Pictures don't display in the posts

[lacemaker3]

rebecca@ebay  brian@ebay 

TL:DR - please remove the box underneath the text box, which is for attaching files to a post. Members are trying to post pictures with it, but it doesn't display the pictures correctly in the post. There's no need to post non-image files on the community, and it's not appropriate to share non-image files on a public forum, anyway, so this should be removed.

In one of the changes that were added to the community forums sometimes in the last year or so, there was a box added to attach files, like this:

Unfortunately, many users are using this as an "easy" way to attach pictures. The problem is, the pictures don't show up in the post when they are attached this way, and you can't open them in a new tab to view that way either. They automatically download to  your computer when you click on them.

I don't know about everybody, but I know that a lot of the regular responders either don't want to download random, possibly infected, files, or their security settings won't allow them to be downloaded. So this is causing some major issues, and is preventing users from getting the help they need and are asking for.

I can do a workaround, but it's a major pain, and I shouldn't have to waste my time fixing this, for users who can't or won't bother to use the camera-icon photo poster, just because Khoros messed up and added this unnecessary box that doesn't display photos properly.

We [almost] never need to actually share files, and it doesn't seem appropriate to share files publically, with everyone on the internet. I really can't think of any valid reason to share files on this community forum, but I put [almost] because you should never say never.

If there is a need to share files in a specific circumstance, that should be done through the Private Messages, not by posting the files publically where any scammer can access them. Which is what using the box to attach files is doing.

[pburn]

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@lacemaker3 wrote:

I don't know about everybody, but I know that a lot of the regular responders either don't want to download random, possibly infected, files, or their security settings won't allow them to be downloaded.

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Count me among those who won't open those attachments.

[fashionclubgurl]

rebecca@ebay  brian@ebay 

I AGREE COMPLETELY WITH THE PREVIOUS POSTERS!

I know theyre labeled as jpg files which are supposedly "safe" but I dont trust "supposedly" any more. One of the basic carved in stone rules on the internet is " NEVER OPEN ATTACHMENTS UNLESS YOU EXPECT THEM AND TRUST THE SENDER"  and not only does opening ANY kind of attachment and DLing it to my computer make me paranoid - MORE paranoid - but it's a complete waste of time when someone posts 10 or 12 photos as they sometimes do when asking for an authentication and we have to go through the time-wasting, folder-clogging **bleep** of downloading and saving them one at a time to a folder and then having to flip back and forth between an Ebay page and a photo page for each pic instead of being able to scroll down and compare and connect details from a single page. Its a royal PITA and a waste of my time AND my folder space.

And unlike a post that includes the necessary photos right in the post, it doesnt help anyone else who might have the same questions or problems because I bet you dollars to donuts that other posters are NOT going to spend the same amount of time we just did to figure out if our question or solution might be valid for them too. Weve actually had to spend even MORE of our time copying the same bloody photos we just had to DL and Save right back to the forum post so other posters can see them too. Why are we being forced to waste all that time? Im in my 70s, folks, I probably dont have much more time left to waste, especially considering what the world is going through right now! And I can think of better things to do with that remaining time than screwing around copying and recopying photos back and forth to these forums.

Please ELIMINATE the "attachments" choice as the other posters above mentioned. It wastes our time, makes our "job" - which WE dont get paid for, just to remind everyone -  more complicated and possibly more risky since we cant, or maybe its just me who cant, see the entire link to the photo attachment so I can check and be sure (?) that its actually a jpg file and not an exe or other malware-capable file disguised as a jpg. There are already enough ways to disguise that kind of thing so dont blame me for not trusting that a file is what my computer says it is.

Its annoying as hell to have to go through this bloody tap dance over and over again. Go back to just the camera icon system. I think just about everyone I know or have followed who is a contributing member of these forums and involving using or analyzing photo files is getting fed up with the entire situation. If they start leaving the forums because of it, who could blame them? If Ebay wants a bunch of idiots whose only response to questions about authentication or identification is to post links to error-filled pages they found on the internet instead of actually, you know, AUTHENTICATING, EXPLAINING, or IDENTIFYING something by examining a clear easy to see set of photos, its not going to be good for the forums or for Ebay.  

[maxine*j]

And I would like to add my voice to the others here:  I will not open / download the attachments.  I'd have to disable some security settings even if I wanted to do so, and then remember to enable them again. 

