topic Re: Refresh of page wipes out your typing when replying in Community Site Feedback

Refresh of page wipes out your typing when replying

HPsauce — Wed, 21 Feb 2024 08:48:36 GMT

I've noticed this ALMOST every time I reply to a post in a thread recently:

The window appears for me to type my reply in and I start, but after a few seconds the page tries to reload, warning pop-ups appear saying it will reload and whatever you do it reloads after a few more seconds and everything you type disappears. You can't "grab" it to copy then and paste later.

It seems OK on starting a new thread, such as I'm doing now.

Windows 11, Edge browser, all totally up to date. No easy or meaningful way of taking a relevant screen shot.

I've sort of got used to clicking reply then waiting for a minute or so for it to sort itself out. But sometimes I forget. 😠

Re: Refresh of page wipes out your typing when replying

Townman — Wed, 21 Feb 2024 17:03:46 GMT

It seems intermittent and has been happening for a long time.

I find it more prominent on my iPhone (Safari) than the laptop (MS Edge).

Re: Refresh of page wipes out your typing when replying

Anonymous — Wed, 21 Feb 2024 17:47:15 GMT

I haven't had my text wiped out as described by @HPsauce

but I'm frequently seeing a different issue (that 'feels' related) when starting to type a reply -

If I hit <Reply>, the expected text box opens, if I do nothing the blank box just sits there waiting for input.

Once I start typing AND before I can complete the first sentence, I'm frequently interrupted with this pop-up -

and typically much of what I thought I'd just typed is missing because the browser cursor 'focus' had moved from the text entry box to the pop-up - while I was looking at the keyboard because I don't touch type.

At this point I HAVEN'T accidentally clicked on <Cancel> or any other wrong key that might cause that pop-up to appear !

If I now click on <Stay on Page>, then I can return to typing, and the interruption doesn't reoccur for the current reply.

This happens so often that it is getting really annoying !

Using - Firefox 113.0.2 on Ubuntu 18.04 - both fully up to date, and the browser has no plug-ins or add-ons.

Re: Refresh of page wipes out your typing when replying

jab1 — Wed, 21 Feb 2024 17:48:33 GMT

Are those experiencing this inadvertently catching the 'back' button - I know I can do it at times (on my mouse).

Re: Refresh of page wipes out your typing when replying

HPsauce — Wed, 21 Feb 2024 17:53:42 GMT

Definitely no back button involved; I'm invariably typing (lowercase letters) when it happens.

Re: Refresh of page wipes out your typing when replying

Anonymous — Wed, 21 Feb 2024 17:54:27 GMT

For me, I'm simply typing the opening words to my reply, and not touching the mouse

Re: Refresh of page wipes out your typing when replying

jab1 — Wed, 21 Feb 2024 17:56:58 GMT

Fair enough, @HPsauce , @Anonymous but it certainly never happens to me spontaneously - FF122.0.1 on Zorin 16.

Re: Refresh of page wipes out your typing when replying

Anonymous — Wed, 21 Feb 2024 17:59:33 GMT

For me this only started perhaps two or three weeks ago, and never previously.

Re: Refresh of page wipes out your typing when replying

Mav — Wed, 21 Feb 2024 18:01:15 GMT

My memory may be playing tricks on me but didn't there used to be a button to get what was saved in a buffer after the page was refreshed?

Re: Refresh of page wipes out your typing when replying

jab1 — Wed, 21 Feb 2024 18:03:09 GMT

Might be your memory, @Mav , although my machine does an autosave every 2/3 minutes.

Re: Refresh of page wipes out your typing when replying

Mav — Wed, 21 Feb 2024 18:04:29 GMT

Thanks, @jab1, for confirming I am gradually going crazy😂

Re: Refresh of page wipes out your typing when replying

Anonymous — Wed, 21 Feb 2024 18:08:35 GMT

@Mav - it's funny you mention that, because I'd noticed a little while back that in my profile area, there is a "Drafts" area, where I used to be able to continue editing a post reply that had been interrupted, but now all I can do with those 'Drafts' is <Discard> them -

Re: Refresh of page wipes out your typing when replying

jab1 — Wed, 21 Feb 2024 18:12:53 GMT

Long time since I've used that facility, but if you click on the actual 'draft' does it not open in the reply box?

