Mudcat Notes from Max

Subject: Mudcat Notes from Max
From: Max
Date: 06 Jan 98 - 01:35 PM

I have made a few changes that most will not notice.

First, some new members have been leaving their codenames or emails blank which prevents them from joining and getting cookies and messing the rest of us up. Also some choose codenames that have already been taken and get an error message. I built a query that now checks to see if it is taken and if so tells them so without an error (hopefully) and lets them try another.

We use both email and codenames (as well as cookies) to identify you and for the system to know what's going on by who. They are essential elements to membership. So I have deleted the members that had one or both of these fields blank. Sorry, you may rejoin, but this was causing havoc to the system.

Email and Codenames are now required. You will not be able to join without entering at least something.

Also, some people want to change their codenames. I have built this in, then began to think of the implications. One may abuse the forum or something and then just change their codename to get away with it. Also, we get used to knowing someone with a name and if they change it, we can get confused. See where I am going with this? So anyway, for now I will not make it a public thing. If anyone wants to change their codename, send me an email and either I will do it for you or tell you where to go to do it.

All in all, the changes I made today should eliminate some errors for all of us, and certainly should cut down on some of the complaints me and dick get.

I notice too that some browsers have trouble with the site. I am going to create a bug/error report page to ease the debug process. I'll let you know when something is done. Most errors for members happen because they have their cookies disabled on their browser. If you have to log in everytime you visit, this is why. We will include more info on the help page when it's done.

That's it for now. Let me know if you notice any changes or new errors popping up.

Subject: RE: Mudcat Notes from Max
From: Susan from California
Date: 07 Jan 98 - 12:51 PM

Max

Thanks for all you do-I've been gone for a while, any word on T-shirts?

Subject: RE: Mudcat Notes from Max
From: dick greenhaus
Date: 07 Jan 98 - 01:15 PM

Believe it or not, we're expecting the first batch of T-shirts to be available early next week. There'll be an

announcement.

Subject: RE: Mudcat Notes from Max
From: dan duryea
Date: 07 Jan 98 - 01:18 PM

Is there any way to limit the of the messages transmitted in a thread by age in the same way as with the threads themselves?

For instance, I've been following the Bella Ciao thread for a while now and don't need to to see all 21 messages going back to dec-23. But I usually want to see the new ones which show up since the last time I looked.

Dan from Boston.

Subject: RE: Mudcat Notes from Max
From: dick greenhaus
Date: 07 Jan 98 - 01:22 PM

Hi Dan-

At the top of each thread listing is a "sort descending"

notice. Click on that, and you'll get the latest postings first.

Subject: RE: Mudcat Notes from Max
From: judy
Date: 09 Jan 98 - 07:25 PM

Back again. Thanks for everything

judy

Subject: RE: Mudcat Notes from Max
From: Gene E
Date: 09 Jan 98 - 08:46 PM

Open comment to all:

Why don't any of us go to the chat room? Everybody seems chatty and this group is one of the nicest groups of people one can find on the internet. I've gone there and talked to the bartender but that's not very rewarding.

What-da-ya think?

Lets chat about it.

Subject: RE: Mudcat Notes from Max
From: Joe Offer
Date: 09 Jan 98 - 08:57 PM

Well, Gene, it looks like I missed you by a few minutes. Don't have time to chat just now, since I'm still working and just taking a quick break. Say, Max - the chat notification is really great, but I wonder if it might work better if it were in a more prominent (i.e. larger and/or bolder) typeface.

"Oh, and Max, didn't you say that you were going to put the links page link somewhere where outsiders could find it?" he said, remindingly (I feel like Jack Benny - "Oh, Rochester....."). But my suggestions are submitted with the utmost respect, admiration, and gratitude.
-Joe Offer-

Subject: RE: Mudcat Notes from Max
From: Gene E
Date: 09 Jan 98 - 09:03 PM

See Max, Joe is just a nice guy! You don't see that on other forums and / or cat rooms.

Sorry I missed you Joe.

Subject: RE: Mudcat Notes from Max
From: alison
Date: 09 Jan 98 - 10:13 PM

Hi

Can we have something that grabs our attention further down the page as well?

someone could be in the chat room, but if I'm down looking at the threads towards the bottom of the list, I don't know they're there.

slainte

alison

Subject: RE: Mudcat Notes from Max
From: Max
Date: 10 Jan 98 - 11:56 AM

I was toying with the idea of playing a midi file when there is someone in the chat room or you have a new message. I'll think of other ways to get attention. Also, we have a new version of the chat coming, and would like to see it used. We are trying to build in functions that allow you to interact with the rest of the site while you chat. A way also that we can utilize the chat is by scheduling talks on specific topic. ie. "tonight at 8pm, TECHNOLOGY AND FOLK."...

