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Chicago & NorthWestern : The non-transcontinental

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Posted by Convicted One on Monday, May 16, 2022 8:29 PM

Overmod
I created a new account as a test, and had no trouble selecting and uploading an avatar -- even the automatic scale and resize worked.

 

Well, I just took the bait, and tried. Still getting stonewalled with no avatar, but at least I get a [create a new discussion] button.

Imaginative name, huh?  Confused

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Posted by Overmod on Monday, May 16, 2022 6:26 PM

I created a new account as a test, and had no trouble selecting and uploading an avatar -- even the automatic scale and resize worked.

On the other hand, I've tried multiple permutations of the site URL, including cutting and pasting the full path to the Conversations page, in the current version of Chrome under Windows 10 and I can't get a new conversation button to appear... so much for my reputation for tech wizardryDunce

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Posted by Convicted One on Monday, May 16, 2022 6:16 PM

Murphy Siding
Perhaps new accounts can have a custom avatar, but not existing ones?

I don't believe that theory will fly.   I recall that Lithonia operator created a new account as part of a process of clearing up subscription matters with his original account.  And he was unable  to upload his custom avatar to his new account....or that is what I recall, anyway.

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Posted by SD60MAC9500 on Monday, May 16, 2022 6:16 PM
 

Convicted One

Additional tip:

 

Although we are no longer permitted to upload custom avatars, it is possible to access the on-board default avatar selection utility (avatars like mine and Lithonia Operators) by  adding trains.com to the " allow pop-ups and redirects"   list (fwiw)

Doing so eliminates the creeping menu that never quite opens

 

That's silly. I liked you and LO's old avatars.

 
Rahhhhhhhhh!!!!
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Posted by Convicted One on Monday, May 16, 2022 5:35 PM

Additional tip:

 

Although we are no longer permitted to upload custom avatars, it is possible to access the on-board default avatar selection utility (avatars like mine and Lithonia Operators) by  adding trains.com to the " allow pop-ups and redirects"   list (fwiw)

Doing so eliminates the creeping menu that never quite opens

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Posted by Convicted One on Monday, May 16, 2022 5:21 PM

Charlie, I really don't use the PM function often. But as I understand it, we have to disable our browser  (google chrome or Firefox) security settings in order to start a brand new PM.  But we can "add onto" existing PM dialogs without having to change security settings 

 I guess the real problem there stems from "enhancements" included with recent browser updates, somehow shuts off the ability to create new PMs 

 In Chrome you have to : 

Open your settings page, then go to <security and privacy>,, then select <site settings> then scroll down to the bottom and select <additional content settings>

 That should cause your already open menu to get even longer. At the bottom of that stack select <insecure content>

And that should give you a <customized behavior> section, where you have 2 [ADD] buttons

One for "not allowed" and one for "allowed"

Add the basic trains.com address to the "allowed" section, and then refresh your browser

  Then thereafter, it should be possible to start new PMs

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Posted by charlie hebdo on Monday, May 16, 2022 5:08 PM

Convicted One
Always interesting when an "official explanation" one is given, does not add up with the facts. Hard to distinguish the difference sometimes  between if we are being "misinformed",...or intentionally "disinformed".  

The problem with starting up a new PM - accidental or deliberate?

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Posted by Convicted One on Monday, May 16, 2022 5:07 PM

Murph: > 

I tend to believe it's safest to never underestimate anyone. Wink

"Beware the Greeks", especially when it is alleged that the problem is beyond their control

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Posted by charlie hebdo on Monday, May 16, 2022 5:00 PM

Overmod
I don't think it is a problem due to posting with iOS 15.1 or higher, although I did notice that starting with the 15.1 upgrade I lost the ability to select text for 'add quote to your post' -- it just inserts the whole damn thing

It's not a problem with Windows or Android, just Apple stuff apparently.

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Posted by Murphy Siding on Monday, May 16, 2022 4:28 PM

Convicted One
  I still wonder from time to time how that Spyderman character who didn't create his account until November 2021,    ended up with a custom avatar, despite the official word, over a year earlier,  that  doing so was "no longer possible".
 

Could it just be a software fluke? Perhaps new accounts can have a custom avatar, but not existing ones? It probably helps that the other guy has super spidey powers and you don't. Wink

Thanks to Chris / CopCarSS for my avatar.

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Posted by Convicted One on Monday, May 16, 2022 3:06 PM

Overmod
 It seems to come and go at random, perhaps related to excessively slow page-code loading (as caused by malformed code in one of the magic ads) and it is INFURIATING when it happens.

Hadn't thought about that, it'll give me something else to check, if it ever happens again,...thanks.

