Please, please, please fix this site.

[Imageview]

It doesn't seem random. The site consistently breaks whenever I try to go to the Inbox in the Message Center, and stays broken presumably until someone manually restarts the services. Not just when accessing the site from the same browser, but on subsequent attempts to reach the site logged out from a different physical device and origin IP.

I'd guess that the private message database for a subset of users has some sort of malformed subject/message data stored in it (or maybe someone downgraded a dependency to an old version that does not have UTF-8 support or has some sort of other encoding issue), and when those users try to open their Inbox, the backend services puke and can't recover. If the message DB was sanitized or wiped entirely, I'd be willing to bet that the site would be back up to it's middling performance, at least long enough to track down the actual issue and address it.

I wouldn't just say it's the message portion of the database that's malformed, there are subtle issues everywhere. I also suspect that the restarting is largely manual (automating this would be a huge improvement), leading to the longer stretches of outages. My guess is the database issues are the entire issue, or at least the meaningful portions of it beyond the standard vbulletin bugs.

[calif 15-22]

I wouldn't just say it's the message portion of the database that's malformed, there are subtle issues everywhere. I also suspect that the restarting is largely manual (automating this would be a huge improvement), leading to the longer stretches of outages. My guess is the database issues are the entire issue, or at least the meaningful portions of it beyond the standard vbulletin bugs.

I think there is NO ONE manning the the site at all. A few moderators have mentioned they have NO new information at all and or locked out.
It's quite sad as there seems to be several people here with the background and technical capabilities to dive in and help.

• April 2024 Migration started. That's what, 1 year and 8 months ago. This April it will be TWO YEARS, Not two weeks.
• It's been 5 months since our Leader posted. Just that one post.

I guess I'll just wait for "Someone" to tell me to just keep quiet and be happy for the way things are.

[TrappedinCalifornia]

I think there is NO ONE manning the the site at all. A few moderators have mentioned they have NO new information at all and or locked out.
It's quite sad as there seems to be several people here with the background and technical capabilities to dive in and help.

• April 2024 Migration started. That's what, 1 year and 8 months ago. This April it will be TWO YEARS, Not two weeks.
• It's been 5 months since our Leader posted. Just that one post.

I guess I'll just wait for "Someone" to tell me to just keep quiet and be happy for the way things are.

We've talked about this before. You're free to have your opinion, but you're not free to express it as absolute fact. He's actually tried working with SOME of those 'several people' you cite and, well, you see the results. As you have been repeatedly told, no one is 'happy' with how things are. We simply accept things are what they are.. for now.

Don't like it here? Don't believe in the site anymore? Must have direct communication from TPTB or you simply won't accept the site as functioning, at whatever level? I know you're a member of the 'other' site. Feel free to participate over there and leave the rest of us to keep the site viable while Kestryll works on it. If you won't stop until Kestryll himself posts to you directly... I feel sorry for you.

By the way, Kestryll's last activity is listed as... TODAY. To my way of thinking, that doesn't seem to be indicative of 'no one manning the site at all.'

[calif 15-22]

We've talked about this before. You're free to have your opinion, but you're not free to express it as absolute fact.'

See that’s the funny part as my post started with “I think” as in my opinion, that and I am free to express it as fact until proven otherwise. The fact remains we have not had an update for 5 months. Are we entitle one? Absolutely not this site belongs to Kes and he is free to do or not do as he sees fit.

When this thread gets edited or closed, and or I get a ban for just asking “what’s up”, then sir that would something anything. If those in power chime in at all that is something and then I will cease to ask “what’s up with Calguns “. Until then feel free to just ignore our posts asking for info.

And yes the other site is what it is and I do like the marketplace there.

[calif 15-22]

Sooooo . . . Any updates?

[alaskascottr]

See that’s the funny part as my post started with “I think” as in my opinion, that and I am free to express until proven otherwise. Five months Trapped with nothing posted. …

Easier way is to ‘Ignore’ him. My reading is blissfully Trapped-free (except quotes).

[calif 15-22]

I try not to put anyone on ignore. I should however learn to just not respond. Lol

[OlderThanDirt]

It’s raining and the site is still working. Improvement!

[k1dude]

The last few days have been pretty bad. It seems down most of the time.

[Imageview]

The last few days have been pretty bad. It seems down most of the time.

A lot of it depends on your habits and when you try to log on. There are somewhat consistent patterns as to when it is likely to be available, hence why some people seem to have it be available every time they log on and others see it down more often than not.

[BajaJames83]

I think its all luck.
no ryme or reason to when this **** show is up or down.
Its just a dumpster fire now

[The Gleam]

A lot of it depends on your habits and when you try to log on. There are somewhat consistent patterns as to when it is likely to be available, hence why some people seem to have it be available every time they log on and others see it down more often than not.

Nope. Nothing on the user end has anything to do with it being up or down.

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[TrappedinCalifornia]

Nope. Nothing on the user end has anything to do with it being up or down.

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If a user doesn't try to access it when it seems to often be up, then, to them, it seems to 'always' be down; thus, the chronic complaints and the counter claims.

There is a certain, but not an absolute, consistency as Imageview is indicating. At times, that consistency seems to 'rotate' a bit in terms of the clock. However, there is a modicum of consistency to it in terms of when the site is up vs. when you can't contact it.

The bottom line is that the same members seem to be on at roughly the same time EVERY DAY. So, either they are constantly attempting to get on or there is a certain consistency to the availability where they've paid attention. It's something I've also noted and, like Imageview, received thumbs down over posting it. Remember, the site isn't always available, currently, at a given member's convenience; but there is a cadre who posts EVERY DAY and some who, while not posting each day, do post with some regularity and none of them are ALWAYS just at night.

If you can't adjust to the site, just remember, the site isn't going to adjust to you. Likewise, to me, there are posts being made at times when the site is unreachable, for me. I believe this has been what's led some to speculate that there is a certain 'metering' going on.

Whatever the case, ultimately, if someone is only trying once or twice a day to access the site and their 'timing' is off, the question becomes whether it is the 'user' who is incorrectly claiming the site is down or if the 'user' simply isn't attempting to access the site when it does come up with, plus or minus, a certain regularity. Put another way, the site being up or down (or, more accurately, available to be contacted) isn't contingent upon the user. But, an user's ability to access the site is contingent upon a number of factors, including the user's timing.

[Big Chudungus]

this is the only site I know that is consistently iffty-50 as to whether it works. Its a real mystery. AFAIK its not "down for all users" because I'm not seeing any big "Wow, we all back now" messages.

I bet some nerds would be interested in seeing WTF is going on "under the hood".

[Imageview]

Nope. Nothing on the user end has anything to do with it being up or down.

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You misunderstood I think. If you try to access the site when it is down, it is down. If you try to access it when it is up, it is up. If the site goes down more often around certain times of day, and those happen to be times when you would usually log on, then you will perceive things one way. If you happen to log on at times when it is more likely to be up, then you will perceive things another way. The user's behavior has not influenced the site availability, but it has influenced the user's experience and perceptions.