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General discussion

My tracked discussion notifier

Mar 8, 2007 1:17AM PST
My tracked discussion notifier FAQs

Whoa, what in the world did I just see in my browser while browsing the forums?! Before you go off reporting a UFO in your browser or notifying me of a pop-up ad in the CNET forums, I want to introduce you to a new forum feature called "My tracked discussion notifier."

So, what does this new feature do? While you are surfing the CNET forums, this notifier will appear in your browser window and notify you of any new messages that have been posted to the discussions you are currently tracking--so you can quickly link right to those new posts and read them.

Below are some FAQs to better explain what it is and what it is for, so read up! We truly hope you enjoy this experience as much as we enjoyed putting it together for you.

Q: When will I see the notifier?

A: A few criteria must be met for you to see the notifier in action.
1. You must be logged into the forums.
2. You must have tracked discussions.
3. You must be on a CNET forum page (this feature is exclusive to the forums).
4. The notifier will only appear if one or more of your tracked discussion(s) is updated with new content. If no new posts are added to your tracked discussion, the notifier will stay dormant.

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Q: How often will the notifier show up?

A: Once you are notified of new content in one or more of your tracked discussions, the notifier will notify you every minute until you have read the new content. Once you have read the new content in the discussions, the notifier will not display again until one of your tracked discussions receives new content again.

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Q: How do I turn the notifier off?

A: To turn this notifier on or off, simply go to your forums preference page and select "on/off" and click the "Save preference" button.

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Q: Will I still receive notifications by e-mail of new posts I am currently tracking?

A: Absolutely! In conjunction with this new feature, you will still receive e-mail notifications of new posts in your tracked discussions--nothing has changed there. This feature is an additional way for you to get notified of new content while you are browsing the forums.

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Q: How can I keep the notifier window from fading away?

A: Simply hover your mouse pointer over the notifier window and the notifier will stay in place while you read it. To close this window, you can either click the Close link or simply just move the mouse pointer away from the notifier window, and it will fade out on its own.

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Q: Where do the subject lines link to in the notifier?

A: While the subject line in the notifier does display the discussion thread you are currently tracking, clicking on it will take you directly to the post that was recently added to that discussion thread.

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Q: Will this notifier show up on other CNET sites besides the forums?

A: Unfortunately, no. This notifier feature is only available when you are browsing the CNET forums; however I won't rule out the possibility of it showing up in other CNET sites in the future. I guess we'll just have to wait and see.

Discussion is locked

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thank you
May 23, 2007 12:05AM PDT

thats amazing thank you for this

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self post notification
May 23, 2007 11:05PM PDT

It works the same as notifications by e-mail,that is one will be notified of a new post by the member who posted it.

That is the only annoying thing when I post and then am notified via e-mail or tracked discussion notifier.

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One request, Lee...
May 24, 2007 1:57AM PDT

Would it be possible to have either the e-mail or the notifier sound the alarm, not both. When we're in the forums and the notifier let us know of the new reply there's no need to receive an e-mail stating the same thing moments later. Perhaps an option for this on a member-by-member basis?

John

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Thanks
May 26, 2007 1:22AM PDT

Handy when I on the forum. A touch annoying when I have just posted a reply and it notifies me of my own reply.

On balance, I will leave the function enabled.

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It shouldn't do that
May 26, 2007 6:53PM PDT

I may be wrong, but it shouldn't display your own posts, only replies to discussions that you have tracked.

It should be the same as email notifications, we don't receive emails about our own posts, but we do for discussions we are tracking.

If that has happened to you then it may be a glitch.

Mark

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It shouldn't do that,but it does
May 26, 2007 9:43PM PDT

I've noticed this also with "My tracked discussion notifier" as well as the e-mail notification.

In fact I've addressed the issue about being notified via e-mail regarding my own posts in feedback in the past.

Tom

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Well...
May 27, 2007 1:47AM PDT

I think it may be replies to tracked threads. But, I tend to set track on for any threads I participate in.

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(NT) e.g. I just got nofified about the previous post.
May 27, 2007 1:49AM PDT
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Hmmm....
May 27, 2007 1:52AM PDT

Notification does not occur in I return to the topic instead of returning to the forum (my normal action).

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Also occurs if...
May 27, 2007 2:23AM PDT

I just stay on the "Your Post has been submitted" page.

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Very strange
May 27, 2007 7:28PM PDT

Not one I've noticed, but I'm sure Lee will look into it.

He'll "add it to his list" of things to mend, Happy

Mark

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Proabably just another symptom of...
May 27, 2007 9:51PM PDT

Topics being marke4 with the red, unread posts, button immediately after you post a reply.

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keep getting page not found
Jun 5, 2007 8:18AM PDT
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try this link
Jun 5, 2007 8:33AM PDT
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daniel hobbs
Jun 5, 2007 9:45AM PDT

Like I said in my post,"I know that this option can be changed in Forum preferences,but every time I click on change preferences within the notifier I get page not found"

I'm aware the Forum Preferences is located at the left hand navigation area.

I'm talking about the pop up notifier.When I click on the "change preferences" link I get "page not found",I'm not having difficulty finding how to change Forum Preferences.

Thanx,
Tom

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It's a broken link...
Jun 5, 2007 2:16PM PDT

Dan,

It's a broken link. When the tracked thread notifier appears it includes a link to change your forum preferences, but that link goes to http://forums.cnet.com/7709-6035-0.html/?tag=notifier (a non-existent page), whereas it should be http://forums.cnet.com/7709-6035_102-0.html. The URL isn't complete.

Anyway, would it be possible to add a check such that if you have enabled the notifier and are in the forums the system won't send out the e-mail notification? It can be a bit annoying to be notified, view the new post, and then 5-10 minutes later hear 'You've Got Mail' concerning the same submission.

Thanks.
John

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John
Jun 5, 2007 2:34PM PDT

As you are already aware of the only way to stop this is to click within the pop-up and read the post,or disable it,I opted for the later.

As Popeye said,"I can't stanz no more" Happy