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Javascript sniffer no good (1 Viewer)

jnothman

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http://www.boredofstudies.org/sniffer.js - a piece of JavaScript code that belongs in the last millenium.

Its role is to work out which web browser you are using, and to display the menus on the Bored of Studies web site accordingly. As it is, I get no main menu, and BoS provides no other way to access its resources.

First I will deal with the problems with sniffing. Then problems with the web site that relate:

Sniffing
The aim of sniffing is to find out what features in Javascript a particular browser has. One can do this by asking the browser to tell you its name, and you judge it because you know it, but you must know what to do if you have never heard of the browser (see below)!
This means that if someone were to release a browser BoS had never heard of, like Safari appeared two years ago, it wouldn't know how to handle it, even though the browser may be fully capable if only BoS treated it like any other. Additionally, if the sniffer includes checking for different versions of a browser, as BoS's does, when a new version comes out (or some new Betas), the sniffer won't be able to handle it. This is the case with Opera 8.
A much better way to do it is by testing to see if the browser is capable of doing the things that your script needs. And this is simple with javascript.

No alternative
Because BoS uses exclusive, name-based sniffing, when it finds a browser it does not know, it will simply not give it a menu. The menu should not be constructed by Javascript, but should be made up of links in the actual pages. This means that users with other browsers, or users that like to browse with Javascript off, can still use the BoS site.

It would also help people with impairments, such as those that would require the page to be heard, rather than seen (visual impairment). Things directly in the text of the page are much easier to use here.


Basically, the BoS web site has poor design for accessibility, and I have said it before. [while hscstuff, BoS's predecessor, was much less visually appealing, at least everyone could access it.]

With all my love,

- Joel
 

HellVeN

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That's just shocking. I am trully appauled and I agree with you, this is absolutly monstrous. Sure you could use another browser but this is not always possible. In some state libraries for example, there are specially designed browsers which this poor code does not handle.

It is the responsibility of the website developer to make sure that the website is reliable, and part of that includes the website working on different systems.

I'm not a big fan of that drop-down menu anyway. This problem could be easily fixed by changing the menu and improving accessibility.
 

MedNez

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jnothman said:
Basically, the BoS web site has poor design for accessibility, and I have said it before.
Your concerns have been passed on to the website administrators :)
 

christ_ine

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MedNez said:
Your concerns have been passed on to the website administrators :)
And I'm sure they're pouring over it with great interest ;)
 

Slidey

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If it's anything like a case/if statement, it sounds as if somebody simply forgot a default/else. :p
 

MuffinMan

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MedNez said:
Your concerns have been passed on to the website administrators :)
can u check why i cant access the resource section from my schools mac on bos
no menu comes down hence I can't access the resources from a mac
 

Lazarus

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Dear Joel,

Thank you for your wonderful comments! It's true, the website isn't nearly as accessible as it should be, or nearly as accessible as we'd like it to be. You've really hit the nail on the head.

But in all seriousness, if you wanted to volunteer, you didn't need to go to the trouble of describing the problem in all that technical detail. You could have just asked me! :) I'm a pretty nice guy. I know I'm overloaded with work and I don't have any free time, but I could have spared you at least a few seconds - just enough to say "yes" and avoid all of this reading-between-the-lines business.

We would love for you to rewrite our menu! I can't pay you, because we don't have any money, and I can't help you, because I'm working on the rest of the site, but I find doing things for others and working for free to be really satisfying in their own right - far more so than any of those tangible benefits like 'wages'. Of course, it means that I'm broke all the time, and that I find it hard to devote time to my university studies, but I just can't get over that unique sense of fulfilment which comes from satisfying the needs of others. So, thanks Joel. :) We really appreciate it.

Please email it to us when you are done.

Hugs and kisses,

The BOS Team
 

jnothman

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Oh lovely James,

I have previously made such requests and they have not been answered... What can I do?

I do much the same broke work as you, too.

I might have a hack at the menu, but first I have to get over its dauntingness...

- Joel
 

christ_ine

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*wipes the sarcasm that's dripping off her computer screen*

God, both of you are complete knobs :p
 

jnothman

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Could say that. Wow. You guys all still hang out here. How... pleasant =P

Christine, forgot to say thank you for your lovely and unexpected postcard of ages ago!!!

Menu is made up of horrible undecipherable code... which is what it's meant to be. Atm I have a software assignment and report to do- then, among all my other committments, etc, I may look into finding/building a new menu system for BoS...

Anyway, how've you all been?

- Joel
 

copious

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Just for the record I shall post, to cap off a mini reunion dating back to the wee year of 2001.
 

jnothman

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Wow. I shed a tear. Who would have thought that my rant could bring about a reunion?
 

jnothman

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Well I don't actually know any other Christines (which is surprising; I do know a Christina) and that's the signed name. It also has my name at the beginnig and my address on the back. If I look for other letters of years ago, I could test the handwriting. It's not postmarked, for some reason, but has a UN stamp and the date is handwritten by yourself as 20/12/04.

So, yes, I presume you did!
 

christ_ine

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Ah, I sent a rather large amount of postcards from the UN, so most probably yes.

*nods*

Quite easy to lose track of such things.
 

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