Forum email notifications - Ugly HTML / PLAIN TEXT hybrid with bad readability.


porg

porg

Active Member
Joined
Oct 6, 2008
Messages
792
Location
Vienna, Austria
The email notifications from the forum software look horrible.


The email is sent as "Content-type: text/plain", but partially contains HTML tags, and on the other side plain text style separator/layout elements such as "----". Neither proper HTML nor PLAINTEXT, but an ugly hybrid.


The readability is bad.


Could the forum software please be configured to send out either proper HTML or proper plain text emails (please without forced line breaks), but not this awful hybrid anymore. Thanks!


Hint: In many CMS systems, page source is stored in mixed markup formats in the database, but foregoes through so called input filters, before being delivered. And I guess this step is missing here, in the case of IPS PHP Mailer.
 
Raw email sample attached, which clearly shows that the email is malformed.

  • Content-type: TEXT/PLAIN but nevertheless HTML tags within!
  • HTML incomplete, missing tags HTML, BODY, HEAD, etc.


Note: Some parts of the email have been overwritten with xxx for privacy/spam protection.

Return-Path: <xxx@pithos.open-pandora.org>


Delivered-To: GMX delivery to xxx@xxx


Received: (qmail invoked by alias); 19 Jul 2012 23:02:55 -0000


Received: from kronos.dragonbox.de (EHLO pithos.open-pandora.org) [5.9.50.149]


by mx0.gmx.net (mx021) with SMTP; 20 Jul 2012 01:02:55 +0200


Received: by pithos.open-pandora.org (Postfix, from userid 1002)


id xxx; XXX, XX Jul 2012 xx:xx:xx +0200 (CEST)


To: xxx@xxx


Subject: New reply to Forum email notifications - Ugly HTML / PLAIN TEXT hybrid with bad readability.


FDisplay: OpenPandora Boards


MIME-Version: 1.0


Date: Thu, XX Jul 2012 xx:xx:xx +0000


X-Priority: 3


X-Mailer: IPS PHP Mailer


Message-ID: <xxx@boards.openpandora.org>


From: "OpenPandora Boards" <xxx@openpandora.org>


Content-type: text/plain; charset="UTF-8"


X-GMX-Antivirus: 0 (no virus found)


X-GMX-Antispam: 0 (Mail was not recognized as spam);


Detail=xxx;


<strong>porg,</strong>


slaeshjag has just posted a reply to a topic that you have subscribed to titled "Forum email notifications - Ugly HTML / PLAIN TEXT hybrid with bad readability.".


<div class='callout'>


----------------------------------------------------------------------


Hmm... The forum notification mails I get are perfectly readable in my E-mail client...


----------------------------------------------------------------------


</div>


The topic can be found here:


If you have configured in your control panel to receive immediate topic reply notifications, you may receive an


email for each reply made to this topic. Otherwise, only 1 email is sent per board visit for each subscribed topic.


This is to limit the amount of mail that is sent to your inbox.


<div class='unsub'>You can unsubscribe at any time here: http://boards.openpandora.org/index.php?/unsubscribe/xxx,/</div>
 
Last edited by a moderator:
These emails are most likely generated by the IP Board content management system and is most likely not anything ED has done but a bug in the code of the content management system.
 
What would help meanwhile, is some reports of other users, whether they see email in a similar bad fashion, or different. Thanks!
 
Hmmm...this is the first time I've heard of this happening, so I, too would be interested in hearing some more accounts of this occurring.
 
Last edited by a moderator:
Hi SONY, the notification of your response is delivered in the same ugly fashion:

Return-Path: <xxx@pithos.open-pandora.org>


Delivered-To: GMX delivery to xxx@gmx.at


Received: (qmail invoked by alias); 22 Jul 2012 xx:xx:xx -0000


Received: from kronos.dragonbox.de (EHLO pithos.open-pandora.org) [5.9.50.149]


by mx0.gmx.net (mx073) with SMTP; 22 Jul 2012 xx:xx:xx +0200


Received: by pithos.open-pandora.org (Postfix, from userid 1002)


id xxx; Sun, 22 Jul 2012 xx:xx:xx +0200 (CEST)


To: xxx


Subject: New reply to Forum email notifications - Ugly HTML / PLAIN TEXT hybrid with bad readability.


