Some comment upgrades

December 6, 2007 3:20 PM

We've cleaned up a handful of bugs around comment forms and comment pages today. The tally is inside:

- made the comment textarea 200px wider, from 400px to 600px
- added a (HTML help) link to the side which links to all three HTML related faq items
- made the live preview actually readable if you're in the plain text theme!
- added html shortcut icons to people using Safari 3.0 or higher (Leopard users) since that browser now supports it.

It's live on mefi (where the comment form feels as comfortable as a pair of stretch waistband sweats) and should be live shortly everywhere else. Let us know if you spot any weird visual display bugs in other browsers.

posted by mathowie to feature requests at 3:20 PM (100 comments total)

Ha! I was just thinking that the comment textarea on mefi looked wider, and was coming here to ask whether I was going fucking crazy.
posted by dersins at 3:30 PM on December 6, 2007

Yay! Thanks again for continuing to support the plain theme!
posted by BitterOldPunk at 3:30 PM on December 6, 2007

I like the bigger text area! Thanks
posted by ClanvidHorse at 3:30 PM on December 6, 2007

Can I have a pony? It's not actually for me, as I'm pretty comfortable with HTML. Is there maybe a way give the HTML Help link some of that Ajax goodness? Something so that the non-HTML-friendly don't have to skip back and forth between two pages?

Other than that, noce stuff. As a PlainText Theme user (white's more professional, y'know) I thank you for the live preview fix.
posted by lekvar at 3:33 PM on December 6, 2007

Yay for
a bigger
text area!
posted by cashman at 3:33 PM on December 6, 2007 [2 favorites]

Yeah okay but like when will we be able to change our passwords?
posted by cortex at 3:40 PM on December 6, 2007 [3 favorites]

Is there maybe a way give the HTML Help link some of that Ajax goodness? Something so that the non-HTML-friendly don't have to skip back and forth between two pages?

I don't quite get what you're asking for. Did you want the HTML help to pop up as an inline box with the text in it? I have it leading to a new page because I figure it's the kind of information you only have to refer to once or twice and not often.
posted by mathowie at 3:45 PM on December 6, 2007

dersins: and was coming here to ask whether I was going fucking crazy.

One being true does not preclude the possibility of the other also being factually correct.

The text are is wider. And you are quite possibly nuttier than a fruitcake.

Hell, I know I am.

*dons strait-jacket*

*whoops and hollers*
posted by quin at 3:51 PM on December 6, 2007

You might want to update some of the information in the FAQ. Cortex's tongue in cheek password change question, for instance, still says that admin hope is required.
posted by togdon at 3:52 PM on December 6, 2007

I think that's exactly what levkar's saying, Matt. It's not a bad idea; I think you're overestimating the speed at which some folks who would find the reference handy would end up memorizing this info.

Also, god damn this new comment box and readable plain-theme preview is the shit.
posted by cortex at 3:55 PM on December 6, 2007

And I don't know if this is new:

note: Everyone needs a hug.

Underneath the live preview, but I like it.
posted by quin at 3:56 PM on December 6, 2007 [1 favorite]

Everyone needs a hug is what I told pb jokingly when he asked "we have stuff under the mefi and ask mefi comment boxes, what should MetaTalk say?" If you read that old thread, it was a discussion of how the phrase ended flamewars on another site. We'll likely remove it shortly if it's annoying, I think it's cute but didn't seriously intend to add it.
posted by mathowie at 4:04 PM on December 6, 2007 [6 favorites]

*group hug*

Just tryin' to follow the rules.
posted by DMan at 4:05 PM on December 6, 2007

And I don't know if this is new

It's a fucking sexist lie is what it is. I don't need a hug.

I need a nap.
posted by dersins at 4:06 PM on December 6, 2007

In the future, please preface jokey comments with the fact that they are jokey comments. I thought it was funny but serious.
posted by pb at 4:08 PM on December 6, 2007 [8 favorites]

Nice big comment boxes. Nice and big.
posted by flapjax at midnite at 4:14 PM on December 6, 2007

We'll likely remove it shortly if it's annoying

Welcome back
posted by cillit bang at 4:17 PM on December 6, 2007 [1 favorite]

I'm typing this with a disturbingly wide stance.
posted by Abiezer at 4:18 PM on December 6, 2007 [1 favorite]

