this. It must be incredibly annoying. > > Comments are solicited on this situation. We know how you feel about it – we don’t need more of that! – but we do need to know how you as a user of this system handle this situation. Maybe turning this off is the way to go for everyone. But you tell me, please. I like it. If I understand it, it would allow me to intersperse puttering through the forums with poking around elsewhere and still keep track of what I haven’t looked at yet. It has been a minor ( **very** minor) aggravation even when it worked right because I am often bouncing around all over the Internet if I have nothing better to do all day. ---
**Author:** ![CandidGamera](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/candidgamera/32/2878_2.png) [@CandidGamera](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/CandidGamera)\ **Post date:** [March 7, 2013, 6:20pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/read-unread-timer-resetting-c-5-minutes-into-a-session/646423/108 "2013-03-07T18:20:46Z")
Give it a shot. ---
**Author:** ![Siam\_Sam](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/d78d45/32.png) [@Siam\_Sam](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Siam_Sam)\ **Post date:** [March 9, 2013, 1:08am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/read-unread-timer-resetting-c-5-minutes-into-a-session/646423/109 "2013-03-09T01:08:43Z")
It just happened again, first time in a weeks. Showed all the threads Unread, I looked in one, then when I clicked on User CP again, Poof! Everything was Read. ---
**Author:** ![Canadjun](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/76d3ee/32.png) [@Canadjun](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Canadjun)\ **Post date:** [March 9, 2013, 10:52pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/read-unread-timer-resetting-c-5-minutes-into-a-session/646423/110 "2013-03-09T22:52:11Z")
It’s still random, so I may have just hit a run of bad luck, but it appears to be getting worse as time goes on. For me it currently seems to be happening more often than not. ---
**Author:** ![Siam\_Sam](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/d78d45/32.png) [@Siam\_Sam](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Siam_Sam)\ **Post date:** [March 10, 2013, 4:37am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/read-unread-timer-resetting-c-5-minutes-into-a-session/646423/111 "2013-03-10T04:37:09Z")
And again. Two days in a row after two or three weeks of it being okay. ☹ ---
**Author:** ![kayT](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/kayt/32/3633_2.png) [@kayT](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/kayT)\ **Post date:** [March 10, 2013, 1:54pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/read-unread-timer-resetting-c-5-minutes-into-a-session/646423/112 "2013-03-10T13:54:07Z")
I thought maybe it was fixed; it hasn’t happened to me in over 2 weeks. (Have I just jinxed myself?) ---
**Author:** ![Kaio](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/k/c68b51/32.png) [@Kaio](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Kaio)\ **Post date:** [March 10, 2013, 11:52pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/read-unread-timer-resetting-c-5-minutes-into-a-session/646423/113 "2013-03-10T23:52:35Z")
You mean it occasionally actually works correctly for some people? It’s always been spotty for me, as long as I can remember. “Go to first new post” has always been spotty for me, too. Sometimes it’ll take me to the first post marked as unread, which is actually several posts after the last post I read. Sometimes it’ll take me to a point several posts later than the first marked unread post (which may or may not be accurate in itself). I’d say it works correctly less than half the time. I don’t really have any technological fix suggestions. I’ve just gotten in the habit of having some idea where I left off in the threads in my subscriptions page. I’m sure I semi-regularly miss a few, so if someone has noticed I suddenly stop returning to a thread, that’s probably why. 😛 ---
**Author:** ![urban1a](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/u/e47c2d/32.png) [@urban1a](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/urban1a)\ **Post date:** [March 11, 2013, 1:33am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/read-unread-timer-resetting-c-5-minutes-into-a-session/646423/114 "2013-03-11T01:33:44Z")
One more data point: I just signed on and the last visited said yesterday at 7:20pm then immediately changed to today at 7:34pm \*\*All marked as read. \*\* Is it possible that somehow my browser is not sending the information that I left consistently, or something? Bob ---
**Author:** ![Fair\_Rarity](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/fair_rarity/32/153_2.png) [@Fair\_Rarity](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Fair_Rarity)\ **Post date:** [March 11, 2013, 1:52am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/read-unread-timer-resetting-c-5-minutes-into-a-session/646423/115 "2013-03-11T01:52:00Z")
Usually I get get through one forum before it resets them all, but tonight I clicked on Cafe Society and instead of going, it redirected me back to the forum list and instead of being halfway down the page, it was at the top, if that matters as a clue. ---
**Author:** ![Turek](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/turek/32/18782_2.png) [@Turek](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Turek)\ **Post date:** [March 11, 2013, 11:52am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/read-unread-timer-resetting-c-5-minutes-into-a-session/646423/116 "2013-03-11T11:52:26Z")
And again. BTW, this isn’t happening on just one computer for me. It happens on my PC at the office and my Mac at home. They are both using Firefox. ---
**Author:** ![Siam\_Sam](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/d78d45/32.png) [@Siam\_Sam](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Siam_Sam)\ **Post date:** [March 11, 2013, 3:50pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/read-unread-timer-resetting-c-5-minutes-into-a-session/646423/117 "2013-03-11T15:50:13Z")
> [@Turek](#): > > And again. > > BTW, this isn’t happening on just one computer for me. It happens on my PC at the office and my Mac at home. They are both using Firefox. I don’t think Firefox is the problem. At least, I usually use IE. ---
**Author:** ![CandidGamera](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/candidgamera/32/2878_2.png) [@CandidGamera](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/CandidGamera)\ **Post date:** [March 11, 2013, 4:34pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/read-unread-timer-resetting-c-5-minutes-into-a-session/646423/118 "2013-03-11T16:34:36Z")
Just hit me again. It’s not a browser issue, it’s a server issue. ---
**Author:** ![Siam\_Sam](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/d78d45/32.png) [@Siam\_Sam](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Siam_Sam)\ **Post date:** [March 13, 2013, 2:49am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/read-unread-timer-resetting-c-5-minutes-into-a-session/646423/119 "2013-03-13T02:49:15Z")
And Pow! It hit me again. ☹ ---
**Author:** ![Ferret\_Herder](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/e47774/32.png) [@Ferret\_Herder](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ferret_Herder)\ **Post date:** [March 13, 2013, 3:03am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/read-unread-timer-resetting-c-5-minutes-into-a-session/646423/120 "2013-03-13T03:03:54Z")
It happens to me constantly on Tapatalk for iOS, and occasionally on my laptop (running Pale Moon on Windows 8). This never used to happen before maybe the last few months. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/read-unread-timer-resetting-c-5-minutes-into-a-session/646423.md?page=5) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/read-unread-timer-resetting-c-5-minutes-into-a-session/646423.md?page=7)