Thread: Newsletter unsubscribe question

When testing the newsletter function, I selected unsubscribe option at the bottom of the test newsletter.

As far as I can tell the unsubscribe function didn't do anything.

Is there a delay before the user is deleted from the the newsletter database?

You have probably NOT refreshed the list so the table could update cuz you were sitting in it while testing. Try going to another area of the builder or signing out and back in.

Also.. I cant remember in this builder, you may get notified of the opt out, and then have to manually delete them.

Karen

Thanks Karen!

How do refresh the database? I haven't received any notice of the opt-out, and I have looked.

For legal reasons I really need to make sure this works, or that I know how to make it work.

Well, stiff..

Did you go over the tutorials and read the manual on this stuff. Have you gone to your email and made an email for this store, and an autoresponder? For legal reasons, you should do the tutorials and read the manual then you wont make me snap answering this stuff when you could take the time to learn it yourself.

If you read the post above.. i told you how to do the refresh and allow the table to update. I just didnt hold your hand while you walked thru it.

Karen

For the reference of others who might have the same issue, here is what I have found to date.

Under Main Menu Manager -> Database Tables -> Database Table Manager, there is a label "Clear recent table history".

That appears to be how the database might be refreshed, although there is nothing to indicate that this is the case.

The newsletter unsubscribe function, as found at the bottom of a generated newsletter, does not in fact appear to remove any entry from the database table. This is of real concern as there are specific legal requirements concerning spam and the ability of a recipient to remove themselves from future mailings.

As far as I can determine there are no messages sent to any administrator that instruct the removal of a database entry.

So - There does not appear to be either an automation nor manual answer to this problem.

Nowhere in any of the video tutorials was I able to locate any reference to this issue, nor can I find any references in the Soholaunch Users Manual.

I trust that others will have more success with this issue than I have to date.

I don't know what newsletter system you unsubscribed yourself from, but generally speaking, there is no delay. Whether it is a database, uploading a file to your website, or publishing a page in bluevoda. The only delay is the second or so it takes for the data to transfer.

Again, generally the only time you see a delay of a couple hours, or a day or week, or whatever it may be is when there is human involvement. When someone has to go in an delete the entry, add something to somewhere, or approve an action to be carried out. Thats about it.

The database itself did refresh, but the PAGE You are looking at on the browser cant because you have it open so you are going to see the same info until you refresh it or close it and reopen it. In order to recieve a notice you have to set up autoresponders or the email the system generates wont notify you of a response. You then have to put this information in the Preferences area of the Newsletter module. Its on the upper left hand. This email address must also be able to SEND mail, so you cant probably use your isp in most cases.

Either you or the customer can UNSUBSCRIBE and it must be done manually...


In your newsletter module on the bottom.. there is a little link to that and its also in your emails if youve set up the email correctly. Apparently you need new BIFOCALS so you can SEE the solutions more clearly!

All you have to do is LOOK and pay attention and you will find this stuff. I really get ticked when people dont try, but will sit and post for answers, and then criticize because they didnt take the time to do it themselves. Why recreate the whole manual and all the tutorials posting on the forum? Seriously.. pfffffffft watch and see how fast i answer the next one!

Karen

And while you are getting your eyes checked.. you might look in the system tables for a table thats labeled UNSUBSCRIBE.. ..damn thats hard work.

Karen

Gee Karen, you're right, this is hard, especially as THERE IS NO UNSUBSCRIBE TABLE under the system tables. Grin!

Oh, yes, I wasn't looking at the browser to see if something had been unsubscribed, I went to the database itself, then because there might be a hidden field in the database for this function, I sent other test newsletters, and surprise surprise the supposedly "unsubscribed" people were still there.

And I get ticked with RTFM answers to people who are fighting a steep learning curve trying to get something useful together.

My original question simply asked about a possible time delay in a database entry being deleted. You responded that I needed to refresh the database. I spent several hours trying to do just that.

I logged out, flushed the cache, used different browsers, viewed the tutorials several times, checked the online manual and so on before asking you what I was missing.

After running me around in circles trying to refresh the database, you now tell me that it needs to done manually ... gee, that was what the question was about in the first place, the customer MANUALLY selects the option to unsubscribe, and nothing happens. As administrator I can find nothing to let ME know that I need to do anything.

