Here is some background information about why people are having trouble commenting and/or seeing comments. Please, please, p.l.e.a.s.e, book mark this post and share it because some people do not read the site updates and just go into the comments when the solutions and/or explanations are being provided.
Many people are complaining about not being able to see the totality of comments. Others are complaining their comments are not refreshing with the page. There appears to be a very simple explanation and easy solution for this issue.
CTH 2.0 does not have any tracking software initiated to recognize the user in the comment system. THERE ARE NO COOKIES deployed to track you. There is no system in place by CTH to monitor you or recognize you. This is part of our current privacy position.
What that means is you must initiate a process where YOU request to be recognized in the community. We are not asking your permission to recognize you (ie. cookies) as with 99 percent of websites; you must intentionally engage the commenting system to say you are expressly desiring of recognition.
How do you achieve this status? When you fill out the comment box there is a place for your user name, email address and then it asks you if you wish the site to: “Save my name, email and website in this browser for the next time I comment.” It is a checkbox.
If you check that box [√] you are, in essence, applying a cookie to yourself. You will then be recognized by the commenting software system and see the totality of the commenting conversation. You will see all comments.
If you do not check that box [ ] you are not requesting to be recognized again, and you are dropping an isolated comment into the system. You likely will not see the totality of the comments. You will see only comments attributed to your comment or reply.
Think of it like walking up to the conversation on a porch:
If you affirmatively check [“save my name, email and website in this browser for the next time I comment”] you are saying to the audience, I have something to say and I am sticking around to hear all the other voices.
If you do not affirmatively check [“save my name, email and website in this browser for the next time I comment”] you are saying to the audience, I have something to say, but I am not sticking around to join the conversation or hear other voices.
It appears the software is designed such that if you are not affirming intent, the commenting system doesn’t anticipate your engagement in all the other comments. Ergo other comments do not appear and/or they are not populated in your experience.
This is a privacy and tracking issue. CTH 2.0, as an independent website, is currently not tracking or applying any host generated tracking data of the participants.
Most websites do apply some version of tracking via “cookies” to make your engagement part of an active tracking system (make user experience easier); and/or use those cookies to deliver you targeted advertising. CTH 2.0 has no advertising and no need for a system of targeting.
Due to the scale of emails complaining about this specific issue (approximately 400 today alone), the tech team is recommending that I switch to Disqus for the commenting program. However, if we do that: (A) the same company that targeted us, Automattic, owns Disqus; and (B) without a doubt Disqus tracks users for tracking and targeting.
Some people do not care if they are comment tracked; others don’t care if Disqus is used because they are familiar with it from other websites. However, for me that is an option of last resort and I will not deploy the free version of Disqus because I don’t want to open another door where a third party can start monitoring the conversation. Especially when Automattic has already used the targeting of the original CTH to shut down our voice.
So, with all of that said. Keep this solution in mind. If you want to see all the comments, then check the [box] that says: “save my name, email and website in this browser for the next time I comment”, and hopefully that will eliminate the frustration you are encountering. Fingers crossed.
All other commenting solutions encompass some form of server/host recognition and tracking of the user in the comments section. The current system allows you to make that active decision; any other comment system will make that decision without your input.
Lastly, on the email notifications. Again, we explain that currently we do not have an active email notification system for new posts in place. The reason for the delay is again a matter of privacy. An email auto-notification system is done by a third-party provider.
[…] One of our priorities right now is establishing an email notification system where you can subscribe to automatic notifications of new posts etc. As with almost all systems of this type (there are many) it involves the use of a third party email transmission process. Y’all are aware that privacy is a CTH priority, so we are being very careful about vetting the service and setting up this notification system to protect CTH users.
CTH does not compile user information, does not engage in the manufacture of processes that assemble lists of users or any user data. We are working to ensure we do not end up creating an external list of subscribers that would be vulnerable to exploitation. Your privacy in all matters related to CTH engagement is my priority. (read more)
We received well over 100 emails today alone asking us: “where is the email notification system”? The short answer is: we are working on it as a #1 priority.