Re: Refresh of page wipes out your typing when replying

Anonymous — Wed, 21 Feb 2024 18:15:58 GMT

Not recently, it used to !

The only thing that works is <Discard>

Re: Refresh of page wipes out your typing when replying

Mav — Wed, 21 Feb 2024 18:17:53 GMT

@jab1 and @Anonymous

Just been looking at that and it will open the so-called draft but it appears to be the 'final' draft that was posted so, in a word, pointless.

@Anonymous

Maybe it's that functionality that I am remembering. Haven't tried to access it in years so don't know when it changed.

Re: Refresh of page wipes out your typing when replying

Townman — Wed, 21 Feb 2024 18:19:05 GMT

@Anonymous wrote:

I haven't had my text wiped out as described by @HPsauce

but I'm frequently seeing a different issue (that 'feels' related) when starting to type a reply -

It is definitely related - it is a browser generated trap: if a form has received data and there is an attempt to navigate away from the page without sending it, the interlock will engage.

This does not happen in all browsers on all occasions, leading to the experience reported by @HPsauce .

Re: Refresh of page wipes out your typing when replying

Townman — Wed, 21 Feb 2024 18:34:03 GMT

@Anonymous wrote:

@Mav - it's funny you mention that, because I'd noticed a little while back that in my profile area, there is a "Drafts" area, where I used to be able to continue editing a post reply that had been interrupted, but now all I can do with those 'Drafts' is <Discard> them -

Not sure that this is entirely correct.

It is not obvious that the post title is an active link: I have three drafts ... on clicking the titles

12-01-2024 - I am advised "Sorry, you've run out of time to edit this message"
27-09-2023 - I am advised "This topic has not been posted in for at least 120 days. Unless you're sure you want to reply, please consider starting a new topic"
06-06-2023 - I am advised "Sorry, you are not allowed to post in an area marked read-only. Click the Back button on your browser."

The first confuses me, there should be no time lock on a draft.

The second seems reasonable.

The third perplexed me ... then I recalled that there is an auto lock on reading a very old topic (older than 6 months IIRC). Doing a point inspection on some boards, I see that everything prior to the 22nd Aug 2023 is locked, which somewhat confirms my recollection. The fact that EVERYTHING appears to be locked suggests that the consequence of search bot activity.

Re: Refresh of page wipes out your typing when replying

Townman — Wed, 21 Feb 2024 18:43:34 GMT

@Mav wrote:

My memory may be playing tricks on me but didn't there used to be a button to get what was saved in a buffer after the page was refreshed?

There needs to be the save into the buffer action for this to be useful (if such exists).

The page with the started reply seems to reload totally unbidden. I would suspect a page load issue causes the page rendering to crash. I see that all too often using my old iPad ... numerous modern sites carry so much bloatware which enhances (!?) the opportunities for something to go wrong.

My guess would be that there is still hidden crud loading AFTER the page delivers focus to the user ... who then starts bashing away at the keyboard. I have nearly completed the first line of a post, only to have the page auto reload. If this is indeed a page load crash, then there will have been no time to save anything to any buffer, either within the web application or the browser's auto complete technology.

Re: Refresh of page wipes out your typing when replying

Mav — Wed, 21 Feb 2024 18:58:07 GMT

@Townman

A little further investigation reveals that I am not going round the bend after all😎

Below are two screen shots. The first is after typing into the text box but doing nothing for 5 minutes then refreshing the page.

The second is after clicking 'Load'.

Re: Refresh of page wipes out your typing when replying

Townman — Wed, 21 Feb 2024 19:00:13 GMT

@Mav

Indeed ... though that needed the page to stay there (without reloading) to do the (web application) background upload. I suspect that gives rise to the DRAFTS history also mentioned here.