Your Comments: 3 Pesky Gremlins

by Rebecca Cuningham

One month before my four year blogging anniversary, I’m happy I chose WordPress and I love the friendly community. I learn more about the software, blogging etiquette and myself each week. However, I’ve 3 pesky gremlins that pop up now and again.

Gremlin # 1: Mysteriously diminishing numbers; People leave for greener pastures, I understand. What’s mysterious is when a blogger friend unfollows my site unintentionally (later refollows and comments they missed me and had no clue how they were unsubscribed…)

Gremlin #2: On a friend’s site, I begin to type a comment but a dialogue box comes up after four or five characters asking me if I really want to leave the page. (I don’t.) Cancel, almost type, dialogue box… Endless loop, no progress. Quit to maintain sanity.

Gremlin #3: I read someone’s post and want to respond. Although I’m following them and already signed in, surprisingly the comment box requires that I sign in to comment. Asking me to sign in again is a way a third party can get my password. I know that from experience. It’s not my friend that’s the problem, it’s the gremlin! Maleficence begone!

Do you have any of the same gremlins? How do you make these problems vanish?

Write me at the flaming mailbox!

Thanks! ¡Olé! –Rebecca

Flaming Mailbox Squared Photo: R. Cuningham

Also brought to you by Becky B’s Odd Squares. Click on the word odd in the previous sentence for some great photos!

#oddsquares

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Rebecca Cuningham

50 thoughts on “Your Comments: 3 Pesky Gremlins”

  1. Gremlin #1 happens to me and to some of my followers all the time, and to a lesser extent Gremlin #3. I really don’t know what the answer is. But as you say, WordPress has been a great platform from which to develop a supportive community of fellow-bloggers and readers, so I have no thoughts of quitting. But it’s frustrating, isn’t it?

    Liked by 4 people

  4. I’m kind of glad to hear you’ve got the same issues. I thought it was just me. My inability to understand the higher art of WP. So it’s not just me! I’m particularly prone to Gremlin number 2. I’ll keep an eye out on the suggestions in your comment box, might be able to pick up a few tips and tricks! Thanks for writing this blog post, Rebecca!

    Liked by 3 people

    1. Thanks, Britta. Sounds like bloggers both seasoned and new have the same issues. Wish I knew how to solve them! For the frozen cursor with error message I copy my comment, refresh the page and paste it in. I have even resorted too op finishing writing the comment in the notes section of my phone to be able to finish typing, copy the completed text and paste in the comments field!

      Liked by 1 person

    1. Sorry to hear you’ve experienced them also, Suzette. I wonder about the glitches behind them. I feel like people’s responses to these three queries could be informative for WordPress.

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  6. The popping comment box has been an issue for many bloggers lately. Hopefully it’s been fixed. The unfollowing was an issue with everyone at one time or another some time ago. The asking to sign in again for comments happens to me when I visit through the browser.

    Liked by 2 people

    1. Yes, I read about that first issue on Maggie’s blog. The intermittent unintentional unfollowing has continued to be a problem for me and several others. For your last comment, do you mean the computer/phone search engine? I experience it through the reader list of sites I follow sometimes and when I access another bloggers’ site through a second party sometimes; like I click on a blogger through Becky B’s squares.

      Liked by 1 person

  7. Congratulations Rebecca on completing four years of blogging….. It indeed is a remarkable feat which not many are able to witness(some quit blogging after the initial excitement dies)
    It seems a really long journey for someone like me who has just started blogging, as you know….. And I do face the problem of Gremlin 2…i just thought that there was something wrong with me device heretofore. So silly 😅

    Liked by 3 people

    1. Thank you, Aahna, for your congratulations and comments. We reach our goals day by day, step by step! Glad to confirm that you did nothing wrong with your commenting freeze experience. 🙂 If other questions come up, feel free to contact me and I will do my best to help.

      Liked by 1 person

  9. Thanks for raising these technical issues with WordPress. Gremlin #1: I’ve also experienced this in the past and have no way of knowing if it’s still ongoing. Gremlin #2: This has been happening a lot recently. Very frustrating, indeed! Gremlin #3: I haven’t experienced this recently. Whenever it does happen, I regrettably leave the site without commenting.

    Liked by 2 people

  10. I nearly left WP about six months ago when it was makijng me sign in for every blog post I wanted to read and comment on. I had to click on the W, then sign in, then also sign in with Googlemail and something else – for every Post! Nobody could help although they did suggest all sorts of remedies. I paid a technician in the end to come along and see what he could do and he fixed it – he said it was a fault with WP but he got into it somehow and now it works.

    Liked by 2 people

    1. Thanks for your comments, Mari. Sorry you went through so many challenges and you needed to pay someone to resolve it. That does not seem like engineered happiness, quite the reverse. Thanks for sticking with us!

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  12. Time really flies! Four years is certainly an accomplishment– an early congratulations to the milestone! Thankfully, I haven’t had encountered too many gremlins on this blog I have, but I will say that I’ve recently started getting a few spam comments (in which the comment has nothing to do with my blog OR it’s a solicitation to check out their site– either way, no thanks!). It’s a bit annoying having to signal and delete them, but so far, it’s been manageable. Hope you celebrate your blogiversary with something fun!

    Liked by 2 people

    1. Thanks for your comments, Rebecca. Glad you’ve been spared the gremlins. Yes, the spam comments are often mysteriously off topic, like about vaping stores… As of today I have a month to ponder a fun way to celebrate my blogiversary. Any suggestions?

      Liked by 1 person

  13. Gremlin 1: I am certain that I did not unfollow several poetry blogs that are dear to my heart. Yet earlier this winter I realized that I hadn’t heard from these bloggers for a while. I visited each blog in turn, and wow, I wasn’t a follower! Had to refollow.

    I’ve not seen Gremlin 2 …..so far……

    Gremlin 3 happens all the time on my iPhone, hardly ever on our PC & laptop. But we regularly clear caches on the big machines, not got a clue how to do that on the mobile!

    But I wouldn’t swap WordPress for any on the other platforms. The spam software here is brilliant. And, of course, the community!

    Liked by 2 people

    1. Thanks for your thoughts, Kim. I’m interested in the difference between phone and laptop for #3. I haven’t found a way to clear cookies on my phone either. Sorry to hear about the involuntary unfollowing of blogs you love. I’m so curious how that happens and that it’s widespread!

      Liked by 1 person

      1. Thinking about the unfollows a bit more, it maybe inadvertent. When you visit a WP blog a little pop up follow/ unfollow button appears in the lower righthand part of the screen. Perhaps we are all accidentally hovers our mouse on this button and so unfollowing by accident?

        Liked by 1 person

  14. Pingback: *Press This* Your Comments: 3 Pesky Gremlins #221 | Its good to be crazy Sometimes

  15. I´ve been with WordPress for almost 12 years and have not had any issues with it. I have lost a few followers for unknown reasons but most find me and follow back. Other than that it has been smooth sailing and a fabulous way to meet like-minded folks.

    Liked by 1 person

  16. People leaving is the name of the game. I have very few followers I started with 11 years ago. The loss of KerryCan made me particularly sad, but after her husband’s stroke, she began to focus on new craft interests. As for your other gremlins, I pay for chat help at WordPress. Very worthwhile.

    Liked by 1 person

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