Duplicate Feeds

Duplicate feeds (i.e., multiple feeds pointing to the same URL) get created. This is A Sad Time. We like it better when they don't exist. [This is an example support request. It is not ideal, but it's better than nothing.]

To purge them, what needs to happen is:

• go to [View Popular Feeds] (get there via Read-->Feeds, or via visiting example_feed.dreamwidth.org and clicking "View Popular Feeds" in your top bar.
• run through them. All ten pages. You will need to do this at least twice: once to get a feel for what's there, and once to catch the duplicates. How I did this: on first run-through, on spotting something I could've sworn I'd already seen, I made a note of it - and then picked up duplicate URLs on subsequent passes.
• eventually you will have a document of some description including SITE NAME, and AT LEAST TWO URLs. Rah will like you better if you link to profiles, rather than the journal view.
• OPTIONAL: if you are feeling extremely enthusiastic, run through and double-check that apparent duplicates are actually duplicates: e.g. both Penny Arcade and Irregular Comic have two feeds: in each cases, one contains the strips and one contains links to the strips.
• it's now time to [submit a support request]. Use the Category "General/Unknown"; the Summary "Duplicate feeds" (or anything else that tickles your fancy while being clear"; and then fill in the Question or problem. There are two ways to do this: (1) copy-paste in the text-only list of site names & URLs you have generated. (2) Actually provide the script so the support worker who addresses the request has less work to do in making the merge happen:

  syn_merge duplicateaccountname to primaryaccountname using http://correct-url

  Obviously you then have to use your skill & judgment to determine which should be primaryaccountname and which should be duplicateaccountname; hopefully the other parameters to be replaced are clear.
• submit the support request, and bask in the glow of A Job Well Done.

Obviously if you have the relevant privs, you'll actually need to run the commands. Thankfully, this is not something with which I personally need to concern myself - and for the sake of argument I'm going to assume that if you've got the privs, you don't need this guide.