This is a second post of the day to highlight problems I’m having with WordPress today.
I have Wednesday’s off from the hassles and stresses of work but today my hassles have revolved around WordPress. I’ve never had a problem commenting on blogs before but today I noticed that comments I hoped to leave disappeared into the internet ether.
I’ve also struggled logging this on the WP fora. I’ve been treated to condescending remarks from a ‘Happiness Engineer’ (happiness? you have no idea, my dear) with regard to my ‘multiple threads’.
I was told not to open multiple threads. The only reason I did so was because replies to my original post were unsatisfactory. My second thread was aimed at ‘Staff Answers’ – except I find staff now only respond to those who have paid for upgrades (did you know this?). My second thread therefore ended up in the same place as my first – in ‘Support’.
Someone – not a moderator – asked me a question on my original thread for further clarification of my problem. I tried to respond but as my comments seem to currently be marked as ‘spam’, they also disappeared into the ether.
I therefore opened yet another thread to answer the person who asked me the question. I’m polite like that.
Anyway – the end result is that the ‘happiness engineer’ informed me that all was fixed. I thanked them and tried to comment on another blog – but to no avail. When I informed said ‘happiness engineer’ of the fact, their response was: ‘Yikes’!
I’ve only ever come across that word via Yogi Bear or Scooby Doo which seems apt as the ‘happiness engineer’ seems not to have a clue (cockney rhyming slang with scooby doo).
What I have found out is that other bloggers are having the same problem and are being asked to log it with ‘Akismet’. I discovered that Akismet is also associated with the founder of WP.
What are they up to? Deciding that regular bloggers are spammers and that they need to be directed to Akismet with extra information.
I’m wondering if I need to indulge this rubbish any further.
The Lantern Room 
Gorgeous – the colors, the movement, the stillness, love it.
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Many thanks, Lynn; much appreciated.
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I sincerely hope this is resolved SOON and with no “bloodshed”!!
🙂
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No – bloodshed is not required. Integrity, commonsense and open-ness are, however, fundamental. I’m fed up with being played for a fool just because I don’t pay. Not everything in life should be defined by a $ sign or a £ sign.
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Very true!
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Now to comment on your comments. I noticed that my numbers were & still are all screwed up on WP. I’ll have 20 Likes and 2 comments on one post and it will say that I have had 5 views all day – mainly of other posts. It took quite awhile to get a response back and it was simply – some views count and others don’t. Not helpful at all. As another unpaid member, I have heard from friends that they sometimes see really inappropriate ads in between my posts. Let’s see if this comment goes through.
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It has gone through, Lynn. I love WP but I’m fed up with being a commodity in a world where money talks. I’d rather give this up – as much as I treasure and value the community – than be a manipulated idiot.
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All the likes you get from the wordpress reader page (blogs I follow, or tags) don’t increase your view count, as noone has actually viewed your blog – just the post in the topic stream.
@Meanderer: I know exactly what you mean. I’ve been annoyed with WP too, and thought about moving. Hope you find a solution for your issues.
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Yes – that’s another thing – the reader! How rude and inconsiderate not to actually visit the blog you are liking or commenting on! I always visit the actual blog – it’s courtesy and good manners in my book.
I’m just old-fashioned I guess. I’m fed up with being treated like a commodity in so many ways. The new themes for example are mostly ones which require payment.
If I could, I would set up a site altruistically where like-minded bloggers could create communities to their heart’s desire – but I am an idealist.
I’m almost out of here. It’s been good to blog with you, Delft.
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I do so agree with you M about visiting a blog to read properly and either liking , commenting or not . I do think people are plain lazy and rude and just want to up their own views . All human nature is to be found here on WP I find . Hope things get resolved for you pronto.. so many are having problems with WP at the moment …
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Thank you, Poppy. This is a strange one and is happening to a fair few other bloggers at present. It’s not good.
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Beautiful capture! I’m sorry for all your WordPress troubles – I hope they are resolved soon. It sounds like a nightmare!
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Thank you, Jackie. It was a bit like banging one’s head against the proverbial.
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I can well imagine! You must have a headache by now as well as a pain in your backside. Poor thing!
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I love how you find this visuals that have so much movement. I too have had “issues” from time to time. Usually it’s having to moderate comments from folks who have been commenting on my posts for ages. Another one that has happened several times for a week now is getting a message saying I have to log in to leave a comment…when I’m already logged in. Totally annoying. I honestly think someone made a change in the code and the change affected another part of the program. I do understand your frustration and I hope they fix things quickly!
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Thank you , David. Sounds like you are having a few problems too. I think you may be right with regards to someone making a change in the code. I can’t tell you how frustrating and bemusing it is to be regarded as a spammer and for your comments to disappear.
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I have had huge problems with WP of late…and many of them are around the issue you said about liking pages….I have not been able to access pages often so I have to like them without seeing the full content…and today, I tried for over an hour to publish a post and it wouldn’t work, but only on one of my blogs….weird…..
Please don’t go away….or least take all of your followers with you!
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It’s not good is it, Paula? Thank you for your kind comments. I’m going to make a post explaining things shortly – another blogger who is having the same problem has made a couple of posts of this kind which I think is a good idea. Stay posted!
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This is a beautiful, calming picture, a nice counterpoint to the frustrations of dealing with WP ‘customer service’!