*hugs dersins*

Flag me. It's a fair cop.
posted by maudlin at 4:18 PM on December 6, 2007

Maybe this will bait Ethereal Bligh into returning.
posted by gsteff at 4:20 PM on December 6, 2007

Then hugs for everyone! Hooray!
posted by saguaro at 4:25 PM on December 6, 2007

The wide comment box is freakin' me out man, wow.
posted by Divine_Wino at 4:25 PM on December 6, 2007

Also yeah, thanks for supporting the plain theme. My dirty secret little secret is that I can't stand all the colors, black on white text is where it's at, so when people say "the blue, the gray, the green" I just imagine a civil war drama.
posted by Divine_Wino at 4:27 PM on December 6, 2007 [1 favorite]

gitcher, Gitcher, GITCHER HUGS RIGHT HERE.

Hugs! I gottemwhoneedem? HUGS RIGHT HERE!

- Heyyeah! Got any pitchforks?

HUGS IS ALL WE GOT. HUGS RIGHT HERE! GITCHER HUGS!

- damn. Torches?

Listen, buddy. HUGS! GITCHER HUGS RIGHT HERE! WE GOT HUGS! AND LAWN CHAIRS.
posted by saguaro at 4:27 PM on December 6, 2007

If "Everyone needs a hug" goes, roll truck roll goes with it.
posted by roll truck roll at 4:40 PM on December 6, 2007

How come mathowie gets to make two MeTa posts in a row?

If he makes two posts in a row, we'll all make two posts in a row - it'll be anarchy!
posted by mr_crash_davis at 4:41 PM on December 6, 2007

• I did not know
• that we CAN HAS
• unordered lists!

But why is the small tag undocumented?
posted by TheOnlyCoolTim at 4:42 PM on December 6, 2007

I kiss you.
posted by Ambrosia Voyeur at 4:44 PM on December 6, 2007

I am trying to make a new post right now and I am getting this while Step2 Previewing

http://www.metafilter.com/mefi/67242 (December 6, 2007)
http://www.metafilter.com/mefi/67241 (December 6, 2007)
http://www.metafilter.com/mefi/67240 (December 6, 2007)
http://www.metafilter.com/mefi/67237 (December 6, 2007)
http://www.metafilter.com/mefi/67236 (December 6, 2007)
http://www.metafilter.com/mefi/67235 (December 6, 2007)
http://www.metafilter.com/mefi/67234 (December 6, 2007)
http://www.metafilter.com/mefi/67233 (December 6, 2007)
http://www.metafilter.com/mefi/67232 (December 6, 2007)
http://www.metafilter.com/mefi/67230 (December 6, 2007)
http://www.metafilter.com/mefi/67229 (December 6, 2007)
http://www.metafilter.com/mefi/67228 (December 6, 2007)
http://www.metafilter.com/mefi/67227 (December 6, 2007)
http://www.metafilter.com/mefi/67226 (December 6, 2007)
http://www.metafilter.com/mefi/67224 (December 6, 2007)
http://www.metafilter.com/mefi/67223 (December 6, 2007)
http://www.metafilter.com/mefi/67221 (December 6, 2007)
http://www.metafilter.com/mefi/67220 (December 6, 2007)
http://www.metafilter.com/mefi/67219 (December 6, 2007)
http://www.metafilter.com/mefi/67217 (December 6, 2007)
http://www.metafilter.com/mefi/67216 (December 6, 2007)
http://www.metafilter.com/mefi/67215 (December 6, 2007)

Never ever happened before. My fault or some new glitch ?
posted by elpapacito at 4:46 PM on December 6, 2007

I think the following could be the cause ?


wrote a ">test for you.



Sorry but I don't know which html tag is used to show code...i forgot ! :<
posted by elpapacito at 4:49 PM on December 6, 2007

Everyone needs a hug is best thing ever. Has to stay.
posted by boo_radley at 4:56 PM on December 6, 2007

But why is the small tag undocumented?

<small> is for closers.

It's a symbol of our elite skills; knowing that only the best of the best are invited to use this powerful tool raises the esprit de corps of the entire Mefi nation.

And that we tried all the HTML we remembered to see what worked and what didn't.
posted by quin at 5:08 PM on December 6, 2007 [3 favorites]

The new comment box is k-rad, thanks!
posted by whir at 5:24 PM on December 6, 2007

This comment box is too wide!
posted by Pants! at 5:37 PM on December 6, 2007

I got extra hugs, which motherfucker wants one?
posted by Divine_Wino at 5:57 PM on December 6, 2007

I'm eating cheetohs now!!
posted by mattbucher at 5:59 PM on December 6, 2007

I love hugs.
posted by inconsequentialist at 6:03 PM on December 6, 2007

I miss the old comment box.

