Website broken links

[gerald]

Not sure if this has been brought up before and I would contact the relevant person but none of the links on the contact page work:

https://bcss.org.uk/contacts/

Same with several others including the 'Contact the Shows Chairman' link here:

https://bcss.org.uk/bcss-national-plant-fair/

[Tony R]

Not sure if this has been brought up before and I would contact the relevant person but none of the links on the contact page work:

https://bcss.org.uk/contacts/

Same with several others including the 'Contact the Shows Chairman' link here:

https://bcss.org.uk/bcss-national-plant-fair/

You can contact Paul Doyle directly regarding the website at
internet@bcss.org.uk

[Admin]

Not sure if this has been brought up before and I would contact the relevant person but none of the links on the contact page work:

https://bcss.org.uk/contacts/

Same with several others including the 'Contact the Shows Chairman' link here:

https://bcss.org.uk/bcss-national-plant-fair/

I don't know what you mean. I've just checked them all and they work- they are just "mailto" links, so all they do is open up the email client you have on your own computer. If that is not working, then it is likely a problem with your own computer rather than the website. Please email me with details, telling me exactly what happened, with your OS and which browser you are using. internet@bcss etc.

[habanerocat]

Might be similar to what happens me.

The links open in my 'Mail' app but I use Outlook as default and I have no way of seeing the actual email address.

[Admin]

Might be similar to what happens me.

The links open in my 'Mail' app but I use Outlook as default and I have no way of seeing the actual email address.

I'm not able to replicate this. As I say, it works fine on the various devices I have here. The email addresses are not directly visible on the website, to avoid bot harvesting. But clicking on a link pastes the mailto: address into your mail client.
Send me some screenshots. If windows Mail is opening with these links, then windows Mail is your default, not Outlook. I believe that is no longer being supported by Microsoft. If you set Outlook as your default, does it work? Does a different mail client, like Thunderbird, work?

But please, if you have a problem you want fixed, communicate with me directly rather than hoping I chance to read something posted on the public forum.

[habanerocat]

I had this problem about six months ago. Lots of other people on the internet with the same problem. External links were defaulting to the Mail app, not Outlook. Lots of things were suggested, including modifying the registry, but nothing worked for me so I just gave up.

Just tried to set my default mail app again there now on Win10, and sure enough Outlook was there. So I selected it.
Links then opened in 'Outlook Pre.' which then mysteriously changed it's name to 'Outlook New'.
I never heard of 'Outlook New' before. It must have come in on an update.

'Outlook New' looks more like Outlook or Hotmail, the online versions.
I'm slow to change to be honest. Sudden change just seems to cause problems. Best wait until all the bugs are ironed out.

But now the links open, and yes, I can see the email address.

[Tony R]

I had this problem about six months ago. Lots of other people on the internet with the same problem. External links were defaulting to the Mail app, not Outlook. Lots of things were suggested, including modifying the registry, but nothing worked for me so I just gave up.

Just tried to set my default mail app again there now on Win10, and sure enough Outlook was there. So I selected it.
Links then opened in 'Outlook Pre.' which then mysteriously changed it's name to 'Outlook New'.
I never heard of 'Outlook New' before. It must have come in on an update.

'Outlook New' looks more like Outlook or Hotmail, the online versions.
I'm slow to change to be honest. Sudden change just seems to cause problems. Best wait until all the bugs are ironed out.

But now the links open, and yes, I can see the email address.

A quote from Microsoft last year about Mail being replaced by New Outlook for Windows:

"Microsoft's revised announcement states that the Mail and Calendar Apps will no longer be supported at the end of 2024. It will become the New Outlook for Windows. In the meantime, users are encouraged to try New Outlook for Windows while they can switch back and forth between the Mail App and New Outlook versions.

At the beginning of 2024, all Windows 11 devices will include the Free version of New Outlook for Windows as the default mailbox application."

[Admin]

To confirm, it is not the website at fault here. The problem is with the mail setup on individual's computers.

"mailto" instructions from a website are for an email client, not a browser. If your default "mail" app setting under windows "default apps" is a browser, not an email client, then mailto: will not work. This happens if email is not set up properly and people instead rely on browsing email on the web, e.g. gmail, webmail, etc., instead of using an email client like Outlook, Thunderbird, etc.
It is easy to fix:
Click the windows "start" button bottom left of screen;
type "default apps";
On the list which appears, under "Mail", see what is listed there. If it is a web browser like Chrome, Firefox, Edge, (web browsers, not email clients) then you need to click on it and change it to an email client (e.g. Outlook, Thunderbird), and save the setting.

[Chris L]

To confirm, it is not the website at fault here. The problem is with the mail setup on individual's computers.

"mailto" instructions from a website are for an email client, not a browser. If your default "mail" app setting under windows "default apps" is a browser, not an email client, then mailto: will not work. This happens if email is not set up properly and people instead rely on browsing email on the web, e.g. gmail, webmail, etc., instead of using an email client like Outlook, Thunderbird, etc.
It is easy to fix:
Click the windows "start" button bottom left of screen;
type "default apps";
On the list which appears, under "Mail", see what is listed there. If it is a web browser like Chrome, Firefox, Edge, (web browsers, not email clients) then you need to click on it and change it to an email client (e.g. Outlook, Thunderbird), and save the setting.

Sorry Paul, (at least for me on my PC) it still doesn't work.

For reference I've set it to point to Thunderbird (which I have installed), I've cleared all the cookies, turned off any likely Firefox addons, turned the PC off/on. All I get are dead links and if I right click and copy/paste I get "javascript:;" as my pasted text.

ETA: I've now installed Outlook and tried that as an option and it still doesn't work.

I've never seen another website that does it like this with the padlocks - either it is a email link or a contact form, or right click and copy/paste.

As it is (at least myself) can't contact anyone at the BCSS unless I know their email or can get it off someone else.

I stopped using a dedicated email programme years ago and always check my emails in a browser.

[Chris L]

Also, for what it is worth, I'd probably never actually click on an email link on a website. I'd, by default, just copy and paste it into my web browser TO box, so I suspect mailto: links never work for me whatever the website.

http://www.cactusexplorers.org.uk/ and here https://www.rrm.me.uk// as examples.

I have to right click "copy email link" and then when I paste I get the email address.

Looking at the source code for all three pages the HTML seems pretty much identical.

The only difference is the padlocks after E-mail.

padlocks.jpg (5.79 KiB) Viewed 698 times