# Very happy with Discourse **URL:** \ **Category:** Site Feedback\ **Created:** [September 2, 2020, 1:29pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/very-happy-with-discourse/919602 "2020-09-02T13:29:36Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 3
**Author:** ![solost](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/solost/32/11776_2.png) [@solost](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/solost)\ **Post date:** [September 6, 2020, 2:22pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/very-happy-with-discourse/919602/41 "2020-09-06T14:22:46Z")
I really like Discourse as well. But I do miss all the 504 errors- they gave me time to pause and reflect on my life. [/sarcasm] ---
**Author:** ![DMC](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/dmc/32/18049_2.png) [@DMC](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/DMC)\ **Post date:** [September 6, 2020, 7:03pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/very-happy-with-discourse/919602/42 "2020-09-06T19:03:12Z")
Simply searching for @EllisDee will find all threads you’ve posted to. If I understand you correctly, you want all topics in which you’ve posted, ordered by the most recent activity in that topic (by anyone) in descending order. If that is correct, this should work for you: [https://boards.straightdope.com/search?q=%40EllisDee%20order%3Alatest\_topic](https://boards.straightdope.com/search?q=%40EllisDee%20order%3Alatest_topic) ---
**Author:** ![Kron](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/kron/32/12444_2.png) [@Kron](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Kron)\ **Post date:** [September 6, 2020, 7:26pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/very-happy-with-discourse/919602/43 "2020-09-06T19:26:57Z")
As a nearly 20-year mostly-lurker, I find that I am very interested in reading far more threads than I actually respond to. I like that Discourse automatically starts tracking the threads that I read, and I can set it to stop tracking the ones that really don’t interest me, for whatever reason. The unread threads page then shows any threads I’ve been reading that have had activity since I last viewed them. [https://boards.straightdope.com/unread](https://boards.straightdope.com/unread) ---
**Author:** ![EllisDee](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/ellisdee/32/4531_2.png) [@EllisDee](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/EllisDee)\ **Post date:** [September 6, 2020, 11:08pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/very-happy-with-discourse/919602/44 "2020-09-06T23:08:13Z")
> [@DMC](#): > > Simply searching for @EllisDee will find all threads you’ve posted to. If I understand you correctly, you want all topics in which you’ve posted, ordered by the most recent activity in that topic (by anyone) in descending order. If that is correct, this should work for you: > > [Search results for '@EllisDee order:latest\_topic' - Straight Dope Message Board](https://boards.straightdope.com/search?q=%40EllisDee%20order%3Alatest_topic) It’s close, but that search only returns my posts, not the last post in the thread. There’s no way to see who the last poster was, and when I open one of the links it opens to my post, not the most recent post. I’m also not entirely sure that will include threads I don’t post in but mark as Watching, much like choosing “Subscribe to this thread” on the old boards. The solution upthread shows the last poster of each thread and opens to that most recent post, both of which is better for me. It should also handled “Watching but haven’t posted” threads just fine. ---
**Author:** ![puzzlegal](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/puzzlegal/32/3827_2.png) [@puzzlegal](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/puzzlegal)\ **Post date:** [September 8, 2020, 3:55am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/very-happy-with-discourse/919602/45 "2020-09-08T03:55:28Z")
There are things that I like, and things that I don’t like. I don’t like how LOoooooonnnnng it takes to load on my phone. But I love this (which I susepct is related) > [@Dr\_Paprika](#): > > saves my replies as a draft when my phone runs out of juice, In fact, I can start a post on my phone, and then edit it and post it on my laptop! > [@What\_Exit](#): > > I like Discourse, though I wish we had a few more formatting buttons. > Color, size, superscript would be great. The table functionality is really good. Agreed. And I wish the ones it had were easier to find. ---
**Author:** ![GreenWyvern](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/greenwyvern/32/2834_2.png) [@GreenWyvern](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/GreenWyvern)\ **Post date:** [September 8, 2020, 4:34am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/very-happy-with-discourse/919602/46 "2020-09-08T04:34:50Z")
> [@What\_Exit](#): > > I like Discourse, though I wish we had a few more formatting buttons. > Color, size, superscript would be great. You can have any color as long as it’s a green or pinkish highlights. green ~~pinkish~~ small text - normal text - Big Text # Heading 1 ## Heading 2 ### Heading 3 #### Heading 4   abcsuperscript abcsubscript strikethrough Indented text Indented level 2 ---
