Formatting

[Nightwing]

I don't exactly know how to explain this. I'm a long-time writer but new to the forums. Now, I have noticed that as I go and try to re-read my stories from my user page, the chapter stretches across the computer screen. I know it used to be in a nice box that was easy to read and not stretched across the entire screen. I don't know if that makes any sort of sense or not but is this happening to anyone else?

Also, now I can't even get to my user information at all on the site. I get some sort of server page when I try to go to my favorite section and nothing when I go to my bookmarked page. Does anyone know what's going on?

Edited September 8, 2007 by Nightwing

[madlodger]

Hi, Nightwing.

I can't answer your question, but remember reading your story just recently and it didn't look like that. It was normal and all fit in one page. And now... Yeah.

Just for curiosity sake, what type of upload are you using?

[EveKnight75]

The only time I've ever seen this is when someone's uploaded a txt file without the HTML tags written in. There was some sort of technical glitch.

Pick a random story and edit the chapter. If there are no HTML tags, put them in. <p></p> denotes a paragraph. That should fix the problem.

I must assume that there were HTML tags in there before. If they ended up disappearing, I have no idea what has happened. Only manta2g can answer that question.

I want you to write a sample chapter and upload it three times. Once through an html file, once through a txt file without HTML tags, and once by typing the chapter into the text area without the HTML tags.

If the txt file shows up improperly, you may have located part of the issue.

Remember to delete all three files once you've finished conducting the test.

It's still strange because a txt file usually sorts itself into proper paragraphs at the very least once it's uploaded, regardless of HTML tags.

[Guest Painful Retribution]

I see more story on site that like this. Font all off too, not same now as last night. It happen after crash today for some time. Solaris person say "unexpected downtime" or some thing, I think. The font is not font for site. That problem may be?

I come to report other story same way but see post and not want forum.

[Solaris]

I am not sure what happened to your format, Nightwing.

I will bring this information to the fellow mods and see what they think and the stories may be have to be reloaded.

But I'll get this over to them asap.

Beth, Jaxxxy's assistant

[Nightwing]

Thanks for the responses. As for how I upload it, I use a .txt file and put the html tags in when I upload it. I use the text area to upload. I used to do it through the upload file option a long time ago, but the format got screwed up that way too.

When I upload, I use the <pre> for preformatted text and it generally worked for me but I don't know if it's because of all the craziness that has been happening on the site because I noticed the change a couple of days ago. Heck, I wouldn't have known about all the trauma the site has been through if it wasn't for the formatting getting messed up on my stories. ^^

I do know, that it's happened on two of my stories. I'm not sure about the others. I haven't gone back and checked them out. Perhaps I should.

[EveKnight75]

The <pre> tag would account for the font change. Perhaps a closing tag is missing. It doesn't account for the scrolling issue.

As far as my own stories are concerned, there have been two incidents where paragraphs have disappeared from chapters after technical changes on the site because a </p> tag disappeared by itself.

If the issue you're having is site-wide, then it's already under investigation. The fact that your fics were uploaded as txt files could be helpful information.

[Solaris]

As far as my investigation of the site goes, it seems just to be localized with your stories. None of the others are effected by it.

Quite weird, I say.

I would load test chapters and then try just copy and pasting the copy from your story to see if it is different than the ones you uploaded and now showing the problems.

That's all I can think of to help for now.

Beth

[Nightwing]

I tried putting the <p> tag in as EveKnight suggested then I viewed the chapter again. It didn't change anything. The other suggestions I'll try and fiddle around with tomorrow. I work grave so I can't stay up too late. I just don't understand why, after two years or so, I'm suddenly having formatting problems with .txt files out of all things.

[NightScribe]

NightWing, do you have a word processing program? I don't know if this helps you, but to upload my stories, I first type in my WP program (in this case, AppleWorks on a Mac) complete with whatever special formatting I want (bold, italics, etc.) and save it as a normal file. Then, I save it a second time as an html file. When I go to upload, I open the html file on my computer (all the tags/codes are there) and copy & paste it in the AFF text field. So far, this method has worked great for me.

I'm guessing you use a PC running windows; I'm a PC/Microsoft idiot, so I don't know if the same thing will work for you.

[Solaris]

NightWing, you don't have to worry about it anymore. It is fixed.

Check your page out now.

The formating that was up is not there anymore and your stories are back the way they were before.

Beth

[Nightwing]

Just saw that. Thanks. It makes it a lot easier to read now. Out of curiosity, what was the problem?

Now as for what NightScribe was saying, I do the same thing. I put the formatting tags in and save it as a regular file and copy and paste it into the text area. It's the most reliable method since uploading it as a file sometimes dropped letters and words on me. I do the <pre> tags because someone in the yahoo groups said that might be why the words were going all screwy. I wasn't using them before.

In any case, I'm glad the problem was fixed and I'm surprised the other people who use the text area weren't affected.

[manta2g]

It was the < pre > tags that were mucking with your formatting.

[Nightwing]

So drop them? Doesn't <pre> signify preformatted? If that is the case then the problem never should have arisen. My formatting on all my stories were never what I saw a few days ago. I always write with the knowledge that I'm putting the stories in a specific text area. I'm sorry for sounding stupid but it just doesn't make sense that I've been using the <pre> tags for over two years and then a week ago things go all screwy. If that was the problem all along, why haven't I seen the problem before? When I didn't use the <pre> tags, words would and letters would get dropped in my stories. Also, if it was something that could have been fixed on my end, why couldn't I? That was the only reason that I joined the forum and started this topic. If I could have fixed the thing on my end, I wouldn't have bothered with it. I prefer fixing things myself when I can but this time I was unable to. Oh, the <pre> tags are still there when I go to edit my story and the format has been fixed.