(This thread was created on @ ctgraham’s request.)
OJS 3.1.2 keeps forgetting (or doesn’t memorize) the latest position of each sidebar block.
So by simply accessing Settings->Website-> Appearance, the sidebar blocks are reordered (reshuffled) on their own and back into the order they were created, not last saved. Thus the system blocks always get back on the top of the sidebar.
If you made some edits to other parts of the site editable under that same tab (Appearance), like the footer or the front page or journal logo or journal style sheet, saving any of those edits also saves the wrong order of the blocks as your site’s new order.
Almost forgot: a similar (or the same?) bug affects the Categories list as well (Settings->Journal->Categories). We finished setting up categories a while ago so I totally forgot about that. But the problem is the same, so luckily I don’t have to repeat what it looks like or create another thread…
I’ve added a patch that should resolve the sidebar block ordering issue when applied to OJS 3.1.2 (e.g. 3.1.2-0 or 3.1.2-1). If you can confirm whether it resolves the issue for you, I can commit the change for the next release.
@teog, I don’t think this is the same issue as for Categories; can you describe this one in more detail?
Thanks,
Alec Smecher
Public Knowledge Project Team
@ asmecher, that worked - I updated the file and logged in only to find the blocks ordered in the backend the same way as in the frontend. Thanks.
You’re right about the Categories list issue not being the same as the sidebar blocks issue above. The difference is in that the Categories stay listed in the same order in the backend as in the frontend when you access Settings->Journal->Categories. However, upon saving any edit of any category the order changes immediately in both the backend and the frontend.