Question K 1.5.11: 'change username' javascript popup issue

Ok, I upgraded to 1.5.11 and it does the same thing.

Whats up with the 1.5.11 template tab menu at the top? It is no longer a tab menu, it's just a list an unordered list with no images or anything.

Now I have to try figure out how to fix that too. Before i upgraded i had a semi-decent tab menu. I thought that afterwards it would just mean making my few template changes again, but even those don't do anything now.

I just uploaded and the css file and fresh and its ok now. Back to the completely default look and feel.

Thank you for your help in analysing and testing this matter. Although it's not a major headache (and there would only be a slim chance of this situation occurring in normal use) I agree with you that it's not a elegant way of displaying an error condition.

I have tested the scenario on a K 1.5.11 test site and I can confirm that the situation occurs as you have described. We may be able to prove a workaround/solution but I think it will have to be a low priority. Whatever we do, we will need to make sure that this does not happen in K 1.6.

As I mentioned earlier, I haven't done this sort of thing before in Kunena. I don't give my users the option to let them change their usernames after they've registered (and I doubt that most site admins do, either). This is one "solution" to your problem - at least your users will never be be exposed to the possibility of getting the "unformatted webpage error condition" should they attempt to use someone else's username for themselves! If your users make a "mistake" when they register, they could always email you with a request to change their username on their behalf.

Thank you for reporting this genuine defect with K 1.5.11. I will add it to the list. I will also leave this matter open for a week or two, but if there is no further discussion then this matter will be closed.

Thanks. I will try to figure out a fix, but since i have to first try learn how Kunena works internally, it may take me time.

I appreciate the help and quick response by both sozzled and xillibit.

Good luck. When we discover which PHP module is responsible for generating the web dialog - actually, I think it's PHP, not Javascript - it might be a better solution to change the feature so that a success or failure error condition is raised by Joomla. I think it might be a better alternative to inform the user of their unsuccessful attempt to change their username as illustrated below:



What do you think?

Yeah, I think that is a cleaner way of doing it. Not just for looks, but also to having to rely on javascript for this.

I made a plugin that shows my custom error message just like the other Joomla! errors, I did this to get it working:

$this->params->get("message", "Error message goes here")

Changing the username should be a matter of checking the database for any existing users with the same username. If so, return to previous page and display the error. If not, update the username and logout the user so they are forced to login again. A note telling them they will be logged out can be shown if the setting is enabled.

I agree this is probably not a high priority. I also agree that the JavaScript popup is incongruous and should be scrapped in favor of using Joomla System related error message displays.

I also agree that changing the username is adverse to the normal operation of Joomla. Additionally, as was pointed out, the main problem is that certain extensions, like Kunena, have designed one process or another based on the assumption that usernames won't change. For instance, in Kunena, posts are recorded with both a username and a userid, but Kunena takes a shortcut and uses the recorded username to display the user responsible for the post. This is technically incorrect and violates good normal form since the userid is already present and points to a username in the users table that just needs to be joined into the query that hoists this data. At that point it doesn't matter what the username is.

Kunena invited the situation by allowing the username change option without a method for properly keeping the identities straight on the screen in the wake of such a change or for refreshing the user session followed by a page refresh.

All things considered, it's probably not advisable to disrupt the underlying assumption that a username is not going to change. This keeps you straight with all the like assumptions that extensions are likely to make as well.

However, in our case, the whole scenario came up because we have a database of almost 5,000 users that we're going to pre-load into the system. We're doing this as a convenience to our users fearing we might loose some along the registration route. So we're making a random temp password and a temp username formed on the email address so we can e-mail them with a one click access invitation. Joomla may allow them to change their e-mail and password but not the username, which is why we wanted to use the Kunena change username feature since it was already resident.

At this point we've decided not to use that feature. Instead we're coding up an AJAX based change username feature that's only available if the user is NOT logged in. The routines reside inside an uncategorized article embedded in Sourcerer as a PHP script that provides the JavaScript and HTTP request code. In this case, the user provides the desired username along with the e-mail, the current username and the password for validation.

We are going to warn users that the change username feature is provided as a service intended to be taken advantage of before they start using the system to any degree, after which they will likely suffer from one kind of split identity or another, like prior Kunena posts. However, with Kunena their karma and ratings should all still remain intact. Trying to account for the behavior of so many extensions is a daunting task and is probably ill-advised.

In the end we might add a routine to change the username field in Kunena's messages table so that the username correction is made.

Still, this is an issue that Kunena will have to address if they are planning on rolling out a standalone Kunena template.

There is really no option other than Kunena for Joomla. There is no question it's the way to go. It is a Hall of Fame product.

It's happen to me too on my test installation, because this option is almost never used it's hard to see this kind of issue. So, i will add this bug for the next version of K1.5.

I have a workaround for that :

open the file \components\com_kunena\template\default\plugin\myprofile\myprofile.php and on line 559 replace this :

by this :

and on line 583 :

by this :