As far as the annonymous  mausoleum goes yeah I always thought it was funny getting the same explanation you cite,  yet  realizing that I  personally never terminated my old account, nor gave anyone else permission to do so...it just ended up that way one day, noticing quotes to my former old posts, but  not finding the original posts intact, to match the quotes.

Always interesting when an "official explanation" one is given, does not add up with the facts. Hard to distinguish the difference sometimes  between if we are being "misinformed",...or intentionally "disinformed".  Whistling   I still wonder from time to time how that Spyderman character who didn't create his account until November 2021,    ended up with a custom avatar, despite the official word, over a year earlier,  that  doing so was "no longer possible".

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Posted by Overmod on Sunday, May 15, 2022 11:26 PM

There are times when I get that text 'Add Quote to your Post' link in red that doesn't work.  It seems to come and go at random, perhaps related to excessively slow page-code loading (as caused by malformed code in one of the magic ads) and it is INFURIATING when it happens.

I don't think it is a problem due to posting with iOS 15.1 or higher, although I did notice that starting with the 15.1 upgrade I lost the ability to select text for 'add quote to your post' -- it just inserts the whole damn thing, then allows deletion only by backspacing, one letter at a time, without scrolling the tiny 3-line visible window of text as it goes.  (At one time the backspace would accelerate to 5 characters at a time after some timeout, but not now...)

Meanwhile I continue to see posts where the 'reply' button disappears off to the right.  This appears to be caused by the presence of a long quoted hyperlink that the forum software tries to make a long unbroken line -- sometimes by breaking the URL only where it contains hyphens or other text-based locations to break long "words".

If I'm posting on a phone, the lines are only a few words long.  Not uncommonly someone will have a link in a post and the page will not allow me to get to the buttons, either in landscape or portrait screen alignment.  This became progressively worse with the bouncing bottom ads which often leave the text entry window both narrow and only 2 or 3 lines visible (!)

When I can use a computer's browser, the use of BBcode URL tags still works, so I can use formattable text (with easy line breaks essentially independent of screen width) as clickable hyperlink to what may be very long, complicated URL structure, including those awful Google URLs containing the search path as well as the target ...

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Posted by zugmann on Friday, May 13, 2022 12:25 PM

That text on that post of his is also super-wide (juts out to the right) for some reason.  

You can quote his other posts. 

It's been fun.  But it isn't much fun anymore.   Signing off for now. 


  

The opinions expressed here represent my own and not those of my employer, any other railroad, company, or person.t fun any

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Posted by Convicted One on Friday, May 13, 2022 12:23 PM

Thanks Balt,

Just for reference, here is what I see when trying to respond to one of Overmod's posts, compared to what I see for everybody else.    And in the case of Overmod,  the hyperlink looking text reading "Add Quote to your Post" with the little bubble thingy next to it, does nothing.

 

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Posted by BaltACD on Thursday, May 12, 2022 11:12 PM

Convicted One
BTW Overmod,

Have you been fiddling with the settings on your account, as far as disabling your ability to be quoted?

I couldn't find the usual "quote" button for your post, yet I can still see it for other member's posts

I have seen that crop up from time to time with other posters too.

Never too old to have a happy childhood!

              

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Posted by Convicted One on Thursday, May 12, 2022 9:07 PM

BTW Overmod,

Have you been fiddling with the settings on your account, as far as disabling your ability to be quoted?

I couldn't find the usual "quote" button for your post, yet I can still see it for other member's posts

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Posted by Convicted One on Thursday, May 12, 2022 9:03 PM

Overmod:  I believe you have to delete your own account to have the posts list as "Anonymous" --

 

Not in  my experience.   My old account got "tossed" after I lost the password and let it sit dormant for a couple years. HOWEVER there are other members from that same period who have been dormant for much longer, whose accounts are still in tact.

I suspect  Bergie might have been involved in either embalming their accounts, or euthanizing mine

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Posted by Overmod on Thursday, May 12, 2022 6:45 PM

charlie hebdo
BaltACD

I find it abhorrent that Anonymous is the biggest poster on the forum.  All the poster identities that have been removed and placed in that of Anonymous. 

While sharing the sentiments... I believe you have to delete your own account to have the posts list as "Anonymous" -- the banned still show up with their own names, because the Geheime Eisenbahnpolizei have to be able to recognize the account login to implement the ban machinery...
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Posted by Convicted One on Thursday, May 12, 2022 6:16 PM

Euclid
No that does not ring a bell. 

I suspect the aspect of "relentless" abuse, ultimately was a factor. You can only turn the other cheek for so long before you start feeling like your antagonist is getting a break that they don't deserve.

 That might explain why some of those threads disappeared.