If you don't know the answer to the question, that's a perfectly acceptable response, but to yell at me for asking the question in the first place is not acceptable for anybody, especially for somebody in a support function.

I know from personnel experience how frustrating customer support can be as I was a Unix Systems Administrator for 25+ years dealing with thousands of customers from all around the world. I can also tell from very personnel experience that you need a vacation.

So - let's start over and see if I can get out of your hair for a while (no promises there, but I will try!)

Looking at the database tables that I can see, I find:
Under Recent tables I have: UDT_SUBSCRIPTIONS with 2 entries for testing.
Under User Tables I have:
UDT_CONTENT_SEARCH_REPLACE (Empty)
UDT_MY_NEWSLETTER (With 3 entries for testing the newsletters)
UDT_SUBSCRIPTIONS (as shown above)

Under System Table I have NOTHING AT ALL

From your comments I should have a table there. OK, I somehow doubt that I'm to create that table manually, but also can't locate any instructions on how to do that automatically. Do I need to open a trouble ticket for this?

You also mentioned something about how my email was set up might affect this issue and I have verified that the business info for the site has a valid email address and that nothing has been received at that address relating to this.
Note: that email address is external to this system, if that makes any difference. I also checked the 6 email accounts I set up for the site, but there is nothing in them. I'm not sure what else I should check for that, assuming that it is a part of this problem.

Now that we have both had a lot of fun publicly venting our individual frustrations at each other (grin), I admit it. I'm stuck. I have no clue which direction I'm to head in next. Help!

Well Stiff

I will go back to my original statement. Run the IT troubleshooter make sure all your permissions are correct.

Secondly, you have to have a system Tables, or you dont have soholaunch installed. click the database icon, when that opens, you have a picture there with two tabs on it. one is titled USER TABLES and the other is titled SYSTEM TABLES. If you cant find it you are truly blind. You need more than help you need an eye doctor, or maybe a proctologist.

Im not going to sit here and school you on the scripting for soholaunch and its newsletter process, its fairly simple, you dont need much experience to do it, you do have to be able to SEE.

Finally if you are REALLY concerned about spam, and plan on having a HUGE list, you should subscribe to an email service like aweber etc, to avoid getting hit with a spam lawsuit etc, and it handles your opt outs for you.

AS to the refresh, i was referring to the fact that soho is a browser run application, and refreshing the screen, if you were sitting in the tables to watch them change it wasnt going to happen, because you can only see whats on the screen.

Karen

One more thing if you want email notifications, you must set up all the info in all areas of the store including the shopping cart, all these things are tied together, you cant just do one thing and expect the whole cart magically works. Check your shopping cart business info and I believe you MIGHT get notified, as i tested mine, and it notified me just fine. Just like i have a system table full of things.

Karen

Originally Posted by working stiff

When testing the newsletter function, I selected unsubscribe option at the bottom of the test newsletter.

As far as I can tell the unsubscribe function didn't do anything.

Is there a delay before the user is deleted from the the newsletter database?

aaaa

My presenting issue was an attempt to find a way of handling unsubscribe requests for my newsletter. This is a legal requirement to avoid federal charges of being a “spammer”.

Despite the feedback generated when somebody selects 'unsubscribe' at the bottom of a newsletter indicating that their request was handled right then, in fact nothing happened as far as I could determine. Nothing changed in the source database for the mailing; no message was received by me to let me know that somebody had opted-out.


In my case, logging into my website at <websitedomain>/sohoadmin
Selecting "Database Tables"
Selecting "System Tables"
Showed NO system table entries, just a message that says:

“WARNING: Modify system tables at your own risk. Generally, you shouldn't have to mess with these unless you're developing a custom php script or troubleshooting a standard feature that doesn't seem to be working correctly.”

No exactly helpful.

It turns out that there is, in fact, a database entry made to record this opt-out request, but in my case nothing shows up under Database Table Manager/System Tables, and nothing is emailed to the site administrator.

However, I have found a partial workaround for this issue in the CPanel.

Go to CPanel …
Selecting "MySQL Databases"
Scroll down
Select "PhpMyAdmin"
Select "<Database>” in the upper left column
Select the database you want to use, in my case: <LoginID>_sopa1

You should now see a list of available databases on the left.
For my issue, I selected "UNSUBSCRIBE"
Taking the default settings, I then selected "Search"
Then I selected "GO" in the upper box
Scroll down
I can now see all entries for those who have unsubscribed from my newsletter.

