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Forums » Suggestions & Development Discussion » Problems with notifications

I've been having quite the problem with my notifications. I've been getting them hours after the pm was received, or the forum post was made. For instance, I got a pm at a little after 1 in the morning. I didn't get the notification until 9. I don't know if this is a widespread problem, or if it's just me. But I'd appreciate it if something was done about it.
You aren't the only one (I have notifications that arrive varying degrees of late, and sometimes there's one or two that occasionally just never make it through; I know of others with similar troubles, too), but unfortunately, notifications apparently work through a 3-part system, and Kim only has any control over the first. The second and third are strictly third-party and can be affected by numerous things (including things like the strength of your signal/connection). I'm sure Kim can give a more complete answer.

However, when bringing attention to problems (which is best to always do here!), to be as efficient as possible in helping Kim figure out what the problem is, it's good to provide as many details as you can right off the bat, even if you're not sure they'd be relevant. For example, with this, it'd be good to tell her what you're set up to receive notifications through. In my case, I get them through the Google Chrome browser app that I have on my phone, which is running Android Lollipop! :)
Kim Site Admin

Hi Leon!

I'm assuming that we're talking about push notifications here, not the ones that appear on the homepage of the site?

If so, I wish that there was something that could be done! The RPR sends out push notifications to all interested parties the very instant something happens that is notification worthy. If your friend sends you a PM, that push notification is sent before your friend even sees the confirmation page that their PM was successfully sent. We have no mechanisms for sending push notifications at a later time; if one is needed, it's sent right that very instant.

Once we send it, though, it's out of our hands, and we can't do anything to change the way in which it's delivered. Much like when you give a letter to the post office, they normally get it where it's going on time, but sometimes they take an extra week for no clear reason, or occasionally even just flat out lose it.

We don't have a direct connection to your devices. To prevent abusing push notifications Google/Mozilla makes us send the notification to them, first, and then they send it out to you. Or, if you're getting the notification on a mobile phone, they send it to your mobile provider who then sends it to you. Notifications can be mysteriously delayed or lost at any of these steps, and the RPR will never know why.
There are a couple reasons why the notification might be late, but the biggest question I'll ask is this; is your wifi turned on all the time on your mobile? If it's not, you get the push notification the moment you turn your wifi on. So if someone posted at 1am, but you didn't turn on your wifi until 9am, then you would get the notification at 9am. :)
Kim wrote:
We don't have a direct connection to your devices. To prevent abusing push notifications Google/Mozilla makes us send the notification to them, first, and then they send it out to you. Or, if you're getting the notification on a mobile phone, they send it to your mobile provider who then sends it to you. Notifications can be mysteriously delayed or lost at any of these steps, and the RPR will never know why.

How can push notifications be abused? Spamming devices incessantly?
Kim Site Admin

Copper_Dragon wrote:
How can push notifications be abused? Spamming devices incessantly?

Right, I guess they're concerned about our direct-beaming you non-stop spam or unwanted ads.

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