How to avoid the new auto-embed feature for instagram/twitter/youtube urls?

[spaceballer]

Are there special tags or a way to AVOID the new auto-parse-and-embed feature for youtube/twitter/instagram urls?

I even tried to use plain url tags instead of the youtube/twitter/instagram tags, and the new auto-embed feature still kicked in.

There are certain times where I want to just have a clickable url without the embedding.

For instance, today Nets President Irina Pavlova placed a couple of pictures online of the HSS Training Center transformed into a disco nightclub. But her instagram account is marked as private. That means that if you attempt to embed, the pics don't show up. And you couldn't find those pictures by browsing her instagram account either, since her account is private. The only way to get to them was by clicking on a url that lead to them.

Nets Daily tweeted such a url. So I had to go to the workaround of posting the Nets Daily tweet and having people click on the instagram link inside a tweet to get to the pictures.

This would all be simplified if there was a way to just post a clickable url without the forum software attempting to parse and embed. Perhaps special forum tags I could use on the urls to prevent auto-parsing and embedding when posting?

A similar problem exists for some youtube videos that also disallow embedding and require you to click a url link to get to them. Because of the RealGM forum software change, there's no way to post such a url for people to click. Since the forum software tries to embed it (and fails because embedding is disallowed due to account settings on instagram or youtube or something), so users on RealGM can neither see the embedded version (because embedding is disallowed) nor able to click on the link (because the forum software changes disallows the posting of a link without auto-embedding).

In addition, in the past, after posting the embedded version of a tweet or youtube video using the forums embedding tags, I would also follow up with a plain clickable url version. This helps the no-script or mobile users who aren't able to see the embedded version.

As a matter of fact on the Hornets forum, I think I remember someone once requesting that people copy and paste the text of a tweet instead of embedding it, since the embedded versions don't show up to some mobile users. Obviously that copy/paste workaround doesn't function when it involves more than text like in the case of pictures or video that may be contained within the tweet, or even a youtube video.

The way I used to post, by embedding and following it up with a plain text clickable url ensured that the content and information was available to both populations, those able to see the embeds as well as those who couldn't view the embeds.

Is there a way to post a url without the new software attempting to auto-parse-and-embed? Special tags? Or maybe just set the URL tags to prevent auto-parsing, while anything not surrounded by URL tags is auto-parsed-and-embedded, since anyone who goes out of the way to post using URL tags would presumable want those URLs to be visible instead of auto-embedded? Or maybe new non-embed tags so that you can post clickable urls?

[magnumt]

Try

Code: Select all

[url=]LINK TEXT HERE[/url]

Insert the link after the = sign but before the bracket.

--Mags

[spaceballer]

That doesn't seem to work either....

It seems to work intermittently during preview, but then doesn't work once you try to post. It still auto-parses and attempts to embed.

[spaceballer]

I like how the new changes now allow you to click on a text link that leads to youtube or twitter if you can't see the embedding. Thanks for correcting the problem, with the "read on twitter/youtube" thing you added following the embedding.

Unfortunately, the problem for Instagram still exists.

Here's the link to the Nets President instagram that disallows embedding:


As you can see, the auto-embed attempt fails. And, unlike the case with youtube and twitter (where you addressed and fixed the issue with the addition of subsequent clickable links), the problem still obtains for instagram. Can you implement an identical solution to this problem as you used with twitter and youtube? Where the attempted embedding is followed by a text link, in case the embedding fails due to it being disallowed by settings or noscript or mobile platforms that can't display embedding or whatnot?

The url for the instagram link to the picture posted by Nets President Irina Pavalova is contained within this Nets Daily tweet, if you want to experiment with it:

Read on Twitter

You have to click the instagram url link to get to the content since embedding is disallowed. And the new auto-embed RealGM feature doesn't allow me to post the url without going through the twitter workaround.

If possible, repeating the youtube/twitter solution approach (with the "read on twitter" text link) to instagram ("see on instagram"?) would help solve this auto-embed RealGM problem that doesn't allow posting non-auto-embed urls.

[SMTBSI]

Or maybe just set the URL tags to prevent auto-parsing, while anything not surrounded by URL tags is auto-parsed-and-embedded, since anyone who goes out of the way to post using URL tags would presumable want those URLs to be visible instead of auto-embedded?

If possible, this would be a very elegant solution - have the [url][/url] tags take priority over the auto-embed functionality.

Because, even if all of spaceballer's scenarios were accounted for, there is another case where I feel functionality has been lost.


When writing posts, I commonly link to sites of interest via words in the sentence.

You can't do this with youtube links anymore. For example:


The sixth sitting [url=

Watch on YouTube

]sheet[/url] slitter's sick.

[Howard Mass]

Is anyone still having trouble?

[SMTBSI]

Ok, I am baffled. I tested four different scenarios, 20 trials each:
1.) Simply pasting a full youtube url.
2.) Pasting a full youtube url and surrounding it with the [url][/url] tags.
3.) Pasting a full youtube url and surrounding it with the [youtube][/youtube] tags.
4.) Putting the [url][/url] tags around a word, and putting the youtube link inside the first tag (like so.
And I did test runs of each of these for both "preview" and "submit", so eight total configurations.

In my first few runs, it seemed to be a 50/50 proposition, with each of the four options resulting sometimes in hyperlinked text and others in an embedded video. (The only exception being that using the [youtube][/youtube] tags either resulted in an embedded video, or non-hyperlinked text surrounded by the tags.)

However, in later trial runs, I started to get runs of 20 in a row with one behavior. I.E. testing scenario #1 would yield 20 straight hyperlinked urls. The only problem is that the behavior would periodically switch.

So, for example, I'd test scenario #1, and get 20 hyperlinked urls in a row.
The I'd test scenario #2 and get 20 embedded videos in a row.
Then I'd go back and test scenario #1 again, but this time get 20 embedded videos in a row.


With enough fiddling around, I can get any scenario to yield either outcome. But I can't for the life of me figure out what the trigger is to yield one outcome over the other. It's obviously not completely random, or I'd never gets runs of 20.


Below, I am going to attempt to make eight consecutive posts showing each of the possible outcomes individually.

[SMTBSI]

Simple paste of a full url, resulting in a clickable link:


https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eh7lp9umG2I

[SMTBSI]

Simple paste of a url, resulting in an embedded video:

Watch on YouTube

[SMTBSI]

Paste of a url, surrounded by the [url][/url] tags, resulting in a clickable link:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eh7lp9umG2I

[SMTBSI]

Paste of a url, surrounded by the [url][/url] tags, resulting in an embedded video:


[url]

Watch on YouTube

[/url]

[SMTBSI]

You know, I can probably skip the rest. That's probably enough evidence. So...

Is anyone still having trouble?

Yeah, it's still borked.

[dream34]

We will check it out

[RIPskaterdude]

Yeah, sometimes posting the youtube link works as a URL and sometimes it is embedded

[Howard Mass]

We are looking into this.

[RIPskaterdude]

Can we just disable it? I preferred the tag way better since it always worked

[Howard Mass]

They are going to try and fix it.

[El Turco]

Can we just disable it? I preferred the tag way better since it always worked

he said they are looking into it pal, give him some space

[RIPskaterdude]

I'll give you some space

[Howard Mass]

Thank you Arda K.

Skaterdude: Leave your GOTB discussions on the GOTB.