If you create an entry with a name that is already used within the weblog, EE will append a # to the URL title which makes this number unique.  E.G. If there is already a story called “Election Day”, the second entry with the same name will receive a URL title of “election_day1”

This check isn’t however performed across weblogs.  So if an entry in weblog 2 tries to use the same title as an entry in weblog 1, nothing special will happen, and permalinks to both stories will now crap out.

How do the permalinks “crap out”?

EE requires unique URL Titles within a weblog, but different weblogs can contain the same URL Titles.  They must be weblog-unique but not system-unique.

Chris, I created two entries, same title, different weblogs.

One should be viewable at: http://actforvictory.org/act.php/home/static/test_for_chris

The other at:
http://actforvictory.org/act.php/home/content/test_for_chris

As you can see, the first doesn’t work.  for both entires, EE is trying to load both articles, and because of the limit=“1”, it’s only pulling the first entry.

A better example is at: http://actforvictory.org/act.php/home/demo/test_for_chris

There I removed the limit=“1” and you can see that EE is loading both entries.

I don’t see how you can claim that only displaying one article when you specify limit=“1” is incorrect.  It’s doing precisely what you tell it to do.

As for the first link, it really depends on what EE tag (and parameters) you’re using.  My hunch would be that you have a weblog specified on there and that none of the “test_for_chris” entries are in that weblog.

Overall, though, I just don’t understand what you think isn’t working.  So far as I can tell from your examples without seeing the underlying code, EE is doing just what it should.

Of course EE should only display one article with you set it to limit=“1”.  The problem is the EE behavior which matches your statement ...

“EE requires unique URL Titles within a weblog, but different weblogs can contain the same URL Titles. They must be weblog-unique but not system-unique.”

The above examples, especially the demo, show that on a permalinked page it is neccessary to have the URL be system-unique.  When the URL title is only weblog unique, EE has no way of knowing which article it is supposed to display so it tries to show both.

Does that make sense?

> When the URL title is only weblog unique, EE has no way of knowing which article it is supposed to display so it tries to show both.

Ah.  You see that as incorrect behavior while I see that as EE doing precisely what it should.

If you have a page using {exp:weblog:entries} and you don’t specify a particular weblog to display in that tag, then EE should display all matching entries.  If you go in and change it to

then EE will only display the entry that matches from the weblog you specified.

Chris, I completely agree with you in the way EE is behaving.  When two articles have the same permalink, it only makes sense that EE tries and load them both.

What I consider a bug, is that EE doesn’t alert you that a URL is already taken, unless it happens to be in the same weblog.

One of the great features of EE is that a template can be used for multiple weblogs.  This great feature is weakened when you aren’t warned about a permalink being taken.

I can’t possibly expect each of the 60+ content creators we have to be aware of every single article going into the system.

Well, I personally don’t consider it a defect.  EE is doing what it should: URL Titles must be weblog-unique but not system-unique.

Now, that certainly doesn’t mean that you can’t go put in a Feature Request to have URL Titles be system-unique.  Or, ideally, have it be a preference that the admin can determine for their own site.