I have a long way to go to understand this MySQL database, but I have found this much:

To remove any entries from this database, check the box to the left of each entry, then select the red X located below all the entries.
You can also select "Check All” to select all entries before selecting the red X.

In either case, you will then be presented with a final opportunity to review and accept/reject your changes.

I now have a mechanism to handle any unsubscribe requests.

I have not (yet) found a way to display this database under the "System Tables" heading, or to receive email notification. When I do so, I will post the necessary instructions on this forum in case this is of any assistance to others.


... and this was all done without an eye doctor, or even a proctologist.

“WARNING: Modify system tables at your own risk. Generally, you shouldn't have to mess with these unless you're developing a custom php script or troubleshooting a standard feature that doesn't seem to be working correctly.”

Well of course it says that.. but, umm.. you do the same thing when access it thru mysql or phpadmin...doesnt change the fact that you can update, create, modify, alter, see, find, and make changes in this area. But continue to do it the hard way. Let me know when youre ready to listen. I may or may not be available to help you out.

Karen

Are you two MARRIED??????????????????

Careful Grand.. Im over 40 have pms and own several guns!

Karen

Very entertaining! Great stuff!

grand duke, I agree with Karen in that you need to be careful, she has a broom and is not afraid to use it!

but, I'm glad the two of us could provide entertainment for the rest of you! Grin!

I must admit I've gotten several good laughs out of this as well!

Women complain that men never ask for directions, then complain when we do ... sometimes you just can't win ... come to think of it, I can't remember the last time I won .... hm, have to think about that for a while ... grin

I wonder if I can add this to my other site, under almost near death experiences (as in, If looks could kill, I'd be dead) (www.callmekirk.com). I think this would go along with Salad Bar Kill (about half way down, I think). hmmm, maybe ....

Again, I'm glad we could provide some entertainment! This forum was way too dull! Grin

Quote:

Well of course it says that.. but, umm.. you do the same thing when access it thru mysql or phpadmin...doesn't change the fact that you can update, create, modify, alter, see, find, and make changes in this area. But continue to do it the hard way. Let me know when you're ready to listen. I may or may not be available to help you out.

Karen

Let's try this one more time.

I do NOT understand how to make the system table(s) I need show up.
Maybe I'm too tired, maybe too dense, or maybe too male, but after going over your previous messages in each thread as carefully as I know how, I still don't see what you seem to think I should.

Can you explain it like you would for somebody who speaks English as a 3rd language, needs bifocals and a proctologist?

Ok...Soho admin panel, bottom row, database tables icon on the third row, bottom row of pictures, 3rd picture from the left, 4th picture from the right... click that. click on system tables, IGNORE the top sentence in red, you should see a whole list of ALL the tables used by soho, if you dont go back to the main menu, click on that yellow question mark on the bottom row 1st one from the right. a new window pops up, select the second tab. You will get a screen with silver bars on it in the middle. Click on each bar, if any of them are red or failed, you need to take the action it suggests, most likely your OWNER PERMISSIONS are NOBODY and fail. If the fix on the upper right dont work...put in a support ticket to have it done.

Then if youre really repentative, i might even tell you how to CUSTOMIZE your UNSUBSCRIBE to notify you instead of populate the table so you can DELETE them yourself and wont have to pay the proctologist.

Karen

"You should see a whole list of ALL the tables used by soho .."

Karen, this is what I've been saying. There is NO LIST of tables there. None, nada, nothing. I understand that they should be there, but there isn't anything but white space under that warning message.

If you'll send me a direct email address I'll be happy to send you a bit mapped image of the page, or even you give direct account access.

Ok.. I dont need the image.. Did you try the IT solution? did you check your SITE permission.. not folders etc that you can see in your file cabinet.
If you go there as ive said about 20 times and if any of the folders or site permissions are OWNED BY NOBODY, you will continue to have problems, and it must be corrected for soho to operate correctly.

Karen

Hi Karen,

I've again checked the IT Diags, (see below) and there is only one group that is shown as nobody, the Root group. I would expect that Root would be owned by a different group, at least on every Unix system I've worked on that would be the case. Everything else is under my User ID.

I would expect permissions to be 755, as is shown here.