It doesn’t get much better when you do pay them, unfortunately – I’ve contacted them about errors when trying to renew upgrades and not even gotten a response. Frustrating in the extreme.
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Thank you, JP. That must be frustrating – especially being a paying customer; not good at all. I understand that for most of us who don’t pay that we are not customers but testers really. I’ve discovered that it pays not to forget that as all the work put into the blog, and the community built up over time could be wiped from under one’s feet anytime.
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Please let me know if you move – I’d hate to miss your photos! Do you remember “The Prisoner”…. “I am not a number, I am a free man”??!! Be seeing you! 😉
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Thank you, Dreams and Zeros – and thank you for un-spamming me 😉 I vaguely remember the Prisoner.
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Aim for that center area of green beyond what is obscured from view 😀 !
WP navigation of forum and support leads one from one linky to the next. If WP is doing the job optimally, a person attempting a thread SHOULD get lost and accidentally post multiple threads. There is one particular moderator that does appear to snap at everyone first. The individual can be very much like speaking to my autistic son, where it gets me better results of I also explain my mood and tone of my post. I believe this ought not be necessary to do with one assigned to customer satisfaction. One can get even further slapped in face feeling when having to dodge the cement wall just to get a simple fix. Also, I think with the name happiness engineer, one smiles even as one must complain about an issue, as the name implies someone will give you a chair and a nice cup of tea and listen to you. It also implies that the happiness person will be sure they have understood a need clearly and then be the one to fight for you until something is correct, and then follow up to be sure all is still stable. Sometimes, the team is working out underlying shifts or updates and it seems some of them get change happy. Other team members sometimes must step in and put the brakes on change for change’s sake. (remember the comments I’ve made thingy?)
I have often wondered if the helper names too are not just one person, and used just as a log in, being assigned in shifts. It helps me to be tolerant and maybe compassionate, or just a wee bit Happier, knowing this information.
Offers tea. 🙂
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Thanks for the tea – and sympathy! In a way I wish I hadn’t gone on the forum at all.
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I’m still having issues as well. I filled the form out on Askimet, but nothing has been done. I hope they resolve your problem soon. It is frustrating.
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Thank you, TBM – and thanks, once again, for lifting me out of the WP doldrums. If I hadn’t read your more positive approach to the problem, I would have thrown the towel in today.
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It’s easy to get frustrated by this situation since it seems out of our hands completely. I’m having issues getting anyone to respond to help. But I’ll try to stay positive. Have a great weekend!
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Yes – it’s the lack of any real help or explanation which has got to me.
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Stunning photo.
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Many thanks, Colline. I appreciate your comment.
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I hope your blog does not disappear and that your problems are soon fixed. Do you know this blogger? http://onecoolsitebloggingtips.com/
I think she works for wp, Annie
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Thank you, Annie. Yes – I recognise the blog as belonging to Timethief – one of the mods on the fora.
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Well, let’s start with the good bit – excellent image! I simply love the colours and textures, and that “hole” of green grass at dead centre adds a lot to it. Wonderful shot!
No then, the rest 😉 ! Yes I did know about staff replying to those who upgrade – I have the “no adverts” upgrade and the once or twice I’ve contacted them, they have got back to me in a day or two. I’ve never been on a forum – you’re way ahead of me here! But I did have something about multiple open threads recently, it just appeared out of nowhere. A
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Thank you, Adrian.
I’m afraid my rant was over-emotional after many hours wasted trying to convey the problem. It was like being on the phone to one’s bank or a utility company and holding on forever, to be told you need to ring back. Yes – we have all been there and felt the blood pressure raise as a result.
The main problem is that no one seems able to help. You are directed to a site to complain but your comment disappears because it is marked as spam. I don’t think it will ever be resolved. Ultimately, I will need to bother people by asking each individual blogger to unspam me. A right pain.
I’m not supposed to be moaning anymore.
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Moan on – its good for the soul! And don’t have such a regard for “supposed to” and duty!
Maybe the best idea is to put out a post specifically asking everyone to check their spam – you know, big letters, that sort of thing. I don’t think anyone will be offended by it. I’m in and out of the dashboard quite frequently and the number of items in the spam queue is clearly flagged up there. I always see what’s in spam as soon as it appears – but I wonder if everyone does??? A
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Thank you, Adrian. Yes – you are right. I should have put a post out like that – something more direct just like TBM has done. I may do this at some point over the weekend.
I check my spam folder regularly because I have previously found bona fide bloggers’ comments in there after they have been commenting fine on my blog for ages. I think most people probably disregard the spam ‘folder’ believing it to only contain real spam. I would like to know why it is happening though.
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I sure hope this is resolved. I was feeling bad–mad at myself–because I have been absent from my blog for about a month. Just busy adjusting to teaching online and finally settling some legal problems, but still not blogging. I miss the community. I am slowing getting back in by reading the blogs I like (and miss when I am gone) like yours. I will steal the same expression shared earlier–Yikes! Maybe I have been able to avoid some of this mayhem by just not being active. We’ll see if this reply gets posted or not! Hang in there. I think it was Mother Teresa who said, “I know God will not give me more than I can handle. I just wish he did not trust me so much.”
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Hello Patti. Many thanks for your kind words. I had a more promising reply on the forums yesterday. It looks as if this is going to get looked into. It’s all very odd.
Thanks, once again.
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