FDisplay: OpenPandora Boards


MIME-Version: 1.0


Date: Sun, 22 Jul 2012 xx:xx:xx +0000


X-Priority: 3


X-Mailer: IPS PHP Mailer


Message-ID: <xxx@boards.openpandora.org>


From: "OpenPandora Boards" <xxx@openpandora.org>


Content-type: text/plain; charset="UTF-8"


X-GMX-Antivirus: 0 (no virus found)


X-GMX-Antispam: 0 (Mail was not recognized as spam);


Detail=xxx=xxx;


<strong>porg,</strong>


SONY has just posted a reply to a topic that you have subscribed to titled "Forum email notifications - Ugly HTML / PLAIN TEXT hybrid with bad readability.".


<div class='callout'>


----------------------------------------------------------------------


Hmmm...this is the first instance of this happening, so I, too would be interested in hearing some more accounts of this occurring.


----------------------------------------------------------------------


</div>


The topic can be found here: http://boards.openpa...ability/unread/


If you have configured in your control panel to receive immediate topic reply notifications, you may receive an


email for each reply made to this topic. Otherwise, only 1 email is sent per board visit for each subscribed topic.


This is to limit the amount of mail that is sent to your inbox.


<div class='unsub'>You can unsubscribe at any time here: http://boards.openpa...ribe/xxx/</div>


What I'll try is to deactivate email subscription and enable it somewhen later.


Maybe this will help.
 
Last edited by a moderator:
I now re-enabled my email notifications.


Will let you know, wether I still receive that garbled emails.
 
It's an IPB bug, not much we can do.


Well, IF it's a bug, mails look fine on my clawsmail... :/
 
The email is indeed malformed. It should either use mime-parts or at least advertise content as html and not plain text:

Content-type: text/plain; charset="UTF-8"
Click to expand...
the fact is that most mail client will guess content when the sender let that to plain. but porg's client dont.


In the end of the day, porg : get a decent mail client ;)
 
Well, outlook doesn't guess right, too. Not that outlook is a decent client ;)
 
Hmm, I'll see if I can hack it in, but every update might break it again.


So... what needs to be changed in the mail?
 
From what sebt3 said, currently there is



Code: 
Content-type: text/plain

in email headers, which should be



Code: 
Content-type: text/html

instead.
 
Last edited by a moderator:
Would be a charm to get well-formed emails.


I am satisfied with plain or rich text, as long as it is well-formed.
 
Btw, the PM email notification of the very same board software


sends out well-formed HTML emails! Just observed today!

Code: 
Return-Path: <xxx@pithos.open-pandora.org>

Delivered-To: XXX

Received: (qmail invoked by alias); 30 Aug 2012 HH:MM:DD -0000

Received: from kronos.dragonbox.de (EHLO pithos.open-pandora.org) [X.X.X.X]

  by xxx.xxx.xxx (mx075) with SMTP; 30 Aug 2012 HH:MM:DD +0200

Received: by pithos.open-pandora.org (Postfix, from userid XXXX)

id XXX; Thu, 30 Aug 2012 HH:MM:DD +0200 (CEST)

To: xxx@xxx.xxx

Subject: UserOther has replied to a personal conversation

FDisplay: OpenPandora Boards

MIME-Version: 1.0

Date: Thu, 30 Aug 2012 HH:MM:DD +0000

X-Priority: 3

X-Mailer: IPS PHP Mailer

Message-ID: <xxx@boards.openpandora.org>

From: "OpenPandora Boards" <info@openpandora.org>

Content-type: text/plain; charset="UTF-8"



UserYou,


UserOther has replied to a personal conversation entitled "XXX".


UserOther said:

======================================================================

xxx xxx xxx.

xxx xxx xxx xxx!

xxx xxx xxx xxx xxx,


xxx


======================================================================


PLEASE DO NOT REPLY DIRECTLY TO THIS EMAIL!

You can reply to this personal conversation by following the link below:


http://boards.openpandora.org/index.php?app=members&module=messaging&section=view&do=findMessage&topicID=xxx&msgID=__firstUnread__
 
Last edited by a moderator:
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