Subject: RE: Mudcat Notes from Max
From: Susan from California
Date: 10 Jan 98 - 12:41 PM

Just make sure that if someone posts a time, they specify what time zone is used for a baseline:-)

Subject: RE: Mudcat Notes from Max
From: Joe Offer
Date: 10 Jan 98 - 12:58 PM

Say, Max, I was looking at the icons on my "Start" button today, and the icon I have for Mudcat Cafe is a dorky MS Internet Explorer file. You wouldn't happen to have an icon version of the Mudcat t-shirt logo, would you? I have a staff and notes for the database, but it would be nice to have something distinctive for the forum. Is an icon just a renamed version of a *.bmp or some other graphics format?
For those of you who don't know and might be interested, let me explain. At least in MS Internet Explorer, if you right-click on a Web page that's showing on your screen, a menu pops up, and there's a selection there that will let you create a shortcut on your desktop so you can quickly access that page. You can go one step further and drag that shortcut onto the Windows 95 "Start" button. Now, when I want to get on Mudcat, I push the start button, hit "M" until Mudcat is highlighted, hit "enter" and I'm on. So, it works sexy - now I want it to look sexy.
Of course, once we master the relatively simple task of creating a Mudcat shortcut on our start buttons, we'll all certainly be ready to start posting tunes. Right???
-Joe Offer-

Subject: RE: Mudcat Notes from Max
From: Bill D
Date: 10 Jan 98 - 01:43 PM

Joe...I have several programs that will edit & create icons....I may just experiment with making a teeny little Muccat icon...will let you know if it works...

But since I will not use Internet explorer on a bet, except as an emergency measure...I will mention how easy it is in Netscape 4 (I have just the browser..not the complete 35 meg package...and it is free..)

In N4, there is what is called a 'personal toolbar' as an addition to the regular bookmarks...and when you put an address in it, it displays as one item in a bar at the top of my screen...so it is ALWAYS a one step click to get to my 8 or 9 favorite addresses...no cute icon involved...but....

Subject: RE: Mudcat Notes from Max
From: mandola man
Date: 10 Jan 98 - 06:46 PM

Hi Max, you certainly run a great show.

I also like to see the most recent messages first, and in the past it has taken a long time to load some threads. What do you think of the idea of making sort descending the default.

Does anyone else have an opinion ?

On Dick's point, I would love to use Netscape 4, but the copy I have crashes on more pages than I care to mention, so I use Netscape 3, and, reluctantly, IE4 if I want to rebrowse when I have gone offline.

Cheers, Alan

Subject: RE: Mudcat Notes from Max
From: Gene E
Date: 10 Jan 98 - 11:12 PM

Hey Max,

I've been on some Java chats that will float. If the Mudcat chat room could float, one could check into the chat room then surf the forum threads until other chaters check in.

Subject: RE: Mudcat Notes from Max
From: Will
Date: 11 Jan 98 - 12:34 AM

About the sort descending/ascending default, I originally thought I would rather have most recent first (sort ascending) but have come to prefer sort descending. It seems easier to follow the logic of the discussions with sort descending, at least on those threads that have a logic (a surprising number, actually, for cyber). For long threads, I just click on a recent date in the "from" list and it gets me to where I want to go.

Subject: RE: Mudcat Notes from Max
From: mandola man
Date: 11 Jan 98 - 04:55 AM

That's a good tip Will.

Why had I not thought of the "from list" as a set of links, that would take me to the right place in the thread!

I just gave it a try, and it is so easy. Why do I miss some of these really obvious tricks. I had never even considered clicking on any part of the list.

Thanks, Alan

Subject: RE: Mudcat Notes from Max
From: Sharon
Date: 12 Jan 98 - 04:58 PM

Joe. Thanks for the tip on how to create a shortcut. The way I'd been doing was far for complicated. That's what happens when one teaches oneself how to do something that one knows nothing about.!! I now have a shortcut to Mudcat. I no longer have to wait for my explorer to load and click on one of my favorites. Thanks. Now I can go straight to Mudcat.

Any more worthy tips for us novices?