Be of good cheer, all will be ok.
We cherish you.
Live your best life…. Remember, it’s the only one you will ever have.
Love to all,
~ Sundance
#FightForTrump pic.twitter.com/HyTPyO45e3
— TheLastRefuge (@TheLastRefuge2) December 6, 2020
Sign up test.
Thank you Sundance. I was wondering and have no commented since the changeover. I believe this answers my questions/concerns. I be checkin’ da box.
Praise God for The Treehouse, Sundance and for all you treepers!
Never ever surrender!
test
thanx for info, have followed instructions, GO TRUMP, just got my free
Trump flag yesterday in the mail. It will never fly higher than our American Red, White and Blue! But love it almost just the same.
Have been here since inception. First time commenting. Blessed to have Sundance and all the Treepers who keep me informed on a daily basis. My eyes are now wide open thanks to you all. God Bless and MAGA.
Thank you Sundance for all you do!
Check the box ?
Thanks, checked the box!
Checked the box
Multi-year fan, first comment. Grateful for All Y’all.
Thanks Sundance
Test
test
Thanks for instructions …
May all here have a Merry Christmas <3
Thanks Sundance. We can be a bit slow on the uptake, so thanks for your patience!
Test
PDJT needs a “bombshell/walls are closing in” on the media and Demorat crooks. Is it the CIA server seized in Frankfort? If so, who or what will be the vehicle? CTH?
Test
I’m using an iPad with DuckDuckGo and safari opening in DDG. In order for me to post/like under WordPress I had to log into it first. So essentially to fully participate here we have to sign in under “Leave a Reply” and check the box “Save my name, email”.
I hate having to take up memory and clutter this space to sign in but it is great that it works. It will be interesting if Admin can find an easy solution.
I am still in awe how smoothly this transition has occurred under extremely short notice.
Checking the box.
I think [oddly enough] that I managed to do this correctly per instructions already,
but just in case not, I’ll do it again.
God bless us all,
each and every
one …
Test
wha hoppin ???????????????
Checking the box.
Test Report for IT
Windows 10
Chrome Browser
In Sundance’s Post it sounded like the new site doesn’t make any cookies, except there will be one if you select the comment check box.
I haven’t checked that box yet to this point in time(will check it on this comment), however I still show three cookies from the site at the moment prior to having checked the comment box.
_cfduid
_ga
_ga_BJH1RZMKC6
I have cleared cookies since the switch over for the site to the new server [104.26.14.23].
Again thank you all for your continued efforts and hope this note is of some use.
Kill Roy Was here…..
additional report for IT
After checking the comment box I now show three additional cookies
_nx-nocache
comment_author_ //a long hexdecimal looking number
comment_author_email_//same long hexdecimal looking number as above
yes after checking the comment box, it took me to my own comment after posting.
Test
hmmm
Thank you
Everyone must be mailed a ballot asking if they want to check the box. Just kidding.
So good to be back with stalwart company.
Thanks, all, for how you inform me. I don’t usually comment. Have just been a multi-year lurker leaf on this grand old tree who learns so much from you and enjoys the friendly atmosphere.
A huge thank you to Sundance and crew for the honesty, integrity and efforts.
Thank you
Got it
Added my email
Enabling comments.
I do hope the Disqus route is not taken. The site would have its “personality” greatly impacted. And, having a third party involved is, in a way, a surrendering of your site to others. Moreover, if you have a difficulty with a comment, I’d like to hear from you and not have it go into Disqus netherland.
I wish I could be more helpful, but I got out of the tech field some years ago. I’m a dinosaur.
My browser is set to delete cache and history every time I close it. Keeps things cleaner. When I come in to CTH after closing browser it does not remember nor fill in name and email. I’m guessing this is the cookies and tracking thing.
