Bug report: the "Attach to Family Tree" button has gone wonky
I work with unindexed images A Whole Lot, so I can practically use the blue "Attach" button in my sleep -- except it's refusing to work today.
It breaks at the "Select a Person" step, in one of several ways. Sometimes, the selection list is empty, and filling in the ID does exactly nothing. Sometimes, filling in the (perfectly valid, just copied via "copy ID") PID results in a red "invalid" warning. Most of the time, the selection list is there, but choosing a person changes the name in the box, but otherwise does exactly nothing: no list of relatives, no button to proceed to the next step.
Help? Is anyone else experiencing this problem? Is there a workaround that doesn't involve individually visiting Every Single Person's sources list?
Answers
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We understand that you are experiencing problems when you attempt to attach unindexed images. We have tried to replicate this with an unindexed image this afternoon and for us it seems to be working as it should.
We suggest trying a couple of things and if these do not work please reply back to our comment.
Sometimes when your computer does not respond quickly and efficiently execute your commands, or data on FamilySearch displays poorly or not at all clearing cookies on FamilySearch helps. https://www.familysearch.org/help/helpcenter/article/how-do-i-delete-cookies-from-familysearch
It is also good to try to replicate the same problem on a different browser. Regardless of the OS you use, our website works with these fully supported browsers:
- Apple Safari—the current version and one previous
- Google Chrome—the current version and one previous
- Microsoft Edge—the current version and one previous
- Mozilla Firefox—the current version and one previous
If you are still having the same problem when attempting to attach an unindexed images, please respond back and we will help you further.
Have a great day!
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Clearing the cache/cookies in Firefox (current version) did nothing, but opening the link in Edge worked. Only problem is that I detest Edge with a passion.
I'm hoping that working my way through all my open tabs so that I can restart Firefox will help.
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It may have something to do with only having one tab loaded with the blue button? Maybe? I succeeded in attaching three images in a row just now, but I wasn't patient enough to only change one thing at a time; I had closed and re-started Firefox, and then opened FS in only two tabs, one of them a profile, the other an unindexed image.
In other news, now the Catalog loves to act up: it keeps giving a pink "please try again later" error. It can take more than three reloads for it to let me at the catalog pages I need.
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We are glad that you have had success in attaching the images but sorry that the catalog is giving you an error message occasionally. We checked to see if other guests were reporting that issue but have found none this morning. We did try numerous searches with the catalog on three of the supported browsers with no problems. It sounds like you are pretty busy using FamilySearch and we love that!
Because we use FamilySearch alot too, we do follow the article and clear cache and cookies from all browsers very regularly, making sure we turn off our computer and restarting it after. We will include that article here and hope that you are able to continue to do all that great things you have been doing and continue to do here at FamilySearch.
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If you are still having issues with the way your computer is "talking to", or "not talking to", the FamilySearch computers, you might find success by searching the Internet for the best way to reset your browser(s) to their "original settings". This does a little more than resetting the cache and cookies.
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I have from time to time had similar issues with attempting to link an image as a source. It seems that it happens more frequently when there has been some delay between my clicking the attach button and completing all of the information requested until you are able to finally attach. Usually the issue is solve by a screen refresh and start over again with the attach button. I have learned to copy and paste some of the reason statements so as not to have to generate the information again. I really don't know if it is a system issue or my computer issue but I can sympathize with your. With no real statistics, I am guessing that I have some issue about 10% of the time. Just to let everyone know the issue is real.
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I really, really, really do not want to reset my browser. I like having my intended destination on the drop-down after typing one or two letters, and not needing to fill out my full name and address on forms, and all the other little helpful things that browsers can do if you let them. I'm not convinced that resetting is actually a solution, anyway, except by chance: it allows more time to pass, and it generally involves closing tabs, reducing system load.
I have developed the habit of saving everything I type into FS fields in a text editor before I click any buttons. With the Attach button, this means I save the title and notes before I proceed to the problematic "choose a person" step.
There has always been a problem with waiting too long between finding an image and attaching it: the Attach button will pretend to be proceeding normally, right up until it needs your Recents list, which is data that the background/invisible time-out makes inaccessible. I have therefore developed the habit of refreshing the image right before I click the button, but lately, that hasn't always helped. Something else is randomly stopping things from fully loading, it seems. I suppose it may be something on Firefox's end: maybe a recent update changed something about its resource management procedures, and it's "helpfully" throttling FS's longer processes? I'll have to ask my husband the tech support person.
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Had the same red Invalid ID. I solved by going back, then reloading the un-indexed page. Then pasted my saved text for report Notes. Whenever too much time has passed with these types of pages, reloading seems to work for other similar hanging problems.
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From time to time I have experienced similar problems, but can't be sure they have been exactly the same as yours. I found that if I switched to the previous image, then back again, there was then no problem with the process. Without doing this, I would experience the same behaviour over and over again. It might not have worked in your case but, as I say, just leaving that page, then going straight back, has ironed out the (attaching to an ID) problem for me.
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@Paul W, knock on wood, but I haven't recently experienced the level of problem that I was having last summer when I asked this question. I think there must have been a glitch in either Firefox or FS (or both!) that has since been fixed/updated five or ten times over.
And I'm afraid that I am much too lazy to even try to decipher the Spanish comment. I'm fairly certain that whatever it is, it has absolutely nothing to do with this old question, though, so if a mod could break it off and put it in a more appropriate place, that would be good.
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