**Author:** ![CairoCarol](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/cairocarol/32/3825_2.png) [@CairoCarol](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/CairoCarol)\ **Post date:** [September 8, 2020, 5:15am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/very-happy-with-discourse/919602/47 "2020-09-08T05:15:00Z")
I like it just fine, but infinite scrolling is endlessly (heh) infuriating, a blight on humanity. “Hey, why have these things called ‘books’ that cause us the pain of have to lift and turn pages, when we could just put all our novels on papyrus scrolls instead?” (But yes, other than that Discourse is a huge improvement over where we were. Not sure it is hugely better than XenForo, but it’s certainly as good, just different.) ---
**Author:** ![codinghorror](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/codinghorror/32/4242_2.png) [@codinghorror](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/codinghorror)\ **Post date:** [September 11, 2020, 5:11pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/very-happy-with-discourse/919602/48 "2020-09-11T17:11:19Z")
> [@EllisDee](#): > > I would give anything for a functional “subscribed threads” list. It is rarely used but [https://boards.straightdope.com/posted](https://boards.straightdope.com/posted) is similar to what you’re asking for. Just because you posted in a topic doesn’t necessarily mean you are watching or tracking it, but it _usually_ does. ---
**Author:** ![thorny\_locust](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/thorny_locust/32/431_2.png) [@thorny\_locust](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/thorny_locust)\ **Post date:** [September 11, 2020, 7:23pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/very-happy-with-discourse/919602/49 "2020-09-11T19:23:37Z")
> [@codinghorror](#): > > It is rarely used but [https://boards.straightdope.com/posted](https://boards.straightdope.com/posted) is similar to what you’re asking for. Thanks! ---
**Author:** ![EllisDee](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/ellisdee/32/4531_2.png) [@EllisDee](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/EllisDee)\ **Post date:** [September 12, 2020, 5:55am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/very-happy-with-discourse/919602/50 "2020-09-12T05:55:55Z")
> [@codinghorror](#): > > It is rarely used but [https://boards.straightdope.com/posted](https://boards.straightdope.com/posted) is similar to what you’re asking for. Yep, that’s what I was looking for, thanks! It even has the red line. (“Read” line. heh.) Very nice touch. So here we have justification for a content-less “Just posting to subscribe to the thread” driveby. On vBulletin you could subscribe without posting. ---
**Author:** ![codinghorror](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/codinghorror/32/4242_2.png) [@codinghorror](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/codinghorror)\ **Post date:** [September 12, 2020, 3:32pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/very-happy-with-discourse/919602/51 "2020-09-12T15:32:40Z")
You can subscribe to a topic via the bell icon docked at the right below the timeline, or the bell icon at the bottom of the topic. It is not necessary to post to subscribe. ---
**Author:** ![thorny\_locust](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/thorny_locust/32/431_2.png) [@thorny\_locust](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/thorny_locust)\ **Post date:** [September 12, 2020, 4:33pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/very-happy-with-discourse/919602/52 "2020-09-12T16:33:44Z")
But will threads one has subscribed to but not posted to show up on that ‘posted’ page? Because, if not, in order to use that page for a ‘new posts in subscribed posts’ function, it will be necessary to post in each such thread. ETA: And I think it would be useful to draw more attention to that page. I’ve been asking for something with that function since almost as soon as we moved to these boards; and have gotten a number of less useful suggestions, but never that one (until now). ---
**Author:** ![codinghorror](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/codinghorror/32/4242_2.png) [@codinghorror](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/codinghorror)\ **Post date:** [September 12, 2020, 5:38pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/very-happy-with-discourse/919602/53 "2020-09-12T17:38:22Z")
> [@thorny\_locust](#): > > if not, in order to use that page for a ‘new posts in subscribed posts’ function This page is built into Discourse – at the top, **Unread**. That means “topics I have subscribed to with unread posts”. `Latest | New (9) | Unread (10) ←` ---
**Author:** ![What\_Exit](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/what_exit/32/10652_2.png) [@What\_Exit](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/What_Exit)\ **Post date:** [September 12, 2020, 5:55pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/very-happy-with-discourse/919602/54 "2020-09-12T17:55:57Z")
That is really handy, thank you. ---
**Author:** ![Velocity](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/velocity/32/18006_2.png) [@Velocity](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Velocity)\ **Post date:** [September 12, 2020, 5:57pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/very-happy-with-discourse/919602/55 "2020-09-12T17:57:36Z")
I hated the new site at first, but it has gradually grown on me. I do like the notification features so I know when someone has replied to me. On the old website, the only way you could know if someone had replied was to manually search and skim through the threads yourself. ---
