Curious Message Count

[RavensFan]

I saw this this morning.  See the attachment.

The message thread has 14 replies (which means 15 messages once you add the original message) but 16 new messages.

How is that possible?

I am going to guess that the webpage request was getting built for me at the same instant the latest message was getting posted.  The query to the database showed 14 replies, the message posted, the query to the database for the number of new messages then occurred and got back 16 new.

I had never seen this oddity before.

Message Edited by Ravens Fan on 01-26-2010 10:57 AM

[Ben]

---

Ravens Fan wrote:

I saw this this morning.  See the attachment.

The message thread has 14 replies (which means 15 messages once you add the original message) but 16 new messages.

How is that possible?

I am going to guess that the webpage request was getting built for me at the same instant the latest message was getting posted.  The query to the database showed 14 replies, the message posted, the query to the database for the number of new messages then occurred and got back 16 new.

I had never seen this oddity before.

Message Edited by Ravens Fan on 01-26-2010 10:57 AM

---

That's a race-condition!

I have seen it also.

But this prompts to make an observation about the forums.

When Dennis and I started answering question we could keep up with making sure they all got answered. Now I can barely (without checking multiple times a day) keep up with the traffic. I imagine that those that can't check multiple times a day can have a much harder time.

So...

I propose that the Community has out-grown the current implementaion of teh forum and we need to do a complete over-haul. Don't ask me what the new version looks like. But it seems we should prep fro the next step.

Ben

[Laura F.]

If you use a forum that would serve your purpose well, please send it along to me. I've spent much time looking around at other forums and very rarely see the features that our users rely on heavily.  

I think the increasing activity is great and perhaps the answer is to recruit more users to help answer questions - relying on two people to make sure the threads are answered is not a scalable solution.

I've been thinking about ways to start highlighting the users who are doing a good job of replying and answering questions but don't necessarily have a higher rank yet.  First I need to get the rank changes completed and I am finally making good progress.  Expect to see those changes soon!

Thanks,

Laura

[Ben]

---

Laura F. wrote:

If you use a forum that would serve your purpose well, please send it along to me. I've spent much time looking around at other forums and very rarely see the features that our users rely on heavily.  

I think the increasing activity is great and perhaps the answer is to recruit more users to help answer questions - relying on two people to make sure the threads are answered is not a scalable solution.

I've been thinking about ways to start highlighting the users who are doing a good job of replying and answering questions but don't necessarily have a higher rank yet.  First I need to get the rank changes completed and I am finally making good progress.  Expect to see those changes soon!

Thanks,

Laura

---

Good!

I just thought of another reason I'd like to see that change implemented. With all of those messages it can be hard to spot Q's from fellow contributors if the bars don't get my attention. When pressed for time the active contributors to this forum get my first attention.

Ben

[Darin.K]

Another oddity, with an ironic twist.  I was looking through the unanswered threads and saw this:

An unanswered thread with the latest post author different than the OP.  Weird.

[RavensFan]

I think I have an explanation for that.  I saw that one as well.

The message thread was originally in the Idea Exchange board.  Incorrectly, as it seems that quite a few new forum users have been doing lately.  I posted a message basically saying "hey, wrong board, post here" pointing them to the LabVIEW board.  Laura came in and moved the thread to the correct board, and removed my message because obviously my message would now be meaningless, or outright confusing since the message is now in the correct board.  So the thread is now back to its original message with no replies, but I guess the database still stores the information that I was the last person to post a message to it.

[Darin.K]

I would have guessed that you had an obscene post removed, but your scenario also makes sense....