Oh wait, the Live Preview works on plain theme. Hooray for progress!
posted by ALongDecember at 6:10 PM on December 6, 2007

Bug report - Firefox on Ubuntu 7.10. In AskMe, the buttons below the comment box don't align properly.

Screenshot

Everything looks fine on MetaTalk and the blue, though.
posted by chrisamiller at 6:13 PM on December 6, 2007

made the comment textarea 200px wider, from 400px to 600px

Yay! My biggest gripe, partially ameliorated. It's a lot better than it was, but on my 1920x1200 screen, the comment box still takes up much less than half the page.

I'm don't know HTML well, so this might be unreasonable, but could this be done as a percentage of width, minimum 400px, rather than as an absolute value?
posted by Malor at 6:19 PM on December 6, 2007

I'll take a hug kthxbye. >.>
posted by Phire at 6:38 PM on December 6, 2007

pee ess, the comment box rocks.
posted by Phire at 6:38 PM on December 6, 2007

HUGS!
posted by Divine_Wino at 6:51 PM on December 6, 2007

I can confirm chrisamiller's bug report on the same OS/browser set-up, though the offset is a little less for me.
posted by Abiezer at 6:55 PM on December 6, 2007

Lemme install ubuntu on VMware to try it on my mac so I can fix it...
posted by mathowie at 7:15 PM on December 6, 2007

OmniWeb 5.6 also works fine with the clicky HTML buttons. I configured it to claim to be Safari 3.0 (since it uses the same WebKit version) but it'd be nice if it was properly auto-detected.
posted by kindall at 7:18 PM on December 6, 2007

Can we have 'everyone needs a hug' automatically input in the text field for MeTa postings and comments?

That'd be cool.
posted by anotherpanacea at 7:23 PM on December 6, 2007

- made the live preview actually readable if you're in the plain text theme!

very nice.
posted by caddis at 7:28 PM on December 6, 2007

Hugs in Meta is the equivalent of a clinch in boxing - bring the enemy closer so you can rabbit punch them.
posted by peacay at 7:28 PM on December 6, 2007 [2 favorites]

- made the comment textarea 200px wider, from 400px to 600px

Oh, good. Everyone knows the girth is the best part.

what? it is.
posted by Verdandi at 7:31 PM on December 6, 2007

kindall, can you load this page with your OmniWeb browser set to defaults, and tell me what it says?

http://www.metafilter.com/browser_check.mefi

Also, anyone with Opera that says the buttons work, please do the same. I have to do some browser agent sniffing, but I need to know the right text strings to match on.
posted by mathowie at 7:44 PM on December 6, 2007

RABBIT PUNCHES, BITE YOUR EAR!
posted by Divine_Wino at 7:45 PM on December 6, 2007

sweeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeet
posted by brain_drain at 7:45 PM on December 6, 2007

Matt: OmniWeb checks in as...

Mozilla/5.0 (Macintosh; U; PPC Mac OS X; en-US) AppleWebKit/522+ (KHTML, like Gecko, Safari/522) OmniWeb/v613.0.93354
posted by kindall at 7:49 PM on December 6, 2007

Weird, the comment box/link helpers look fine everywhere except just Ask MeFi on Ubuntu 7.10 here on my mac in vmware. I'll see if there's anything odd about that one page.
posted by mathowie at 7:50 PM on December 6, 2007

Ok, kindall, it should work now (I'm matching any browser with "AppleWebKit/52" at the moment)
posted by mathowie at 7:53 PM on December 6, 2007

Holy crap-on-a-biscuit! This is getting to be just like a real website! I'm gonna start telling my friends about it! And buy a sockpuppet!

{{{{{{mathowie}}}}}}}
posted by The Deej at 7:59 PM on December 6, 2007

Opera 9 users should be set now as well (I downloaded it myself, added the string, and yes, the buttons work)
posted by mathowie at 8:00 PM on December 6, 2007

ok, bizarre time tunnel, whir. k-rad? Suddenly it's 1991 in the suburbs of Washington DC. (Am I wrong? Did other people say this?)
posted by LobsterMitten at 8:19 PM on December 6, 2007

On the blue, I can replicate the button offset error by increasing the text size. (hit ctrl-+ a few times in firefox).