I like to help people correctly identify and describe what they want to on eBay, but instead I'm spending my time trying to instruct them in how to post pictures, rather than attachments, so that I can do so.   It's tiresome, and I'm not alone in beginning to simply ignore threads with the attachments. 

This seems unfair to people who sincerely want to avoid misidentifying or misrepresenting their items for sale but are given the wrong tools to get the help they need.

[brittanie@ebay]

@lacemaker3 Sorry for the delay! We are working with Khoros to see what we can do about this. Stay tuned! 

[lacemaker3]

brittanie@ebay;

Here is some new information that links this issue (the inability to post pictures using the Camera Icon / Photo Poster) to the Invalid HTML issue that we are also discussing. 

I have not been able to get very many posters (who post pictures as links) to explain why they do it that way, or why they don't use the Camera Icon. But here are some posts from an OP who is used to posting pictures as links, but tried using the Camera Icon recently instead, at my request. At first, using Safari on a MAC laptop, she couldn't post pictures with the Camera Icon because she got the Invalid HTML issue. It did work once she tried Chrome instead of Safari.

There are more details in her posts, but I have copied the summary statements here. 

"I just tried again to post the photos, this is what I keep getting as an error message. Anyone know what to do? There was no message attached with the photo, just the photo. I don't understand at all 

"Your post has been changed because invalid HTML was found in the message body. The invalid HTML has been removed. Please review the message and submit the message when you are satisfied."

https://community.ebay.com/t5/Collectibles-Art/Trying-again-Little-English-bowl-or-dish-what-was-it-...

"I just switched browsers from Safari to Chrome and I was able to post the photos."

https://community.ebay.com/t5/Collectibles-Art/Trying-again-Little-English-bowl-or-dish-what-was-it-...

"I did exactly the same thing I was doing using Safari. I just opened Chrome and tried it from Chrome, same way, and it went through fine."

https://community.ebay.com/t5/Collectibles-Art/Trying-again-Little-English-bowl-or-dish-what-was-it-...

"I use a Mac laptop and I did it exactly as you have laid out above. I hit the camera icon, loaded the photos with choose files and hit done.

"It works fine on Chrome, I get the HTML message with Safari."

https://community.ebay.com/t5/Collectibles-Art/Trying-again-Little-English-bowl-or-dish-what-was-it-...

I did have one other OP who also said that he got the Invalid HTML error (in his case, it was followed by the closely related Post Flooding error) when he tried to use the Camera Icon / Photo Poster tool. He did not provide any more details than that.

Nobody else has been willing to help or provide any information about their experiences, include a Community Mentor who has just ignored the questions.

[*lady*madonna*]

brittanie@ebay 

rebecca@ebay  brian@ebay sheila@ebay

This issue was reported 3 weeks ago and nothing has been done. We were told by sheila@ebay that the drag and drop box has been deactivated temporarily while a fix was being developed, but it has not and we are still seeing poster's links to jpgs attached.

If a fix is not imminent, could the drag and drop be deactivated for now, PLEASE?

[brittanie@ebay]

@*lady*madonna* Khoros looked into de-activating it and thought it would be an easy fix, but it turned out to be more complicated than originally thought. We've escalated this higher with Khoros, but at this time we don't have a date for when the drop box will be de-activated or another solution provided. 

[lacemaker3]

brittanie@ebay';

If they can't get rid of the attachments box completely, then they need to either:

1. Block files with image extensions like .jpg, .png, .gif, etc. Also .pdf files because those have to be downloaded too and can be malicious. It should be a simple thing to specify what file extensions can be uploaded. Lots of websites do that. If someone tries to attach an image, there should be a message telling to click the Camera icon to add images. That is easy peasy.
2. Make the images display correctly, like they used to do.

I would just tell them to pick one option, and get it done by the end of next week.

[brittanie@ebay]

@lacemaker3 - We've asked them to remove it entirely as the easiest option for what they can do, but don't have a timeline around when it will get removed yet, as they are currently testing this to make sure it doesn't cause any problems to take it down.

[lacemaker3]

Removing it should be the easiest option, I agree, which is why I suggested it in the first place.

It just needs to happen already! 🤐

I have been thinking about asking for a stickied post on the Collectibles and Art DB, titled "How to post pictures in your message" because the pictures are so very important on that board.