Topic: question on redirect
Just wondering, what are the advantages of using a meta refresh for login and such, which will not work in some scenarios, instead of a php redirect?
Re: question on redirect
A "php redirect" in any form is executed before the page is sent to the browser. With a meta refresh, you can delay the redirect to occur a few seconds after the page has loaded, like PunBB's redirect page.
Re: question on redirect
Jansson wrote:
A "php redirect" in any form is executed before the page is sent to the browser. With a meta refresh, you can delay the redirect to occur a few seconds after the page has loaded, like PunBB's redirect page.
I understand the difference, I was just wondering why punbb uses meta. Is it so you can have a message saying what is happening? It would seem you would want it to be immediate.
Re: question on redirect
superjohnyo wrote:
I understand the difference, I was just wondering why punbb uses meta. Is it so you can have a message saying what is happening? It would seem you would want it to be immediate.
I've always assumed that the redirect is meant to "slow down" users in attempt to ease stress on the server. Am I correct on this?
Looking for a certain modification for your forum? Please take a look here before posting.
5 2006-01-17 02:44 (edited by zaher 2006-01-17 02:45)
Re: question on redirect
It usefull when browsing. like as when you make a refresh the page after the post, it will not send the data of previous post again.
You must notice that redirect always happend after make a post data (Login, Post message, profile editing etc...).
If your people come crazy, you will not need to your mind any more.
Re: question on redirect
The redirect is there to provide the user with feedback. Providing feedback is fundamental for good usability. If the redirect is removed, how will the user know that e.g. the profile was updated? Because the screen flickered?
"Programming is like sex: one mistake and you have to support it for the rest of your life."
Re: question on redirect
I got mine set to 0.
Proud hoster of PunBB's UK download mirror!
Re: question on redirect
In the options it says setting it to 0 is "not recommended", could someone explain why?
In setting mine to 0 it doesn't seem to use a meta-redirect - however, I'm guessing this from turning off meta-redirects in the FF web-dev toolbar, I'm not sure that's 100%.
Does that mean it uses a php header instead? Is setting it to 0 not recommended for a technical or usabillity issue?
(Btw, meta-redirects are a Priority 2 issue for the web-content accessibility guidelines. If it's not recommended from a usability point of view, I think we could come up with something else.)
Thanks for any info 
Re: question on redirect
setting to 0 is not recommanded because of the server load. If you have a good server, not overloaded, no problem!
Ludo,
Re: question on redirect
Thanks Ludo, I take it then that it uses a php header to redirect?
Re: question on redirect
I can't really see how setting it to 0 would affect server load. The redirect is going to happen anyway, it's just a matter of delaying it.
alastc: Yes, if you set it to 0, it will send a redirect header.
"Programming is like sex: one mistake and you have to support it for the rest of your life."
Re: question on redirect
Perhaps making a short delay between the write and the next page's read operation helps?
(NB: I have very little experience with databases, and virtually none with optimisation, it's just a thought)
Re: question on redirect
I've been thinking a little (very little) about it and one potential solution is to popup a hidden message with JavaScript and then redirect from there. We'll see.
"Programming is like sex: one mistake and you have to support it for the rest of your life."
Re: question on redirect
Hi just downloaded pubBB, I have been looking for an accessible forum punBB seems to be the best on offer.
...but... its a small thing - the meta refresh pages pose a problem for users of screen readers. There is a strong possibility that the page will be refreshed before the user has been read the content of the page and they will not know what has happened.
If the purpose of the redirect pages is to give the user feedback then perhaps there should be an option to not refresh and allow the user to click through after the site has loaded, screen readers are not able to quickly scan the page to get the meaning like a sighted user would.
Perhaps a good alternative would be to allow an area near the top of the content on the destination page to provide feedback about actions on previous pages.
How do others feel about this, especially screen reader users.
Re: question on redirect
I'm going to assume that simply redirecting back to the topic (setting to 0) isn't going to work, you'll want to give feedback. So why not just set the refresh time to a minute and maybe edit the language files to reflect that users might want to click?