There are times when I just lurk and having a “log in” without having to comment would be handy.
Can I cancel my wordpress account from previous site without affecting the new site “log in”? I think it appropriate that thousands of people go there and cancel their accounts in a “take that” type of action.
And, no Disqus unless absolutely necessary.
I canceled my WordPress membership. The only reason I had it was to be able to “Like” CTH comments. I didn’t know that closing the WordPress membership would also close my Gravitar membership because evidently the people who own WordPress also owns Gravitar. For some reason the avatar I was currently using remained with me and it shows up when I comment but the rest of the avatars I downloaded to Gravitar are not available to me since my Gravitar account is now closed. Although, I did keep all of the pictures I put on Gravitar in my hard drive Pictures folder so they are not really lost.
Minnesotamike55 – I was also experiencing the problem of seeing CTH not remember to fill my name and email after deleting cache and history even though I checked the box to save that info. What seems to work to avert that happening is to go into the settings of your browser or whatever program you use to delete cache and history and put the CTH web address into the place where you tell the program to save cookies of selected sites.
I don’t know what browser you use, but I have Chrome. Under Settings, I go to ‘Privacy and security’, then go to ‘Cookies and other site data’, scroll down to ‘Sites that can always use cookies’, check ‘Add’ which causes a box to appear, and then type in or copy and paste ‘https://theconservativetreehouse.com’ into the line for the site address, and then click Add. That prevents CTH cookies from being deleted when I use Chrome to clear my cache and history. So far it has been working and I have been able to come back and see all comments.
See if your browser or whatever program you use to delete cache and history has such a feature (I also have CCleaner, which is a separate program that can clear cache and history and it has such a feature too).
Test
test
test
It’s doing it again. Checked ‘save my name’ box, it came good for older comments as advertised, now it’s dropping older pages again, leaving just a few comments on the older pages.
Thanks, Sundance! Some of us older folk need help sometimes, but if explained properly, we got it!
Check
testing
I am one quest on your porch and if you ask me to take my shoes off before stepping on it then so be it, the conversation is worth it. Thanks for letting me on your porch in the first place and thanks for keeping it welcoming even while you renovate it.
However, if you were to ask my opinion on the matter, I hope you don’t use Disqus, and live without those bells and whistles it may promise to add. I can live with the site as it currently is and wait for a better option to be built internally that you have sole control of if that is possible.
Your own post notes the gut feelings about it are even better reasons than my own personal preference reason for you not to use it.
(A) the same company that targeted us, Automattic, owns Disqus – WHY GIVE THEM ANY BUSINESS! Seems like it would only be a matter of time before you could lose your commenting ability and perhaps control over comments and comment history using them, just like you almost did with your site.
To put it in terms of the typical site discussions – It’s like the USA buying cheap products from China and how we have been cutting our own throats by doing that.
(B) without a doubt Disqus tracks users for tracking and targeting.
test
Thanks for the update!
Thank you
test
Test 2, brave browser
Thank you Sundance for all the twigs, leaves, and branches.
And for hope.
And for your tireless work in preserving this community. Community is what is being systematically destroyed. God bless and keep you.s
skeerer, I agree and also here is my like.
test
Test
test
I will give one other brain storm pie in the sky thought for long term site/community preservation.
I really don’t have any website experience, so take this thought in mind and realize I have no idea of the effort or feasibility of this idea. Perhaps your current set of IT people that have helped keep the site up during the move can inform you and us about this.
So the thought/idea is would a P2P type community website be possible to prevent future attempts at shutting down your important voice and community that you have built?
From my limited understanding of that type of person to person system where it basically uses each of us as a resource/host could prevent being able to shut the site down outside of each of our ISP’s having to actually block it?
I guess I’m thinking of it as a backup or fallout shelter incase the site or community is nuked by the hosting servers in the future. Perhaps actually only used/deployed in case of future thought crime strike against us.
WOLVERINES!
KillRoy was here!!!
Test again
Testing