On askme, reducing the text size to something like 60% pushes the buttons over far enough to be underneath the box again.

I don't see anything strange in the HTML, so. . . *shrug*
posted by chrisamiller at 8:24 PM on December 6, 2007

Oddly enough, the aforementioned text size doesn't affect button placement on MetaTalk.
posted by chrisamiller at 8:25 PM on December 6, 2007

It's a fucking sexist lie is what it is. I don't need a hug.

I need a nap.

*gives dersins lots of hugs*

PS: Comment box is small again once you click Preview.
posted by deborah at 8:26 PM on December 6, 2007

Durr. The quickest of searches reveals that yes, yes other people did say that. I always thought of it as a more or less local BBS culture thing. So bizarre to hear that after all these years...
posted by LobsterMitten at 8:27 PM on December 6, 2007

And, on topic: mathowie, the html help link is a great, great idea.
posted by LobsterMitten at 8:28 PM on December 6, 2007

+1 for hugs.
posted by jessamyn at 8:54 PM on December 6, 2007

How do I turn live preview on?
posted by "Tex" Connor and the Wily Roundup Boys at 9:09 PM on December 6, 2007

How do I turn live preview on?

Use a modern browser, and you should see it right below the comment box.
posted by mathowie at 9:20 PM on December 6, 2007

Speaking of t he plain theme, can we get the colors of the Google Ads sync'd with the white? Right now they're blue and really annoying if you're not logged in.

Not that I would ever log out, please put down the hammer!
posted by blue_beetle at 9:29 PM on December 6, 2007

Have any of the free WYSIWYG HTML editors out there failed to suck yet? And if so, would you consider using it as an option?
posted by delmoi at 9:29 PM on December 6, 2007

I'm using Firefox 2.0.0.10, and I all I get is plain ol' dead preview.

I didn't really configure it all, I don't think. Javascript is certainly enabled.
posted by "Tex" Connor and the Wily Roundup Boys at 9:44 PM on December 6, 2007

Bug report - Firefox on Ubuntu 7.10. In AskMe, the buttons below the comment box don't align properly.

Screenshot

Everything looks fine on MetaTalk and the blue, though.

Ditto FF 2.0.02 on Mac OSX 10.4.8

My offset on this machine is roughly identical to chrisamiller's screenshot.
posted by dersins at 9:45 PM on December 6, 2007

"roughly identical"

Ha! Me like preciseness of English!

Also, on preview, the comment box is small on preview.

Also, I still don't need a fucking hug.

But I need a nap more than ever.
posted by dersins at 9:48 PM on December 6, 2007

Have any of the free WYSIWYG HTML editors out there failed to suck yet? And if so, would you consider using it as an option?

Last time I checked, they still sucked. I'd move to them if they were customizable down to just a few options (like maybe 4 or 5 buttons max (add ul/li junk, maybe small and blockquote)) with maximum browser support.
posted by mathowie at 10:05 PM on December 6, 2007

I still don't need a fucking hug. But I need a nap more than ever.

Your insistence on the latter indicates that the former may, in fact, be an incorrect self-assessment on your part. The presence of the reminder under the box is specifically addressed to you closet-case hug needers.
posted by jessamyn at 10:12 PM on December 6, 2007

I get exactly the same button offset as chrisamiller on AskMe, and they dissappear completely (unlike here) on preview as well as the text-box reverting to the thin style.

Matt, that page spits this back at me: Opera/9.24 (Macintosh; PPC Mac OS X; U; en) and it's correct (I am indeed ID'ing as Opera)

I'll consider finally having the HTML buttons in Opera pretty much the same thing as a hug. No more right-clicking to get to my notes in order to make up for my poor typing skills. wahoo
posted by a_green_man at 10:18 PM on December 6, 2007

After another look, they also disappear on the Blue when previewing.

And while they line up to the edge of the text-box on the Blue, the buttons here are ~3-4 pixels offset to the right. Also, they switch to the left after preview. Don't know if you intend that.
posted by a_green_man at 10:21 PM on December 6, 2007

Yeah, we didn't add it to the preview page yet, we'll add it tomorrow or Monday.
posted by mathowie at 10:51 PM on December 6, 2007

Ok, width/floating issues should be fixed now for all browsers.
posted by mathowie at 11:02 PM on December 6, 2007

I just got a served an askme page that had visible borders around the "comment" and "live preview" areas. It looked like somehow the cell boundary widths weren't getting set to zero.

