Everything is too big or small!
This is a common problem which relates to the flexibility of how the internet
and browsers work. While a more permanent fix for you requires modifying settings
there is a quick-fix which helps when you move from one site to another. Depending
upon the computer and browser you are using the technique will vary.
With Internet Explorer®, look under the "View" menu for "Text Zoom" and select
a different percentage. Or you hold the control-key down and type a plus (+) or
minus (-) key to zoom in or out respectively. On the Macintosh® the Command key
performs the same task as the Control key under Windows®.
With recent versions of Mozilla, Netscape Navigator® or Opera, the process is similar
to that described for Explorer®. For earlier versions, you will have to find
the font settings within your browsers preferences or settings window. Larger font
sizes, display larger on the screen. On the Macintosh, the DPI setting should be 72dpi as
opposed to the 96dpi default for some cross-platform programs.
Zope Error?
No, this is not a typo (though it is likely caused by one). Zope is a tool
used by the geeks that built this fine site. Unfortunately, what you are
seeing is an error and the sooner we find out about it, the quicker it can be
fixed. With good error reporting, problems are usually fixed very quickly.
Before you rush to send us a message, please try a small test. Sometimes,
an error is purely a matter of coincidence i.e. you were at the wrong place at the
wrong time. Try clicking your "Back" button and navigating back to the page you want
by following the regular links.
To report an error please select the entire "Error" text and send us an email via the
"Contact Us" link and direct the problem to the "Developers". Please paste the error
into the body portion of the message and add at the top, what you were doing
to get the error. We promise to not tell you to "Stop doing that!"
"No content meets your criteria."
Nerdspeak for "There's nobody home." As this web site is dynamic and its information
is constantly changing, some areas occasionally don't have anything in them. This
will sometimes happen with Events and Announcements. The latter
is usually empty because we're too busy coping with "life happening while we're making
other plans" to beat the drum about a corrected bug on the site. ;-)
The pictures are blotchy.
We have made many efforts to make this site useable by the broadest community of users
however there is no way to bypass the need for reasonable display standards. The pictures
on this site are 24-bit JPEGs and will look best if viewed through a 24-bit display (showing Millions of colours). Though they
will look reasonable on 16-bit (32,768 colours) displays, 8-bit (256 colours) is way too low
to accurately see the detail.
Most computers purchased within the last few years have the ability to display 24-bit colour though
they may not be set to do so. Seek the "Display" or "Monitor" settings within your "Control Panels" or "Settings"
and increase the number of colours to display. Sometimes it is described as bits other times as thousands
or millions. Occasionally, you will have to reduce the number of pixels your monitor can display, say from 1280 to 1024
wide. If the latter is your case, then you will have to compromise somewhere with either picture quality or screen resolution.
Where did the pictures go?
Contrary to popular belief, webmasters don't have Pixel Gnomes that steal your pictures
and feed them to the rabbits. What does happen is far more boring though the exact
reason may be as elusive as the Gnomes themselves.
Try refreshing the page as in "The page never changes" as this often re-loads
stalled graphics. Internet settings or preferences can be set to show or not show images
so that would be another place to look (though if you are the only user and didn't
change it then this is likely not the problem).
If the problem persists, try restarting your browser (i.e. Quit Netscape® and start
it again) and even your computer if it has been on for a long period of time or been
having other problems.
TIP: We intentionally set the "thumbnails" of the web site to be off and require "Cookies"
to enable the feature. We have done this save download times for modem-based users, and
those lucky enough to have high-speed are only inconvenienced by a few seconds. Simply
click the "on" button at the bottom-left of the page when viewing lists of properties.
Cookies are another story. While we would like nothing better than a box of fresh "Cookies
by George®" or "Famous Ammos®" delivered to our studios, the matter can be as simple
as updating your Internet settings to enable. No, we don't track
your usage through this and to our knowledge there are no cookie viruses either (though
the author has been a little ill in his youth for eating too many triple-chocolate...).
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The page never changes.
Sometimes either the browser's cache does not get updated or it may
be located behind what is called a Proxy server (a harder thing to fix).
The easiest way to refresh a page is to press and hold your shift-key down
while clicking the "Refresh" button on your browser.
Sometimes, there is "Posted" data (invisible information) which does not
work properly when you refresh. In these cases, you may have to click your
"Back" button and re-click the link which took you to the original page.
If you are behind a proxy-style firewall, there is little we can do. Try refreshing
the page a few times as described above. If that fails, try talking to your systems
admin and see if they can change the caching preferences of the Proxy server.
The pages are too wide.
This site was designed to be viewed by as many people as possible so we chose
a nominal resolution of 800x600. Some older computers with small monitors are
only capable of 640x480. If you have one of these machines you have our sympathy
and rest comforted by the fact we have designed this site with the lowest possible
demands upon your computer.
If, on the other hand, you have a newer computer with a 15" or larger display,
then you have likely set the display resolution too small. Navigate to your
Control Panels and then Display (or Monitor for Macintoshes) settings and adjust
to a higher resolution.
Another problem can be that fonts are too large and cause pages to distort. HTML, the
underlying way the internet transports and displays information, is not a precise
system and therefore lets us down sometimes. Try using a smaller font to display the
pages. See "Everything is too big or small!" for more information
Oh no! The house is gone!
There are two ways properties arrive on this web site. Either they have recently been
listed with the MLS® system or they have been advertised by one of our member
Realtors or Brokerage. All advertisements run from Thursday morning to Wednesday night.
All New Listings are present shortly after they are listed until the newspaper they
appear expires.
If you know the property has not been sold, then you can find it on MLS.ca®, CREA's
nationally administered web site (CREA is the Canadian Real Estate Association). There
are links on every page throughout this web site which can connect you there.
TIP: To make it easier for our visitors to remember or show friends and spouses a property,
the geeks responsible made each page bookmarkable. So, if you find a property that
you would like to refer to in future, simply add a bookmark to your favorites or
bookmarks list.
How is this site organized?
While it would have been nice to organize the site a bunch of different ways, the
designers decided to follow the model of the original newspaper.
We won't bore you with all of the details and philosophical perspectives, instead, we'll
give you the basics.
First of all, properties are divvied into logical groupings of Residential, Condominium,
Mobile Homes and, Town and Country (Rural). Then
all properties are organized geographically and grouped by their quadrant within the
city of Edmonton. Outside of the corporate limits the properties are again grouped
into areas of reasonable size and location. Within those larger areas they are
divided further by either neighborhood or nearest town and then finally sorted by price.
This Help is Useless!
While we're sorry to hear this, we understand. Someimes, there is nothing like a real
person answering your questions. There is a contact button on the left-hand navigation
bar. If there is a problem with the advertising or listings on the site, please contact
Production. Otherwise, follow the "Developer" link and we'll see what we can do
about getting you fixed up!
