Thread: chat box infuriating refresh

The other day I was looking at the chat box *sigh* (it must've been a slow day), and the damn thing wouldn't stand still. It jumps down to the most recent message every $x seconds. Why?

I can understand a need for it to be updated as "chat" occurs. But even so, if the user is making the effort to scroll up, perhaps the server should acknowledge this, and not slam them back down to Earth quite so often.

The easiest solution is to click on the triangle at the top left of the chatbox and put it into "full" mode.

Originally Posted by SpeedFreek

The easiest solution is to click on the triangle at the top left of the chatbox and put it into "full" mode.

Not really a "solution". More a workaround, and not a great one at that. What if you want to read a little further back than your screen will allow?

Do you really need to leave those first few lines on screen permanently? Once you've read them you've read them. And it isn't hard to copy the text in the time between refreshes if you absolutely need to.

The point is that in the middle of reading them the screen jumps down. Then I scroll back up to try to read it again, and read a little bit more. Repeat. It's annoying. Copying and pasting the text is also annoying. It's not as though it's a major coding job or anything just to get it right in the first place.

Originally Posted by billiards

The point is that in the middle of reading them the screen jumps down. Then I scroll back up to try to read it again, and read a little bit more. Repeat. It's annoying. Copying and pasting the text is also annoying. It's not as though it's a major coding job or anything just to get it right in the first place.

Try this: Smilies - The Science Forum

Originally Posted by billiards

The point is that in the middle of reading them the screen jumps down. Then I scroll back up to try to read it again, and read a little bit more. Repeat. It's annoying. Copying and pasting the text is also annoying. It's not as though it's a major coding job or anything just to get it right in the first place.

The point is that in full mode, the whole page only jumps when you look at the 3 or 4 lines at the top, which are off the page. If you leave the full view with the last line showing, it doesnt jump at all. So, unless your focus is only on those oldest 3 or 4 lines, there is no problem.