Bug 13993 – JavaScript error navigating pages on thread.gmane.org

• Status: RESOLVED
• Resolution: FIXED
• Component: Evangelism

[David Kilzer (:ddkilzer)]

* SUMMARY
JavaScript error occurs when clicking on messages on thread.gmane.org.

* STEPS TO REPRODUCE
1. Launch Safari/WebKit.
2. Go to URL: http://thread.gmane.org/gmane.comp.version-control.git/49093
3. Click on any of the links in the top half of the page (including the one that is currently highlighted).

* EXPECTED RESULTS
No JavaScript error should occur.

 * ACTUAL RESULTS
A JavaScript error occurs.  (Doesn't seem to affect the rest of the page, though.)

* REGRESSION
This occurs on shipping Safari 2.0.4 (419.3) on Mac OS X 10.4.9 (8P135) as well, so is not a regression.  Tested with a local debug build of WebKit r21967 with the above software.

* NOTES
JavaScript console:

Can't find variable: gmane
http://news.gmane.org/group/gmane.comp.version-control.git/thread=49093/force_load=t
Line: 63

[Maxime BRITTO]

The errors at the indicated lines seems to come from missing quotes :

<tr id="t0" onClick="setGroupArticle(0, 'gmane.comp.version-control.git'); return true;" class="read"><th>4 Jun 13:48</th><td>Bryan Childs</td><td class="s"><table><tr><td><img height=17 width=9 alt="*" src="/short/k2+l.png"></td><td><a id="w0" href="http://article.gmane.org/gmane.comp.version-control.git/49093" target="article" onClick="setGroupNavbar(0, gmane.comp.version-control.git); return false;">Git Vs. Svn for a project which *must* distribute binaries too.</a></td></tr></table></td></tr>

The setGroupNavBar() call misses the quotes arround the group name. So the javascript intepreter is looking for a variable gmane with coponents (.comp.version-control.git) (maybe at the line 353 of the gnus.js javascript file).

[David Kilzer (:ddkilzer)]

(In reply to comment #1)
> The setGroupNavBar() call misses the quotes arround the group name. So the
> javascript intepreter is looking for a variable gmane with coponents
> (.comp.version-control.git) (maybe at the line 353 of the gnus.js javascript
> file).

That's a great first step!  The next step is to write a stand-alone test case that reproduces the error every time on WebKit, the attach it to this bug.

BTW, it would be very interesting to know how Firefox 2.0.0.4, Opera 9.x and MSIE 6/7 handle this same test case.  Do they report a parsing error, too, using the test case, or do their JavaScript engines parse that argument as a string?  Does the gmane.org web site return different HTML/JavaScript for them?

[Maxime BRITTO]

Created attachment 14862 [details]
Error log on firefox 2.0.0.4

The error exists in firefox too as you can see in the attachment.
I think the problem is in the php page before the traduction in html by the server.

[David Kilzer (:ddkilzer)]

(In reply to comment #3)
> The error exists in firefox too as you can see in the attachment.
> I think the problem is in the php page before the traduction in html by the
> server.

Yep, this is an evangelism issue.

[David Kilzer (:ddkilzer)]

(In reply to comment #4)
> Yep, this is an evangelism issue.

Sent email to Lars Magne per the contact page:  http://gmane.org/contact.php

[David Kilzer (:ddkilzer)]

Fixed!  Thanks Lars!  And thanks for the analysis Maxime!

[Maxime BRITTO]

(In reply to comment #6)
> Fixed!  Thanks Lars!  And thanks for the analysis Maxime!
> 
You're welcome :)