Everything reports as OK, and there are no red flagged issues in the server settings.

I've again tried all the Special Tools. No luck there either.

What am I missing here?



Note: In the following material I've globally changed my user ID and Password for security purposes, but have made no other material changes to the information presented here.


Global Settings (isp.conf.php)
Setting Value Status
this_ip www.e-privatetrust.com OK
cgi_bin /home/MyUserID/public_html/sohoadmin/tmp_content OK
doc_root /home/MyUserID/public_html OK
dflogin_user MyUserID OK
dflogin_pass MyPassWD OK
template_lib /home/MyUserID/public_html/sohoadmin/program/modules/site_templates/pages OK
demo_site no OK

Permissions
Root Directory (public_html) 755 MyUserID nobody yes OK
/images 755 MyUserID MyUserID yes OK
/media 755 MyUserID MyUserID yes OK
/template 755 MyUserID MyUserID yes OK
/tCustom 755 MyUserID MyUserID yes OK
/sohoadmin/tmp_content 755 MyUserID MyUserID yes OK
/sohoadmin/filebin 755 MyUserID MyUserID yes OK
/sohoadmin/program/modules/site_templates/pages 755 MyUserID MyUserID yes OK

Folder
Server OS LINUX Any
Safe Mode Off Off
allow_url_fopen On On
Is your server running php suexec? Yes Yes

I've again checked the IT Diags, (see below) and there is only one group that is shown as nobody, the Root group. I would expect that Root would be owned by a different group, at least on every Unix system I've worked on that would be the case. Everything else is under my User ID.

Thats the one that needs fixed. It too has to be owned by you and you can try running the script they have installed, but every time ive run it, it didnt fix it. Had to go with support ticket.

Karen

Ah ha! I'm used to Solaris/HP-UX and didn't think anything of that when I saw it.

Just to clarify, did you open a support ticket for me, or do I need to do that? I don't want to spam the system with multiple tickets if you have already opened one.

Karen,
OK - you are either taking the day off, or are still shaking your head at me, (grin) but I went ahead an opened a support ticket on this.
Many thanks!
Working Stiff

Stiff.. i dont work for voda host, and i cant open a support ticket for you!

I dont have any days off. Although sometimes i go on vacation and dont work websites, but when im not here i also merchandise for area department stores on contract. Right now i run that three days a week.. and the hours vary.. depending on the contractor.. like Pepsi or Cadbury Adams or Nielsen.. formally AC Nielsen and now owned by VNU. So when im not peddling my own, im doing the big dogs! I have lots to do this week... Owners of Miller Beer decided they want to insure their NFL pop is front and center, and how much of the market space they own, and how much stock in in about 20 stores locally.. so you will have to make some decisions on your own this week.

Karen

Wow! I'm impressed! I got tired just reading about all you do. Grin

I thought you worked for vodahost considering all the time you spend here. My mistake! I was going to put you in for a raise - but they'd have to pay you first. Of course you should be paid by them considering all the effort you put in! I should at least put you on my xmas list for a box of good chocolates! Grin

Just to keep the humor going - last night I was informed that the permissions had been corrected, and I verified that this morning. However, it made NO change in the problem. Sigh.

It's looking more and more like something wasn't installed correctly. I'll back up everything and then put in a trouble ticket or three ...

Have fun this week, and I'll look forward to your response whenever you get around to it.

Reapply the latest update, or redo the update and see if that solves it.. or you can have soho look at it thru a support ticket at voda.

You get tired thinking of more than whats for dinner, and who has the remote for the tv! (I just had to add that or i wouldnt live up to my rep!)

Karen

I think your "rep" is safe for now .... grin

I have a trouble ticket open so am not going to mess with the system while they are working on it. Too many cooks, and all that.

Solved the TV remote problem by getting two of them ... which of course created another problem ... grin

The last part of this saga is that I had to have the site refreshed.
After that everything seems to be working.

LMFAO.. how many cans of lysol did that take?

Karen

Karen, Karen, Karen ... I'm surprised at you for asking such a question ... It wasn't Lysol - it was Aspirin - lots and lots of Aspirin! Ouch!

Painful grin

Well with a response to this 30 days later i bet that aspirin was laced.. with novacaine, codiene, and finger splints.

BIG EVIL GRIN!

Karen

Yup! You got it the first try. I'm impressed! grin