Constantly asked to approve cookies and/or log in

[BigRedX]

Pretty much since the current incarnation of this forum I find myself having to approve the use of cookies every other day and log back in at least once a week. The cookies approval often comes in the middle of a browsing session, I've been looking at a topic and click to return to the forum home page and the cookies approval message pops up on the screen.

And while the need to log in doesn't happen in the middle of using the forums it often happens later in the same day when I was previously logged in. For instance I was using the forums fine this morning. After a couple of hours break I now needed to log in.

None of the other forums I use require me to continually approve the use of cookies or log me out seemingly at random. There is one that requires me to manually log back in every 2 weeks but the log-in dialogue box specifically says this so I know why. Because of this I can't see it being due to my browser set up.

It's more of an annoyance rather than an actual problem but it would be nice to know why it is happening.

[Wonks]

I occasionally get logged off or asked to approve cookies, but it's normally maybe monthly, though the cookies thing can sometimes be within a few days Similar experience on PC with Win 10 and Firefox, and iPhone and Safari.

So what you're experiencing certainly isn't normal.

[Hugh Robjohns]

I have, in the back of my memory banks, a dim recollection that some of the cookies used for the previous site incarnation clashed with those set by new site, resulting in symptoms similar to those you describe. As I recall, the advice at the time was to log out and close the site, delete all SOS-related cookies, and then open the site and login so it set fresh new cookies.

Might be worth trying?

There's comprehensive info on what cookies are used and why, here:

https://www.soundonsound.com/informatio ... e-security

In the meantime I've flagged your message to the chaps who know what's what...

[Paul Gilby]

This is certainly not normal behaviour. Please do as Hugh has suggested and let us know the outcome.
If it persists we'll consult our Dev team.

[ef37a]

I have not been asked to log in on this W10 laptop for months and I very rarely get the cookies request but got one today as it happens!

I do have to log in on my old W7 HP every time I visit the forum but that is so rarely used it is not a bother.

Dave.

[Forum Admin]

Hi BigRedX

Are you by any chance using the Tapatalk forum app to log into the SOS Forum?

What browser are you using and what OS version please. It'll help us narrow down the problem (we hope).

[BigRedX]

Hi BigRedX

Are you by any chance using the Tapatalk forum app to log into the SOS Forum?

What browser are you using and what OS version please. It'll help us narrow down the problem (we hope).

I'm using Safari 13.1.2 running under Mac OS 10.13.6.

I know that's now rather old, but this problem has been happening since the last extensive revamp of the forums when both the OS and browser were still up to date.

I'm going to try flushing all the SOS cookies and see if that makes a difference.

[BigRedX]

I deleted all the SOS cookies and when the cookie approval message popped up it was different to one I had been seeing previously (dark grey rather than cyan) so unless the change is a result of this morning's maintenance, that could be a good sign.

[Hugh Robjohns]

That sounds promising! I suspect you had the old cookies still in your system which was confusing the current website.

[Forum Admin]

I deleted all the SOS cookies and when the cookie approval message popped up it was different to one I had been seeing previously (dark grey rather than cyan) ...

Odd, nothing has changed Cookie-wise. We are still using the blue popup Cookie request.

Can you take a screenshot and post here, or email it to me forumadmin at soundonsound.com please?

[Forum Admin]

This is what I get on Safari when I empty cache and erase all history.

[BigRedX]

I've never seen the dialogue box in the middle of the screen. Ever.

I get the banner along the bottom with the "OK I Agree" button. Previously it was cyan like the example shown, but after clearing all the SOS cookies it was dark grey.

[Forum Admin]

I've never seen the dialogue box in the middle of the screen. Ever.

Very strange - that has been active for all users for at least two years or more...

I get the banner along the bottom with the "OK I Agree" button. Previously it was cyan like the example shown, but after clearing all the SOS cookies it was dark grey.

Again, ultra strange, as the CSS style is for a Cyan blue - no grey to be seen, so unless your whole monitor is rendering Cyan blues as grey, we have no clue why you should be seeing this.

A screenshot would still be most welcome BigRedX.

We'll continue head-scratching and Googling possible solution for you.

Are any other Forum members experiencing this same colour difference, and if so, please reply stating your platform, browser model and version number, and whether viewing on Desktop, Tablet or Mobile.

[Drew Stephenson]

Chrome on W10 and Android here and I see the same as you Ian.

[BigRedX]

I'll send you a screen shot if it happens again. The banner at the bottom of the window has only appeared in grey once and that was when I entered the site immediately after clearing out all the SOS cookies. It hasn't appeared in any form since, although I don't expect to see it again until tomorrow at the earliest.

I wonder if the dialogue box is being generated in a way my old browser can't handle? There are a number of sites that I use for my work like Shutterstock and Yellow Images that have recently stopped working with my version of Safari, although I can't recall ever having seen that dialogue box even when this version of Safari was still relevant, nor can I recall seeing it when I've been browsing the forums on my iPad.

Incidentally, on the iPad, it is almost impossible to tap the go to first new post icon when selecting a topic because it's too close to other tappable items for the typical finger.

