Thread "Issues with subpage linking" in forum "Tips and Tricks/Support *"

Posted at 6:02PM, Feb. 16, 2023

Hey there!

I created a cast subpage for my comic

Problem 1) The link, while appearing on the page, appears in the wrong color, rendering it invisible

Problem 2) The link, once clicked, leads to a page requiring a sign in

I can't seem to figure out what the heck to do to fix this. Any help?

Posted at 8:02PM, Feb. 16, 2023

Hi!

Ok I fixed the link issue. I went into the "edit page" thing and saw that you had the links set to the same colour and the background colour.

Yes, that signed in thing… I don't know what to do there.
I think the reason for it is so spammers can't usefully set up stuff on the site and also it encourages readers to create an account so they can see extras.
On the downside it means people who aren't signed in can't see stuff like that.

I don't know if it's something that should be changed. My instinct tells me that it should be open so anyone can see it. But my reasoning brain tells me it's a useful tool to encourage people to make accounts and it stops abuse (i.e. people using it to create their own websites and just hotlinking to it)
I really don't know the best way to deal with it.

Posted at 10:02PM, Feb. 16, 2023

Thanks for the help!

The links still aren't showing up for me. :/

I'm not certain about how great keeping subpages as login-only works in encouraging signups; if it's not something I can make public, I'll be more inclined to just make offsite links, since I'm trying to gain a general audience and not just the lovely people on the Duck. I definitely feel you on the spammer/hosting issue though.

ETA: It's also a little strange to treat subpages like bonus extras when the usual given use case is things like a cast list or about page, neither of which strike me as bonus content.

Posted at 11:02PM, Feb. 16, 2023

Hmm, I wasn't behind the initial coding of the thing or the set up, I'm just trying to rationalise why it's like that and whether it has any benifits that way 😅

The site is being updated now so this is something that could be changed.

I can't see your links either now that I'm using Chrome on my phone.
So for now all I can suggest is using image links for those features .

:(

Posted at 12:02PM, Feb. 17, 2023

One can never tell what coders are/were thinking at any time. A squirrely bunch, to be sure!

Anyway, if I can just link offsites I'll go ahead with that; I'd definitely suggest at least rewriting the help/description sections for subpages to let people know how they work, since I had no idea! Treating them like bonus material for members is cool, tbh.

Posted at 5:03PM, Mar. 9, 2023

Sorry to jump in on this, but there's a few major issues with this whole subpage debacle.

One: Both Users and visitors have made more than enough complaints about this.

Two: Other sites make these things available to all, without an account needed to view them. If your competitors are giving something away for "free", why "charge" for it?

Three: Your idea that it means more members has two things against encouragement and one for:

1. I create subpages for About, Character Bios, etc. and link to them, all within the Duck's framework, causing the visitor to either a)create an account b)they get aggravated/confused and leave.

-or-

2. I link to stuff on another site, let's say deviantart, which allows people to view anything under a certain maturity rating without an account, and they go to that site, never needing to create a Duck account.

There's also a third thing working against you: Users get tired of this weird hill you've decided to defend and just leave to use something else.

So, I really really don't understand this stance, other then there is something truly wrong with the site's code.

Posted at 8:03PM, Mar. 12, 2023

ThatDarnFoxCreations wrote:
Sorry to jump in on this, but there's a few major issues with this whole subpage debacle.

I'm not defending it or debating XD
It's just how things are at the moment and I was trying to work out of there was any reason it should stay that way.

I'm fully open to other ideas here and you make some good points! :)

Please don't see me as an antagonist in this. There are a lot of things on the site that need changing and updating and we have limited funds for it so I have to rationalise out what our priorities are and which order they should be in.

Currently the site is being adjusted to have a major facelift but we haven't got money for big coding changes. This could probably be changed because it's not a big thing but I can't promise anything.