Unfortunately I didn't get a screen shot and I can't reproduce it. Firefox 2.0.0.11 on Leopard.
posted by tkolar at 11:04 PM on December 6, 2007

yeah tkolar, I was debugging on the live page for a minute there. All is well now.
posted by mathowie at 11:10 PM on December 6, 2007

This text box still isn't quite big enough to contain all the love I have for the admins, but it's a good start.
My love is at least 1200 px wide.
posted by cowbellemoo at 11:17 PM on December 6, 2007 [1 favorite]

Everyone needs a hug

Everyone? All 63037 people?

Well, OK then. Quits job, commences hugging.
posted by madamjujujive at 11:22 PM on December 6, 2007

Sorry but I don't know which html tag is used to show code...i forgot ! :<>
That would be the <code> tag (conveniently shown here in a code tag!). Also, don't frown. Here's a hug!

*hugs elpapacito*

Instead of ajaxy HTML help, how about forcing the link to open in a new tab/window? That way, any stuff that you're working on isn't lost.
posted by philomathoholic at 11:59 PM on December 6, 2007

Ah! unclosed italics tag! Good thing it didn't spread to the rest of the page.
posted by philomathoholic at 12:01 AM on December 7, 2007

This is all so sexy, I feel like maybe I'm being unfaithfull
posted by From Bklyn at 12:28 AM on December 7, 2007

Hugs in Meta is the equivalent of a clinch in boxing - bring the enemy closer so you can rabbit punch them.

Aw, you sound bitter. How's about a hug? I'll keep my panties on!
posted by h00py at 3:08 AM on December 7, 2007

...bring the enemy closer...

Keep your friends close, and your enemies closer.

Anyway, that's what the Don said.
posted by flapjax at midnite at 3:22 AM on December 7, 2007

My dirty secret little secret is that I can't stand all the colors, black on white text is where it's at

I love the plain theme ever since it was drawn to my attention that it was actually being improved/developed.

It isn't a complaint so much (yeah, right), but a feature I would like to see for the plain theme is the link colors changing so it is more obvious which section one is on.

Oh, and I dig hugs.
posted by terrapin at 4:07 AM on December 7, 2007

The wide live preview makes me feel exposed. I think I'll go get a hug.

Damn, it's big! Thanks.
posted by ersatz at 8:03 AM on December 7, 2007

I wonder if this will encourage wordier comments, now that they take up less vertical space in live preview.
posted by Tehanu at 9:25 AM on December 7, 2007

My love is at least 1200 px wide.

Print or screen resolution?
posted by jessamyn at 10:30 AM on December 7, 2007

Everyone needs a hug

Everyone? All 63037 people?

Well, OK then. Quits job, commences hugging.

Hug everyone except dersins. He's a big poopyhead.
posted by deborah at 11:46 AM on December 7, 2007

Hugs are for suckas. I ain't no sucka.
posted by dersins at 11:49 AM on December 7, 2007

deborah, maybe the poopyheads need hugs more than anyone else.

*Chases dersin* - c'mere you big poopyhead - *delivers a hug and a mild noogie*
posted by madamjujujive at 11:58 AM on December 7, 2007

Ok, width/floating issues should be fixed now for all browsers.

Looks good - thanks.
posted by chrisamiller at 2:04 PM on December 7, 2007

hugs are better than chicken soup, but neither works over the internets
posted by caddis at 6:46 PM on December 7, 2007

dersin had his chance. He's a poopyhead now and forevermore. Wanna help me give him a swirlie?
posted by deborah at 8:23 PM on December 7, 2007

To hell with 'everyone'. I need a hug.

Also: this is awesome.
posted by Ryvar at 10:00 PM on December 7, 2007

On second thought, remove the quotes and markup:

To hell with everyone. I need a hug.
posted by Ryvar at 10:01 PM on December 7, 2007

(((((((((((((((MEFites))))))))))))))

YAYYY hugs! And especially in a generous wide live preview. Adding back massages.

awww those rascally poopieheads, *seconding mild noogies where needed.

BIG friendly hugs to everybody, dersins included, after your nap.
posted by nickyskye at 6:45 PM on December 12, 2007