Wikipedia:Reference desk/Archives/Computing/2016 December 20

= December 20 =

Internet Archive pinpoint links not working
In Sticks Nix Hick Pix, the first external link is to https://archive.org/stream/variety119-1935-07#page/n124/mode/1up -- the Internet Archive's copy of Variety's issues from July 1935. However, the "n124" in the URL is supposed to go to the 125th page of the file (the numbering starts from 0) -- and when one tries to follow that link, one will be taken not to the directly relevant page, but to the first page of the file (https://archive.org/stream/variety119-1935-07#page/n0/mode/1up). Upon arriving there, one can manually change the URL to replace the "n0" with "n124" and then one will be at the page one was looking for. In other words, the "pinpoint" links to the specific pages don't work as links, but the URLs will work when typed in manually. What can be done to get the pinpoint links to work properly? This problem affects Wikipedia, but not only Wikipedia. I tried to add a bunch of pinpoint links to Variety on another website and had the same problem of the URL redirecting to the first page ("n0"). --Metropolitan90 (talk) 03:22, 20 December 2016 (UTC)


 * The n124 link works for me: It shows a Variety front page with the headline STICKS NIX HICK PIX. In the address, the parts after the # are processed by a script on the page. Perhaps your browser prevents the script from working as expected when clicking on a link, but allows it to work when editing the address. Possible Ideas: 1. Try adjusting settings for script blocking in your browser. 2. Search for your specific browser version in the Internet Archive BookReader bugs list to see if anyone else has reported an issue. --Bavi H (talk) 02:23, 21 December 2016 (UTC)
 * Thanks for your advice. I was able to resolve the problem by resetting the settings in my browser. --Metropolitan90 (talk) 03:22, 21 December 2016 (UTC)

pages
Why do some pages take a long time to load on my phone, yet if I tether my phone's data connection to my laptop, they load right away? Benjamin (talk) 08:55, 20 December 2016 (UTC)
 * I will assume that you mean that the same page, loaded either from phone with mobile data or from computer via USB link to the phone running on mobile data, takes different times to load. First of all, the connection between computer and phone should be extremely fast, both in bandwidth and in ping, that it does not matter.
 * It is possible that the phone and the computer do not load exactly the "same" page. Your computer's browser will likely send a different User agent than your mobile's browser, so the website could serve a different page. However, the mobile version of sites is usually lighter than the desktop version, so that is probably not the answer anyways.
 * Another possibility is that the data transfer itself is not to blame, but the combination of hardware and software makes that the computer is able to render the pages faster. Computer hardware is faster, unless the phone is 10 years newer than the computer. Tigraan Click here to contact me 10:33, 20 December 2016 (UTC)


 * There are two meanings for "tether my phone's data connection to my laptop." I work with some people who call it tethering when they use the phone's data connection to the cell tower as the Internet connection for their laptop. I work with others who call it tethering when they use the laptop's wireless or wired Internet connection as the Internet connection for their phone (note: the laptops have security access to wifi and phones do not). I assume you mean that you are using the phone's data connection as your laptop's Internet connection. Therefore, the bandwidth of the phone's connection is not an issue, but you need to test it repeatedly. The way phone data works is not as simple as how standard WiFi or wired connections work. The tower broadcasts everything for everyone in a vast data soup and your phone has to pick out what it needs. If it misses it, it has to ask again (and again and again). So, it is clear that you can get an unlucky connection on your phone and a lucky one on the laptop. Ignoring that, the only differences are the web page itself, the hardware, and the software that renders the web page. I believe the main issue is the software. Are you using the same web browser on both the phone and laptop? Likely not. For example, Chrome or Firefox for Android is not exactly the same as Chrome of Firefox for Windows. So, the renderer will have differences. Phone-based renderers have been leaning to a render-first, display second method. Until there is enough of a stable page to render, nothing is shown. The purpose is to reduce the amount of times that you see a button or link you really want to tap and, the split second before you tap it, an ad squeezes into the display right below your finger. (Yes - web designers do work on making ads delay a second and then appear directly where menu buttons were a second ago.) This isn't such a big deal on computers with a mouse. You don't hide most of your view with the mouse pointer as you do with your finger. So, they show everything as it is rendered. If you are interested in this topic, the Gecko layout engine is free to download and play with. I've used it for class projects, having students work on methods to speed up rendering in the past, but now I am focusing on stabilizing rendering - trying to avoid pages that bounce all over the place as the content downloads. 209.149.113.5 (talk) 13:00, 21 December 2016 (UTC)

Magic Mouse isn't pairing
I just bought a Magic Mouse for my Mac Mini (running OS X Yosemite 10.10.5) (note: not a knock off, a real Magic Mouse, made by Apple). My keyboard is connected to a regular mouse that is not wireless. Following the instruction booklet that came with it, I connected the charger (lightning end) to the magic mouse, plugged the other end into the USB port of the Mac Mini, and turned the magic mouse switch to on (I googled to make sure I knew which position was "on" and which was "off", though it's pretty obvious). The instruction booklet says: "Your mouse will pair automatically with your Mac." Here's what else I've tried: I think the context of my post makes it clear: all failed. The computer has never given any indication the mouse exists. Does anyone have any suggestions of what else I might try? Of course, it could be the Magic Mouse is defective, but I believe Apple's quality control makes this unlikely. Thank you. 96.224.82.196 (talk) 15:32, 20 December 2016 (UTC)
 * I made sure Bluetooth was on in system preference.
 * I unplugged the regular mouse, then tried the same procedure set out above, again.
 * I went to system preference, to the mouse function, and then clicked on "Set Up Bluetooth Mouse..."; a dropdown then says "devices" with a blank field below and it shows its searching for devices by a circling wheel, but the field never populates as having found the Magic Mouse.
 * I tried restarting the computer with the mouse connected through the USB port and unplugging the regular mouse as soon as I clicked restart.
 * I recognize it's unlikely you have a defective mouse or USB port, but it seems most likely. The only source I can offer for assistance is Apple's own support site for the Magic Mouse.  Hope it helps! RedLinkJ (talk) 15:51, 20 December 2016 (UTC)


 * I have no real idea, but you could try this command when the mouse in plugged in the USB port and see whether it appears. In all likelihood, it will not, but that is still one more test to narrow it down. Tigraan Click here to contact me 17:52, 20 December 2016 (UTC)


 * FWIW, magic mouse is the most spotty apple product I ever owned, in terms of QA/QC on build quality. My first one broke completely after only one year of use. And my seemingly more reliable replacement still sporadically drops the connection. I'd recommend trying to get it working on another computer, and if that fails, try to exchange it. SemanticMantis (talk) 21:52, 20 December 2016 (UTC)


 * We use magic mice in the graphics suite at the college were I work. Twenty Macs each with a magic mouse in the same room is "entertaining"! What we have found to do when mice refuses to connect or connects to a different Mac, is turn the mouse off, wait about 30 seconds, hold the mouse close to the Mac screen in the top left hand corner, switch the mouse on, and make like you are wiping the screen with the mouse - move it back and forth close to the screen. We've also found magic mice like batteries that are very fresh. It goes without saying YMMV. --TrogWoolley (talk) 11:46, 21 December 2016 (UTC)