Editing Encyclopedia:Editing bug reports (section)

=== No minor edits possible ===

When editing some pages (including this one), I cannot use the "minor edit" checkbox anymore, while it was there when I created a new page. May, 23, 2002, [[user:jheijmans|jheijmans]]

:I had the same problem several hours ago -- however before saving I looked up and instead of seeing my user name on the login panel I saw my IP address. But when I saved, the save was logged as being created by my user name. Everything is OK now. --[[user:maveric149|maveric149]]

:This is a symptom of the same long-suffering(-causing) cookie path problem that makes http://www.wikipedia.com/ not appear as logged in. (Users who aren't logged in can't make minor edits, so the check box is missing from the edit page.) A fix for this is in the development version; once it's installed, you can log out and log back in to fix your login cookie. In the meantime, you can manually fix your cookie. (If you're using Netscape or Mozilla this is easy; I don't know about Internet Explorer or Opera or other browsers...) First, close your browser so it doesn't write over your changes. Now, edit the cookies file (cookies, cookies.txt, or some freaky collection of a million files as in IE) and find the cookies for www.wikipedia.com named WikiUserID, WikiLoggedIn, and (if you checked the 'save password' box) WikiUserPassword. There should be a "/wiki/" in the list of cookie goodness for each of these; change it to "/". Save, close, open up your browser again, everything should work.

:If you're not brave enough to mess with your cookies, just hit the "preview" button before actually saving; it'll come up with you logged in still, and you can check the minor edit box there. [[user:Brion VIBBER|Brion VIBBER]], Thursday, May 23, 2002

::This isn't much of a solution.  Basically, it means that the only times I can use the "minor edit" box are (a) when I'm creating a completely new article and (b) when I do a preview first. In other words, it only appears on the two occasions when I am least likely to want it. [[user:Deb]]

:Did you skip the part where I explained that the problem is already fixed (for the future) in the development version, and that you can fix it yourself to work properly NOW by editing your cookies? If you're neither patient nor willing to tinker yourself, well I'm very sorry, but there's not much I can do about it. --[[user:Brion VIBBER|Brion VIBBER]], Monday, May 27, 2002

::FWIW, I edited my cookies and the problem is still there. I'll have to take a closer look (at the files on my computer, that is &mdash; the programme code is your end). But in the meantime, I'd like to strongly suggest that one ''always'' press <code>Preview</code> before pressing <code>Save</code>, no matter how minor the edit &mdash; better safe than sorry. Given that, you just need to get into the habit of marking your edit as minor towards the end of the editing process rather than towards the beginning. (Also a good idea, since I've noticed that sometimes minor edits end up not being so minor once I'm through with them!) &mdash; [[user:Toby Bartels|Toby Bartels]], Tuesday, May 28, 2002

:Thank you for your helpful responses, gents.  I had understood the "explanation" above to mean that, if one logged off and then logged on again, the problem should be resolved - evidently it meant something else.  I also didn't realise that the words, "some freaky collection of a million files" were designed to enable me to find the cookies in order to edit them.  Bravery doesn't come into it.  
[[user:Deb|Deb]] Tues, May 28, 2002

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