Hi
I'm new to this forum so I don't want to step out of line or be rude but I just wanted to ask a question about the development cycle of the application and requesting possible additions or changes.
Is it acceptable to make suggestions for possible changes where we think the program would benefit?
Cheers
Mark
Development Cycle etc.
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Programmer
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Development Cycle etc.
Hi Mark,
Yes, it is completely acceptable. The program tends to have a much shorter development cycle than most software - I bring out about one upgrade every couple of months on average, and new suggestions are always welcome.
Cheers
Richard
Yes, it is completely acceptable. The program tends to have a much shorter development cycle than most software - I bring out about one upgrade every couple of months on average, and new suggestions are always welcome.
Cheers
Richard
Development Cycle etc.
Hi Richard
I just did a huge post but the server swallowed it so I'll redo it another time.
Mark
I just did a huge post but the server swallowed it so I'll redo it another time.
Mark
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Programmer
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Development Cycle etc.
Hi Mark,
I am really sorry to hear that. I have been aware for a long time that the posting of messages can be flakey, and I have been trying to do something about it this week - I hope I haven't actually made things worse though
Richard
I am really sorry to hear that. I have been aware for a long time that the posting of messages can be flakey, and I have been trying to do something about it this week - I hope I haven't actually made things worse though
Richard
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Programmer
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Development Cycle etc.
Just a bit of follow-up. I have dug into the configuration settings for the website and found that the session timeout I had previously set (60 minutes) had got lost when I upgraded the site a few weeks ago. This means that it had reverted to its default of 20 minutes.
What this means in practice is that the server assumes you have logged out if there is no activity for 20 minutes. Activity means requesting a page, so if you are busy typing away in the forum it doesn't count as activity. If the session has timed out when you post the message then it will be lost, because the site cannot identify who posted it and the user is re-logged in at the welcome page.
Obviously this is not an acceptable time limit, and I have now set it back to 60 minutes. This should stick. I think it had got lost because the settings migrated from the website, which used the default, not the Tarot Zone, which had the 60 minute timeout (they used to be two separate sites).
It is worth people being aware of this issue so they can keep an eye on it and let me know if the timeout behaviour seems not to be working right.
Sorry again for the lost post
Cheers,
Richard
What this means in practice is that the server assumes you have logged out if there is no activity for 20 minutes. Activity means requesting a page, so if you are busy typing away in the forum it doesn't count as activity. If the session has timed out when you post the message then it will be lost, because the site cannot identify who posted it and the user is re-logged in at the welcome page.
Obviously this is not an acceptable time limit, and I have now set it back to 60 minutes. This should stick. I think it had got lost because the settings migrated from the website, which used the default, not the Tarot Zone, which had the 60 minute timeout (they used to be two separate sites).
It is worth people being aware of this issue so they can keep an eye on it and let me know if the timeout behaviour seems not to be working right.
Sorry again for the lost post
Cheers,
Richard
Development Cycle etc.
Hi
I've been away doing other stuff and I had a comment today and
reread this. It's probably for the best as I recall I had drunk a
bottle of Merlot.
I suppose my main question was about if there was any possibility
of adding a richer formating environment to the *.xml files.
I can see that when you mouse over a card the data is sourced from
serveral places such as the spread.xml and the cardate.xml and
mergered to show the data that appears as a mouse over, so what
I'm asking my be impossible.
I'm just a neat freak. I like the idea of adding some bold and
italics and maybe a tab here or there. Just to add some diversity.
For example info from the spread.xml such as the question and the
comments box for that question are in two boxes in the spread
wizard but in reality the two are butted right up next to each
other when the end data is displayed.
I'm a html guy so I tend to view xml the same but I know it's
different.
It's a cosmetic thing so not important but I'm populating my own
cardata.xml file slowly to try and include lots of bits and bobs
as I learn their relevence and being a anal nerd I'd just like it
looking all neat and tidy in a ship shape fashion :)
Cheers
Mark
I've been away doing other stuff and I had a comment today and
reread this. It's probably for the best as I recall I had drunk a
bottle of Merlot.
I suppose my main question was about if there was any possibility
of adding a richer formating environment to the *.xml files.
I can see that when you mouse over a card the data is sourced from
serveral places such as the spread.xml and the cardate.xml and
mergered to show the data that appears as a mouse over, so what
I'm asking my be impossible.
I'm just a neat freak. I like the idea of adding some bold and
italics and maybe a tab here or there. Just to add some diversity.
For example info from the spread.xml such as the question and the
comments box for that question are in two boxes in the spread
wizard but in reality the two are butted right up next to each
other when the end data is displayed.
I'm a html guy so I tend to view xml the same but I know it's
different.
It's a cosmetic thing so not important but I'm populating my own
cardata.xml file slowly to try and include lots of bits and bobs
as I learn their relevence and being a anal nerd I'd just like it
looking all neat and tidy in a ship shape fashion :)
Cheers
Mark
Development Cycle etc.
haha and in a post going on about formatting my post ends ups with totally screwed formatting.
Now THAT'S Karma.
Now THAT'S Karma.
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Programmer
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- Joined: Sat 01 Jan, 2005 12:00 am
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Development Cycle etc.
Ah yes, good old Merlot, it seems to thrive everywhere doesn't it? I went through a phase of drinking Bulgarian Merlot a few years ago and I have some very happy memories, although probably not as many as I should have(!). Now I am in Spain though and I don't have to look so far afield :)
Anyway, re the xml files, I am afraid the answer is that for the time being at least it will have to stay as plain text. For the first couple of years of the program's life it did actually feature a rich text editor for the card notes and the spread notes. I got rid of that for two reasons. First, rich text is hard to program with, e.g. the importation of the card images into the rich text editor for readings, which is the only place in the program I still use it, still doesn't always work right for everyone. The second reason is because it is internet unfriendly, and the program has become more internet based. If you look through the uploaded card data files you can see how a couple of the early uploads were from previous versions of the program that still used RTF - obviously it doesn't render so well when you can see all the RTF tags still in place on a web page!
It would be nice to have a text control that would let people apply formatting and save it as HTML. If I came across something like this I would try to incorporate it, to give the kind of formatting possibilities you are talking about, but I don't plan to try to program it myself because it is exactly the sort of thing that someone is likely to come up with and offer as a plug-in.
Cheers (hic)
Richard
Anyway, re the xml files, I am afraid the answer is that for the time being at least it will have to stay as plain text. For the first couple of years of the program's life it did actually feature a rich text editor for the card notes and the spread notes. I got rid of that for two reasons. First, rich text is hard to program with, e.g. the importation of the card images into the rich text editor for readings, which is the only place in the program I still use it, still doesn't always work right for everyone. The second reason is because it is internet unfriendly, and the program has become more internet based. If you look through the uploaded card data files you can see how a couple of the early uploads were from previous versions of the program that still used RTF - obviously it doesn't render so well when you can see all the RTF tags still in place on a web page!
It would be nice to have a text control that would let people apply formatting and save it as HTML. If I came across something like this I would try to incorporate it, to give the kind of formatting possibilities you are talking about, but I don't plan to try to program it myself because it is exactly the sort of thing that someone is likely to come up with and offer as a plug-in.
Cheers (hic)
Richard