Thoughts on the new text box?

Erin Holohan Haskell

We recently upgraded to a new text box for forum posts and comments. Some of you love it, but some of you are experiencing issues, particularly on your mobile devices. Our forum software provider is working hard to resolve these issues. (Fixing spell check is on their list.) Thank you for your patience as we sort things out.

I've updated our Forum User Manual with some tips on how to use this new text box.

I'd love to hear feedback on how it's going for you. Please answer this poll and share more info if you're having trouble on your device.

Thank you!

GGross

It works well.

Text box works well, I would add that I liked one thing before though, when people would put pictures in the text box it used to load them in the text box for me to see, now I have to click on them to view and the page that opens up sometimes blows them up really large, so have to download them and then open to view. I use the site on a windows pc so im not sure how this affects mobile or not

Erin Holohan Haskell

Thanks @GGross. Good point. If you post an image using the image icon, it will appear within the text. If you post an image using the attachment icon (paperclip), it will appear as a file.

ethicalpaul

I'm experiencing issues with it.

I've gotten more used to it, but I do prefer the flexibility of being able to manipulate the quote html tags.

One difference that I still have trouble with is that the new mechanism doesn't seem to let me paste a graphic or partial screenshot into the message like it used to. I have to save to my disk and then upload it.

Erin Holohan Haskell

Thanks for sharing @ethicalpaul!

109A_5

I'm experiencing issues with it.

Hello @Erin Holohan Haskell,

When quoting a prior post how do you edit the quote (I will review your new instructions). Often (I believe) it is not necessary to repeat the whole prior post. In fact I think it is annoying an decreases focus on a specific point being made. Before seeing the HTML it was fairly easy to edit out the unwanted, unneeded text and build a responce structue (multiple issues, multiple sub quotes) when needed.

I have not had problems droping an image into a new post from the clipboard.

I see the spell check is missed by many…

ethicalpaul

I'm experiencing issues with it.

You can still copy a portion of text and paste it, and then hit the paragraph symbol to the left of the text box in order to mark it as quoted.

That's interesting you are still able to paste images, @109A_5, I'll try again. I'm on Mac Safari usually.

hot_rod

how do you delete a pic if you attach the wrong one, for example?

ratio

I'm experiencing issues with it.

I've already mentioned my issues to you, but I think we need another choice on the poll:

• It's not the text box I'm used to, now get off my lawn!

Jamie Hall

It works well.

The only gripe I have is the spellcheck — but you're working on it. And I wwouldn't have that gripe, except I touch type and can't see very well any more, so having the spellcheck tell me I fat fingered something is a great hellp to me!

Erin Holohan Haskell

https://forum.heatinghelp.com/discussion/comment/1745131#Comment_1745131

@hot_rod click on the three dots to the right of your user name. Then choose Edit. Click on the image within your post and then hit delete.

Erin Holohan Haskell

Thanks all. I agree with you about the spell check.

MaxMercy

I'm experiencing issues with it.

https://forum.heatinghelp.com/discussion/192160/thoughts-on-the-new-text-box

I always like to edit down a large quote to just include the one point I'd like to respond to and have been unable to edit the edit quote box text.

109A_5

I'm experiencing issues with it.

https://forum.heatinghelp.com/discussion/comment/1745129#Comment_1745129

OK, thanks @ethicalpaul, I'll explore that method next time it comes up.

Capture, copy, paste, or Select, copy, paste, that all I did for this below. Old Win 7 box here.

Erin Holohan Haskell

@MaxMercy and @109A_5, I'm looking into whether or not it's still possible to edit quote box text. Thanks!

@109A_5 and @ethicalpaul, thanks for helping one another.

Alan (California Radiant) Forbes

I'm experiencing issues with it.

When I hit <Return>, I like to space down one space, but get a double space. Can I change that?

Thanks, Erin.

EdTheHeaterMan

It works well.

It works well, except when it dosen't

Just like the guy that invented autocorrect, I think he should burn🔥in HELLO!

mattmia2

It seems the spell check doesn't work in the new text box on any of the browsers I have used(various versions of Chrome and Brave on a tablet).

Not being able to edit a quote makes it a bit confusing when what I am quoting is a long comment and I am commenting on a couple lines of it.

Erin Holohan Haskell

Update - Our forum software provider has removed the ability to edit quotes because of the security concern that it would enable users to create fake quotes posing as other users or take things out of context. Sorry about that. I know you all don't use this feature with ill intent.

You can, however, use the quote feature in the formatting bar to reference specific sentences. (Like this.)

@mattmia2, they're working on fixing the spell check.

@Alan (California Radiant) Forbes, are you then having to go back and delete the extra space or is it appearing one way before you post and then formatting to one space after? Thanks.

MaxMercy

I'm experiencing issues with it.

https://forum.heatinghelp.com/discussion/comment/1745178#Comment_1745178

That doesn't really make sense though. If some unscrupulous member had the ability to remove the original post, maybe, but the original post remains for context and evidence the post was misquoted. I mean, has that ever been a problem?

I think any arguable gain in "security" is greatly offset by the ability to easily respond to a single point on what can be a much longer thread that covers several topics.

I guess the answer is just to C/P what we need and put quote marks around them, which ironically eliminates any gain from this "security" feature..

JohnNY

I'm experiencing issues with it.

I can't edit down the quoted text. It seems to be all or nothing.

109A_5

I'm experiencing issues with it.

https://forum.heatinghelp.com/discussion/comment/1745180#Comment_1745180

I agree with @MaxMercy. Lets make a problem where there was none, and Break the Spell Check while doing it, Brilliant. Sounds like some other IT folks I know. Sorry, but I bet you paid good money for the upgrade.

ratio

I'm experiencing issues with it.

https://forum.heatinghelp.com/discussion/comment/1745178#Comment_1745178

<sigh> I don't need to be protected from an alleged quotation on the internetz. I mean, let's face it, you're all just figments of my imagination anyway, so I don't take nothing I read as real unless I already agree with it.

109A_5

I'm experiencing issues with it.

Hello "@Erin Holohan Haskell",

Does the '@username' functionality still work corectly ? I see some anomalies. All screen captures of existing posts.

Does it need quotes all the time now ? Like "@username" Maybe I'm doing somthing wrong. I'll look at the new instructions, Forum User Manual.

Erin Holohan Haskell

Thank you for all of your helpful feedback and patience as we sort this out. I've decided to bring back our old text box while our forum software provider works out the bugs with the upgrade.