Javascript fix

January 21, 2001 8:25 PM

I changed the posting pages to use a new javascript fix, to prevent double posts. If it doesn't let you post comments or new threads, let me know here. I tested it on IE 5.01, NN 4.75, and NN 6.0 on win2k, and it worked fine.
posted by mathowie to bugs at 8:25 PM (22 comments total)

Is this the end of Doublepostguy?
Tune in next thread, same Meta time, same Meta channel.
posted by thirteen at 9:57 PM on January 21, 2001

Is it designed to force you to preview before you can post?
posted by thirteen at 10:34 PM on January 21, 2001

Does it require Javascript?

Anyway, it doesn't work on Opera 5 (Win32) with Javascript off.
posted by holloway at 10:48 PM on January 21, 2001

Yeah, there's no Post button at the bottom of the composition form, I have to Preview before I can Post. Is this intentional? Can I please have my one-click posting back?
posted by kindall at 11:11 PM on January 21, 2001

Yeah, I took away instant posting, because that's a way to post nefarious code. If you are forced to preview something, you can't post code that redirects to another site, or crashes a browser, etc, since you have to get it through a preview.

I could bring it back, since now that I think about it, someone could just post the code on the preview page. D'oh!

Yeah, and everything requires javascript to work.
posted by mathowie at 11:46 PM on January 21, 2001

It's working just fine. It's kinda like the 5 day waiting period for handguns...to keep you from doing something you'd probably not do if you really thought about it for a second.
posted by ritualdevice at 11:59 PM on January 21, 2001

(does this go in feature request?

Could you please have an option for a non-javascript version? I have to browse a lot of geocities and it's so much easier to disable scripting.

Could you do server-side double-post checking. I mean, all you need is to check the first n bytes of comments within that story, I think.

Malicious code is always going to get through once someone's previewed. I think you always need filters.
posted by holloway at 12:40 AM on January 22, 2001

argh... OK, I'm going to bed now.

I meant... "I think you always need server-side filters"
posted by holloway at 12:41 AM on January 22, 2001

Holloway, what you need is a firewall which permits you to control Javascript on a per-site basis. I've got this one and it works great. I recommend it unconditionally. Using it, I have JavaScript popups disabled for any geocities address, but I have all JavaScript enabled for MeFi. On some sites I have JavaScript completely disabled.
posted by Steven Den Beste at 5:51 AM on January 22, 2001

You don't need a firewall that permits you to control JavaScript on a per-site basis. That's what Internet Explorer's "security zones" are for. Just make sure your settings for non-trusted sites don't have JavaScript turned on and add GeoCities and any other offending sites to the non-trusted sites zone.
posted by kindall at 9:05 AM on January 22, 2001

That ‘wait’ button sure confused the hell out of me.

Ended up posting three times.


posted by capt.crackpipe at 11:52 AM on January 22, 2001

See, I thought ‘wait’ meant ‘Press me to hold the post.’


posted by capt.crackpipe at 11:53 AM on January 22, 2001

I have yet to see a "wait" button.
posted by thirteen at 1:17 PM on January 22, 2001

psst, thirteen: tell Matt your browser and platform so he can fix that. :-)
posted by cCranium at 2:33 PM on January 22, 2001

I see no wait button either (IE5/Mac).

Thanks for this, Matt. I don't mind the having to click twice at all. Lately the Dixie Chicks have been making me do all sorts of typos and double posts. It's embarrassing. Thanks for helping me fight their malign influence.
posted by rodii at 5:49 PM on January 22, 2001

I don't mind the having to click twice at all.

See?
posted by rodii at 7:57 PM on January 22, 2001

I agree. I've noticed both in myself and others, a whole lot of "Whoops, I meant..." posts over the past month or two.
posted by cCranium at 6:30 AM on January 23, 2001

I see the "wait" button on IE5.5b1/Mac, as I confusingly noted on one of the Bush threads.
posted by aaron at 3:27 PM on January 23, 2001

By the way, shouldn't the "wait" button not be a button at all? Or at least a button that doesn't do anything when you click it?
posted by aaron at 3:29 PM on January 23, 2001

I have now seen the "wait"--maybe it was there all along. It happens pretty fast.

Aaron--where'd you get IE5.5? I want one.
posted by rodii at 3:48 PM on January 23, 2001

IE 5.5 Mac is on the Mac OS X Public Beta CD-ROM.

Some of the Microsoft engineers gave out a version of what they called "5.5b1" at MacHack last summer, but apparently it wasn't official.
posted by kindall at 9:31 AM on January 26, 2001