Something related to Internet Explorer is definitely broken. I am using IE10 on Win 7 x64, and since a few days ago I have the same problem as Tom Caprenter described above - I can browse forums fine anonimously, but if I log in - then I get only a blank page. Two computers at home exhibit exactly the same behavior, and I am not aware of any other web site or forum with this problem.
I have installed Chrome to post this message and to reply to folks who have responded to my questions. Chrome accesses the Forum fine so far, but I'd go back to IE if I could.
Have you tried rebooting? Have you tried reinstalling IE? Have you tried reinstalling the OS? Just asking the standard (i.e. stupid) Microsoft questions... 8)
There is definitely a site bug. I'm running W8/64 with IE10. Anonymous browsing is fine but as soon as I log in Forum and Playground is broken. I get only a blank page. I'm posting this wit FF but I really prefer IE for speed and security reasons!
-AH-
IE 10.0.9200.16721 - works if anonymously viewing forum, but not if attempting to log in. If you log in, it shows a blank browser. Reload shows a screen saying you're already logged in. When re-navigating to the forum, only a blank browser shows. Clearing cache, etc, doesn't resolve issue.
Tried another computer using IE v10, didn't resolve issue.
Installed and tried Mozilla Firefox v25.0, didn't resolve issue; even though I see people say they used it. Oddly, when not logged in, it doesn't display the form correctly anyway and shows only text with no formatting, etc.
Installed and tried Google Chrome v30.0.1599.101 m, and it worked after install (as everyone mentioned).
Perhaps if I get some time I'll debug it later; but figured it was worth posting a little more info that I found.
F12
Select Cache from the menu
Click "Clear Session Cookies"
That fixes it every time for me. Its not the cache you need to clear but the session cookies. Once you refresh the page you will find that you are still logged in.
You can't call it a fix, if it does not allow you to open e.g. the Reference in IE without breaking the Forum again, even in another IE instance.
And it's not a real fix to use a different browser like Firefox.
But I can understand that nobody @arduino cares.
The best part of the F12 solution is that it clears all sesión cookies for any other websites I might be using. Of course I don't mind because I enjoy retyping all of my user/password combos for sessions I have on other websites.
A.A.A. experienced web developer affected by the Internet Explorer issue wanted, given that it happens only for particular conditions and I'm unable to reproduce it on any computer (so I'm unable to collect informations aimed to identify and solve it).
A contributor with knowledge about cookies, sessions and HTTP statuses would be welcome.
MadBob:
A.A.A. experienced web developer affected by the Internet Explorer issue wanted, given that it happens only for particular conditions and I'm unable to reproduce it on any computer (so I'm unable to collect informations aimed to identify and solve it).
I've tried it on 4 computers so far and all of them suffer from this glitch.
OS tried:
Windows 7 x64, Windows 8 x64
Tried both IE10 and IE9.
Method:
Go to the forum, log in. Everything is fine. Click on any of the links on the main bar at the top of the page, e.g. 'Home' (except playground, that is fine). The home page loads fine. I can now browse around any other part of the site at will. Return to the forum (either the back button, or typing in forum.arduino.cc or using the link on the top bar). Forum loads as blank screen with &token={some hex string} appended to the URL. Trying to remove the appended token string does nothing.
If I return to the Arduino home page, it loads fine. I can then log out. Once logged out I can return to the forum fine - except when I try to log back in again, the &token strings show up again.
If you need any information in particular (and can tell me where to find it), let me know.
It's not a bug in any browser. It happens - when it happens - in most if not all browsers. This is very clear from the experiences repeatedly brought here.
It is due to an awful kludge in the forum software. The "token" is an aberrant invention of the forum software, has nothing to do with a browser, it is not generated by the browser.
It has to do with cookies - people state it does not happen unless "logged in" and sometimes obtain relief by deleting cookies. In my experience, the fault is often generated following putting the machine to sleep and waking it some time later. It may be the time it remains asleep in regard to expiry of cookies.
It has to do with http redirects. The stupidly written forum server is adding the "token" to a redirected reference for a reason known only to the software writer. It is clearly a foolish approach to some perceived "problem", whatever that is. Most of the time, editing off the spurious "token" string fixes the problem for all tabs - as long as you do not attempt to refresh any other open tab containing the "token". Conversely, once it appears in one tab, unless it it cleared, it spreads to infect any other pages sought or refreshed or tabs opened!
It is apparently responsible at least in part for the two recent server crashes in which redirect recursion made the site unusable for periods of up to eight or twelve hours. There is no need for any forum server to use redirects if competently written. (Bad enough to be using JavaScript!)
It was present before the recent site "upgrade" and - clearly - persists since.
As the users, it is not our fault nor is it in any way whatsoever the fault of any operating system or web browser we use.