[Forum Admin]

Incidentally, on the iPad, it is almost impossible to tap the go to first new post icon when selecting a topic because it's too close to other tappable items for the typical finger.

Useful feedback, thanks - the iPad currently tends to adopt the same stylesheet/layout as the Desktop view, which of course is designed/intended for bigger screens.

It is in our future plans to revamp the stylesheets so that Tablets are given the option to choose the desktop view or the mobile view -- but this is a good few months off being launched yet.

[BigRedX]

The screen size isn't the problem, it's the fact that the "go to first new post" icon is too close to the thread title. On a computer, it's not a problem as the mouse pointer has plenty of accuracy. When you are prodding with your finger it's pretty much 50/50 which one will actually get selected.

[James Perrett]

The screen size isn't the problem, it's the fact that the "go to first new post" icon is too close to the thread title. On a computer, it's not a problem as the mouse pointer has plenty of accuracy. When you are prodding with your finger it's pretty much 50/50 which one will actually get selected.

On my browser the icon and the active area don't actually quite match up. You have to click to the right of the icon to actually go to the first new post. If you click on the left half of the icon nothing happens (This is on Chrome in Windows 10).

[Folderol]

Trying to produce a website that looks good and behaves well on all browsers and computers is difficult.
Trying to produce one that does all of the above and covers all phones is a path to insanity

If only there was some standards organisation that everyone kept to. {snark}

[BigRedX]

And the cookies approval message is back (and back in cyan) roughly 48 hours after I last encountered it:



No centre of screen dialogue box to make a selection simply an OK button to accept them. Also (as this subject recently came up on another forum I frequent) I believe that not being able to chose which cookies are included contravenes EU law, and while SOS is a UK website, many forum members are from countries where being able to choose which cookies are active is mandatory. It's obviously a problem for some OS and browser combinations.

[BigRedX]

However in better news I've just discovered that the arrow icon next to a thread will also take you to the first unread post. Previously it was only the document icon that did this, hence my problems with using this functionality on a touch screen. It's probably been like this for ages, but as that didn't function like that immediately after the last major forum update, I hadn't though to try it again. It was only by accident that I discovered this has changed.

[zenguitar]

That is the same cookies approval message I see periodically, with that colour as well. Every week or two. I'm on MacOS Ventura 13.5.2 and Safari 16.6

Andy

[ef37a]

The screen size isn't the problem, it's the fact that the "go to first new post" icon is too close to the thread title. On a computer, it's not a problem as the mouse pointer has plenty of accuracy. When you are prodding with your finger it's pretty much 50/50 which one will actually get selected.

This is most of the problem that I have with smart phones (that and the fact that they don't like my dry skin). When I got my first Android phone only a few years ago I found it impossible to put in characters from the keypad. To set the thing up I had to buy a C to A USB adapter and use an old keyboard. It does not help accuracy being one eyed and having bad near field depth perception (but I can get a ball of paper in a bin 3m away 9 out of ten tries!
I found a 'poking device' from a Pound shop helped a lot but I keep losing the fekker!

I now am resigned to using my SP for Whats app, Skype (if they call me!) and I keep one taxi firm contact so I don't have to punch in a number. The only real advantage is the Blue tooth coupler to my H aid.

As with much else in the way the world is going, if you are old, slow, bit deaf, half blind, those that design 'technology' and the systems behind it don't care a flying &&*^. NOT! I hasten to add does that apply to SoS IT bods but they have to work with the systems they are given I suppose.

Dave.

[BigRedX]

That is the same cookies approval message I see periodically, with that colour as well. Every week or two. I'm on MacOS Ventura 13.5.2 and Safari 16.6

Andy

If it was every week or two it would be so much of a problem, but I'm getting them every other day.

[Hugh Robjohns]

...Also (as this subject recently came up on another forum I frequent) I believe that not being able to chose which cookies are included contravenes EU law...

Not quite, no.

Some sites do offer that selectivity, but it's not mandatory and often not practical. Most sites offering user choice limit the options to 'All' or 'Essential Only'. The cookies used on the SOS site are 'Essential Only' anyway (but see below).

The UK equivalent to the EU law is detailed in the Privacy and Electronic Communications Regulations, but they both essentially require the same things.

1. Detailing what cookies are set on using the site, and what they are used for. The page I linked previously does all that, and is accessible from the cyan Cookie strap.

2. Tell site visitors how the website uses cookies. The blue bar does that in brief, with more information on the linked page.

3. Obtain visitors consent, and give them some control. The blue bar does that, with the control options being to consent or not...

Specifically, the wording on the Cyan Cookie bar explains that the SOS site uses cookies and gives two user options. The obvious one is, Okay, I Agree, and the alternative is to click on the underlined section in the text that says, No, Give Me More Info...

That takes you to the linked page:

https://www.soundonsound.com/informatio ... e-security

In the opening paragraphs of that page, it states: Under EU law we are obliged to disclose to all site users information about the use of cookies used on our web site.

It goes on to explain each of the cookies, what they are used for, and how to disable/remove them individually, if desired. It also explains that doing so significantly impairs the workings of the site and thus degrades the user experience.