**Author:** ![thorny\_locust](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/thorny_locust/32/431_2.png) [@thorny\_locust](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/thorny_locust)\ **Post date:** [September 12, 2020, 7:43pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/very-happy-with-discourse/919602/56 "2020-09-12T19:43:28Z")
> [@codinghorror](#): > > This page is built into Discourse – at the top, **Unread**. That means “topics I have subscribed to with unread posts”. At the top of which page? I see Categories, New, Latest, Top. ---
**Author:** ![codinghorror](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/codinghorror/32/4242_2.png) [@codinghorror](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/codinghorror)\ **Post date:** [September 12, 2020, 9:42pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/very-happy-with-discourse/919602/57 "2020-09-12T21:42:56Z")
It will only appear if you currently have Unread (subscribed, with new replies) topics. Similarly, New will stop appearing when there are no more new topics. If the site admins have deleted “Unread” from the top menu, then it won’t appear. That’d be a bad configuration for users in my opinion, but it is possible. ---
**Author:** ![EllisDee](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/ellisdee/32/4531_2.png) [@EllisDee](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/EllisDee)\ **Post date:** [September 13, 2020, 12:49am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/very-happy-with-discourse/919602/58 "2020-09-13T00:49:12Z")
> [@codinghorror](#): > > It will only appear if you currently have Unread (subscribed, with new replies) topics. I don’t see it either, but going to “unread” directly brings up something that’s pretty close: [https://boards.straightdope.com/unread](https://boards.straightdope.com/unread) As best I can tell, it’s showing me all threads that I’m tracking or watching, not just the ones I’ve posted to. So if I switch to “unread” as my default bookmark, then that solves the problem of an old zombie I participated in getting bumped and me not seeing it. Those should all be set to tracking. The only downside is it also includes all the threads I’ve only read. I guess it’s easy enough to open any thread you want out of the list and set it to Normal. That was the same procedure as vBulletin to abandon a thread; you had to manually open it and Unsubscribe to get it out of the list. Same procedure = no complaint from me. I think that’s the full solution then. A little FAQ might be helpful. Something like: **Q: Where is my Subscribed Threads list?** A: Use the link [https://boards.straightdope.com/unread](https://boards.straightdope.com/unread). Note that going forward, simply reading a thread will auto-subscribe you to it. (Marked as “Tracking.”) You can adjust or disable that in Preferences =\> Notifications. **Q: But what if I only want to see threads I’ve posted to?** A: Use the link [https://boards.straightdope.com/posted](https://boards.straightdope.com/posted) instead. As may be obvious, there’s no way to “subscribe” a thread to the posted list other than actually posting. (Remember the old-school “Posting to subscribe to the thread” posts? That would suffice.) * * * Directed to the group: With the above two links, is there any point to the change I did above where I changed settings to mark threads I post to as Watching? Would it even be worth mentioning in the above mini-faq? I would think that the default “Subscribed Threads” for discourse should be “unread”, and the fact that it includes the threads you just spend time reading would be the gee whiz new feature. I bet most people would like it, and the minority who don’t could either kick it up to 10 minutes, disable it with Never, or just use the “posted” list instead. Meaning I needn’t have bothered even changing posted threads to default to Watching, though I think I kind of still prefer it that way. Not enough that I can positively say I would have done it if I knew then what I know now, though. ---
**Author:** ![codinghorror](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/codinghorror/32/4242_2.png) [@codinghorror](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/codinghorror)\ **Post date:** [September 13, 2020, 2:57am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/very-happy-with-discourse/919602/59 "2020-09-13T02:57:33Z")
I can confirm that the site admins, for some reason, have removed unread from the topnav ☹ That will make it extremely difficult to get a list of the topics you’ve participated in – either by lots of reading time (see your user preferences to set the read time threshold for this), posting in them, or creating them. (or explicitly clicking on the notification bell, of course) ---
**Author:** ![EllisDee](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/ellisdee/32/4531_2.png) [@EllisDee](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/EllisDee)\ **Post date:** [September 13, 2020, 2:59am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/very-happy-with-discourse/919602/60 "2020-09-13T02:59:01Z")
> [@codinghorror](#): > > I can confirm that the site admins, for some reason, have removed unread from the topnav It’s in the hamburger menu. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/very-happy-with-discourse/919602.md?page=2) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/very-happy-with-discourse/919602.md?page=4)