Multiple Web Links in forum Posts Fail

from GalCiv2 Forums
When posting to the forums if you try to include more than one Web Link in your post it only creates one link and the others are posted as text.

This has been happening for quite some time and is still happening even though other aspects of forum performance have seemed to improve. You can easily replicate this by posting multiple links in a reply. It seems to be a problem in converting from the
[ link = ... [ / link ] format to the < a href = ... < / a > format. There appears to be an extra > inserted in the text portion of the link.


[edit] Edited by Mumblefratz 1/15/07. So when did these advertisements start appearing anyway? [/edit]



10,381 views 40 replies
Reply #1 from GalCiv2 Forums Top
Excessively greedy regular expressions in the bbcode conversions are a known issue. Though I'm not sure how people get the bbcode to begin with anymore unless they're writing it in manually--the buttons in the post formatting bar all generate html directly, with the only bbcodes that you actually need to use being the quote tags (which do replace correctly).
Reply #2 from GalCiv2 Forums Top
I'm not quite sure what you said. I wouldn't know a bbcode from a regular expression if it bit me in the ass. I'm certainly not generating anything directly myself. I do go in after the fact and edit the post once it screws up by copying the first link that displays correctly and edit it by copy and pasting the url for the following link.

This is what I had to do in reply #2 in the following thread.

WWW Link

When I entered the link I clicked on the world thingy in the post menu and did ctrl-c to enter the url. When I entered the post it looked like this but without the spaces around [ and ].

[ link="https://forums.galciv2.com/?aid=128690#1086123" ] WWW Link[ /link ]

You can easily test this by posting a reply with more than one link (unless this is a IE6 issue).
Galactic Civilizations IV
Reply #3 from GalCiv2 Forums Top
Where are you posting from? It's pretty strange because AFAIK all the forums haven't used that particular code in a long while. When I click the 'Insert Web Link' button in the post formatting bar, normal html is generated in the post and the test of the link is the url rather than 'WWW Link'.
Reply #4 from GalCiv2 Forums Top
Right now I'm posting from forums.galciv2.com using IE6 (I know boo hiss) with "Script ActiveX controls marked safe for scripting" set to disabled. I need to do this otherwise I get choked to death by the png filter dll thingy. I'm still setting up my new PC so this is on my Celeron of death.
Reply #5 from GalCiv2 Forums Top
As a test I reset my security options to default and am attempting a double link post that I won't edit.

WWW Link">Link

[link="https://forums.galciv2.com/?aid=139810#1086181"]WWW Link
Reply #6 from GalCiv2 Forums Top
Yep. This is what I get every time if I don't get a chance to edit it.   
Reply #8 from GalCiv2 Forums Top
The way it's acting for you is as if you were somehow using the 'old' interface which was replaced months ago... can you post a screenshot of the reply box on your end?
Reply #9 from GalCiv2 Forums Top
WWW Link">Link

[link="https://forums.galciv2.com/?aid=139810#1086201"]WWW Link

All I did was to click insert web link and enter this thread's url hit enter twice and do it again then hit enter twice and type this sentance.
Reply #10 from GalCiv2 Forums Top
Reply #11 from GalCiv2 Forums Top

Sounds like you've got an old version of the postbox javascript cached or something--the current one has nine more buttons, and different code (the url input popup is a floating form rather than a javascript input popup, and pressing enter does nothing on it).

You may just need to flush your caches to fix it.

Reply #12 from GalCiv2 Forums Top
Just for yuks I exited the site, deleted all cookies and files, re-entered and logged on and trying again.

WWW Link">Link

[link="https://forums.galciv2.com/?forumid=274&aid=139810#1086217"]WWW Link

Still using [ ] so I expect no change.
Reply #13 from GalCiv2 Forums Top
Tried again. Deleted cookies, files and history (is there anything else?) Exited. Powered down. Rebooted. Logged in. Insert web link still uses [ ] so I expect it will still fail.

AFAIK I don't have Java installed on this machine. It's not in my list of installed programs. Is this a problem?
Reply #14 from GalCiv2 Forums Top
AFAIK I don't have Java installed on this machine. It's not in my list of installed programs. Is this a problem?


The postbox shouldn't need anything other than javascript. Which is something wholly different and unrelated to java, which the site does not use in the least.

If possible, try it in a different browser (on a different computer, if neccessary).
Reply #15 from GalCiv2 Forums Top
Mumble, I think you and these forums are just not meant to get along  . After going back to IE6, hasn't crashed or had a problem for me lately.

Whats this about the post box having nine more buttons? Mine looks just like the pic Mumblefratz posted. I do have java installed since you have to have it for certain sites it seems. Would it maybe need an update or something?
Reply #16 from GalCiv2 Forums Top
Mine looks just like the pic Mumblefratz posted

Good to see someone else seeing the same.

If possible, try it in a different browser (on a different computer, if neccessary).

This is on my new Intel Core 2 Duo that I don't like to use cause I haven't yet installed my security suite yet. Still on IE6 though but everything's still the same. I'll go get FF and try again.

I think you and these forums are just not meant to get along

It appears that I'm the boundry condition. If it works for me it must work for everyone.

Reply #17 from GalCiv2 Forums Top
OK Different PC and now FireFox 2.0.0.1 and everything is still the same. Actually the text size increase works better than in IE, perhaps I'll keep FF on the new PC.

But anyway looks like the post is the same. Any more ideas? Getting time to question my DSL router or Verizon ISP?

WWW Link">Link

[link="https://forums.galciv2.com/?forumid=274&aid=139810#1086239"]WWW Link

Perhaps I spoke too soon, the size increase makes all the boxes come out funny and buttons in the wrong place or partially unavailable.
Reply #18 from GalCiv2 Forums Top
It looks like this for me:

Reply #19 from GalCiv2 Forums Top
Screen shot of Intel Core 2 Duo with virgin OS install (XP Pro SP2) from factory plus FireFox 2.0.0.1.


Reply #20 from GalCiv2 Forums Top
Nope. Looks like this.

Reply #21 from GalCiv2 Forums Top
That's all I got for awhile. Let's give it a rest and maybe the web folks will come up with something. As I said this is a fresh from the factory (HP) disk image of XP Pro SP2 with a default install of FireFox 2.0.0.1.

Perhaps Verizon could have something to do with this, but I doubt it. I do get the same behavior at work on IE6 and FF on my 3.2 Ghz Xeon.
Reply #22 from GalCiv2 Forums Top
That's all I got for awhile. Let's give it a rest and maybe the web folks will come up with something.


Will have to stow this thread away for the web team--they (and most of the company) are off the whole week.
Reply #23 from GalCiv2 Forums Top
I show exactly the same as Mumble. I am using FF, XP. I opened cleanmgr, and deleted the java runtime environments listed, (all created 3/2/06), with no effect. Is there some other way I can check to see if the old script is cashed anywhere else?
Reply #24 from GalCiv2 Forums Top
I am using IE7 now, same old postbox.
Reply #25 from GalCiv2 Forums Top
Will have to stow this thread away for the web team--they (and most of the company) are off the whole week.

How come you're the only one that didn't get a vacation?  

This can certainly wait a week but I think it's worthwhile for them to clean up while their focus seems to be on the forums for a bit. I think I'll remember this sufficiently to give it a bump next Tuesday or maybe even wait till the hangovers clear on Wednesday.