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Posted by charlie hebdo on Thursday, May 12, 2022 5:59 PM

BaltACD

I find it abhorrent that Anonymous is the biggest poster on the forum.  All the poster identities that have been removed and placed in that of Anonymous.

 

The forum has become almost Orwellian (approaching a Stalinesque mood at times) in its lack of transparency, authoritarian arbitrariness and expunging of the past. One might well ask why, but answers would be dangerous.

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Posted by Convicted One on Wednesday, May 11, 2022 9:52 PM

If he did, I would have loved to  have watched. Mischief

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Posted by zugmann on Wednesday, May 11, 2022 9:46 PM

Convicted One

I think my favorite post of all time, was when you encouraged some poster to go stand out on some highway, and wave at passing motorists.  Laugh

 

Did he?

It's been fun.  But it isn't much fun anymore.   Signing off for now. 


  

The opinions expressed here represent my own and not those of my employer, any other railroad, company, or person.t fun any

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Posted by Convicted One on Wednesday, May 11, 2022 9:44 PM

I think my favorite post of all time, was when you encouraged some poster to go stand out on some highway, and wave at passing motorists.  Laugh

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Posted by zugmann on Wednesday, May 11, 2022 9:36 PM

Is there going to be a test on all this?

It's been fun.  But it isn't much fun anymore.   Signing off for now. 


  

The opinions expressed here represent my own and not those of my employer, any other railroad, company, or person.t fun any

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Posted by Euclid on Wednesday, May 11, 2022 9:26 PM

Convicted One
Houston Ed used to mock him relentlessly...you might recall the "I was in the room"  taunts?

 

No that does not ring a bell.  I don't remember when MS left, but it must have been around 2007.  Then someone a lot like him suddenly emerged here shortly after.  I think he had a username with Illinois Central in it.  But he was only here for a few weeks or so. 

 

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Posted by Convicted One on Wednesday, May 11, 2022 9:14 PM

Euclid
I agree with your point above that the friction in the MS threads was mostly caused by those who did not agree with points being made by MS, just as was the case in the most recent example a few months ago.  I don't recall MS ever flaming anyone.  He disagreed with a lot of people, but I don't think he took it so far as to break the rules.  And I certainly did not see an example of that in his participation a few months ago.  I do have a pretty strong opinion about why he suddenly disappeared.  

 

You and I agree on the important parts here. I miss his contributions.  I do, however have a vague recollection of his detractors finding paydirt and sending him on a rant, or two. But I'd say 95% OF THE BAD STUFF WAS  directed at him.

Houston Ed used to mock him relentlessly...you might recall the "I was in the room"  taunts?

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Posted by Euclid on Wednesday, May 11, 2022 9:00 PM

Convicted One

 

 
Euclid
And back then, the moderator would only lock a thead, but never delete a whole thread for any reason.

 

 

Here is evidence of one such deletion. Notice the discussion did not frame the deletion as exceptional, or out of the ordinary

 

https://cs.trains.com/trn/f/111/p/42657/541527.aspx#541527

 

You'll have to copy and past the url, because the forum framework does not support hotlinks to local material 

 

Well maybe it did happen.  I don't think it happened as much back in that era of say pre-2015 compared to say the last couple years.  I don't have exact records.  But in any case, if you follow this thread back to the previous page, you can see I was responding the Charlie Hebdo about Michael Sol, and making the point that I don't recall MS causing a thread to be locked of deleted, and thus highlighting the unanswered question of why he suddenly disappeared during his brief and spirited appearance in the latest thread a few months ago about the destiny of the Milwaukee Road. 
 
I agree with your point above that the friction in the MS threads was mostly caused by those who did not agree with points being made by MS, just as was the case in the most recent example a few months ago.  I don't recall MS ever flaming anyone.  He disagreed with a lot of people, but I don't think he took it so far as to break the rules.  And I certainly did not see an example of that in his participation a few months ago.  I do have a pretty strong opinion about why he suddenly disappeared.  
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Posted by Convicted One on Wednesday, May 11, 2022 8:34 PM

Euclid
And back then, the moderator would only lock a thead, but never delete a whole thread for any reason.

 

Here is evidence of one such deletion. Notice the discussion did not frame the deletion as exceptional, or out of the ordinary

 

https://cs.trains.com/trn/f/111/p/42657/541527.aspx#541527

 

You'll have to copy and past the url, because the forum framework does not support hotlinks to local material 

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Posted by Shadow the Cats owner on Wednesday, May 11, 2022 7:15 PM

That has been a want of WYDOT ever since they built 80.  However the USDOT said they had to go up and over Elk Mountain to save distance.  Even the elk know to get off that area in the winter as it is way to nasty in the winter.  My hubby tells stories of seeing trucks literally picked up and moved over lanes in the middle of winter going over that area.  

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