Testing For A Problem With Cookies Filtering On Your Computer

Blogger has recently provided several optional blog features which are requested in Blogger hosted scripts, and exercised in BlogSpot or non Google hosted scripts - and has caused problems seen by people who who are trying to protect their computers.

Blogger options like Stats "Don't track your own pageviews", and the Inline Comment form, both of which run as scripts in "blogspot.com" or a non Google domain (depending upon how the blog is published), are going to depend upon cookies which transport the option setting from the Blogger Settings script (hosted in "blogger.com") to the blog script (hosted in "blogspot.com" or wherever).

The confusion starts with the cookie / script filters present on many computers - but it may not end there. Recent discussions in BHF: Something Is Broken make it appear that there may be problems with the Blogger hosted scripts in general. These problems may not be entirely solved by adjusting cookie / script filters on each blog readers computer; unfortunately, isolating problems caused by Blogger scripts, from problems caused by cookie / script filters, may not be a simple task.

It should be possible to at least see which computers may still have a problem with filtering. People using computers that are causing problems are generally unable to post comments, to blogs with inline (embedded below post) comment forms. They should, however, be able to post comments to blogs with popup or separate page comment forms.

In order to improve my ability for this blog to accept comments, I recently changed this blog, to use a separate page comment form. This has resulted in a good 50% increase in comment volume - which tells me that a significant number of readers of this blog, at least, use computers which filter comments / scripts excessively. To really identify the problem, I think a more definitive test may be appropriate.

Anybody with a computer that does not suffer from cookie / script filtering should be able to leave comments on both this blog (with a separate page comment form, not affected by filtering), and on my home blog "www.nitecruzr.net" (with an inline comment form, affected by filtering). Please see if you are able to leave a comment on each of two posts, in this order.

1. My home blog, Nitecruzr Dot Net: Does Your Computer Filter Cookies / Scripts Inappropriately?.
2. Here, The Real Blogger Status: Testing For A Problem With Cookies Filtering On Your Computer. If you suffer from the well known Stats problem, and cannot avoid tracking your pageviews, leave me a comment stating that, on this post.

If you're able to comment on the second post (this blog, with a full page comment form), though not the first (my home blog, with an inline comment form), then it's quite likely that you have a problem with a cookie or script filter. Cookie and script filters can be found in the browser, on the computer, and even on the network - and your task is to look carefully, in all possible locations.

---

(Update 2011/08): Thanks to an apparent second change in comment form scripts, we're seeing a second report of problems posting comments.

I try to post a comment. When I click "Post" it tells me

Your account does not have access to view this page.

(Update 2011/06): Thanks to an apparent recent change in the Embedded comment form scripts, we are seeing a flood of complaints about inability to publish comments, on blogs which use the embedded comment form.

I can't comment on anybody's blog! I get in an endless loop to sign in!

The embedded comment form is vulnerable to overly aggressive filtering of third party cookies.

---

Please note that I moderate both blogs, aggressively. If you're able to comment, please do not include any content that would even make me suspect that you might be a spammer. And please be patient while I retrieve your comments from the "Awaiting Moderation" queues for each blog.

Let's see what we can find out. Your comments might be part of the solution, so go for it.

>> Top