Know Your Xixax: Donation begging and site news

Jeremy Blackman · December 30, 2018, 05:43:34 PM

Seems to be the same today. Server is fine during non-busy times, but during the peak hours it basically shuts down.

I can reliably (and I mean 100% reliably) access the forum for about 20 seconds if I end all our processes, but then they start up again and Godaddy is like nope this modest number of processes is simply too much activity right now. I'm guessing another website on our shared server is out of control. I'll try to open a chat with them sometime soon, but it's offline right now. (Side note, I like how they have an entire section called "Open a Ticket," but they've long discontinued tickets—it's all live chat or phone now.)

Steadily trying new installs on our new host, but as I expected, tech support is slow to correspond on this holiday weekend.

I would still expect some rough times for the next week.

Jeremy Blackman · December 30, 2018, 06:14:35 PM

Tried something new. Fingers crossed.

Jeremy Blackman · December 30, 2018, 06:29:23 PM

It will be hilarious if this works (which it has so far). There was a file error discovered by tech support at our new host. So I simply made that change here too.

Drenk · December 30, 2018, 06:33:53 PM

I want to believe.

wilberfan · December 30, 2018, 06:36:55 PM

I'm enjoying this story unfold way more than several "First" movies I've seen this year.

Jeremy Blackman · December 30, 2018, 07:38:24 PM

Tentatively planning to migrate the site to our new server on Saturday, January 12. The site could be down for at least a day, maybe up to 3 or 4. (They say to underpromise and overdeliver.) By then I will have done enough testing to make it smooth, though, hopefully.

wilberfan · December 30, 2018, 08:21:32 PM

We're behind you with homemade swords and shields (cobbled together from old VHS tapes and DVDs). One need but give the clarion call to join the battle and we'll be there for you.

Jeremy Blackman · December 31, 2018, 02:55:20 PM

Still getting some 503 errors today. Based on everything I know, this is probably Godaddy's fault, and there's not much we can do right now. Certainly there are no more modifications I can think to make to our files.

Between now and the migration, we may be turning off the shoutbox periodically. The shoutbox is not the source of our issues, but it uses a lot of resources, and Godaddy is more likely to keep our site up when it's not running.

Jeremy Blackman · December 31, 2018, 08:09:54 PM

Clearly, waiting until Jan 12 is a bad idea. Definitely migrating sooner.

If my tests continue to go well, I may take the site down at any point this week. When I do that I will include some sort of informative message, but don't be surprised if Xixax is down for a good chunk of this week. Probably starting this Saturday at the very latest.

Will give some amount of warning, but maybe not much.

Jeremy Blackman · December 31, 2018, 09:19:19 PM

Without boring you with the details, my tests on the new host are going very, very well. Really optimistic about this change.

wilberfan · January 01, 2019, 02:54:16 PM

Has the search function been disabled or compromised? I did a search for "favourite" (deliberate spelling) and there were zero results--despite an entire thread on the film.

Jeremy Blackman · January 01, 2019, 02:57:00 PM

Quote from: wilberfan on January 01, 2019, 02:54:16 PM
Has the search function been disabled or compromised? I did a search for "favourite" (deliberate spelling) and there were zero results--despite an entire thread on the film.

That's odd. It works when I search for it:

Jeremy Blackman · January 01, 2019, 02:58:36 PM

Update on my testing...

Theme

We'll have a new responsive mobile-friendly theme.

Big changes for avatars: They have to be a bit smaller, and (hold your breath) circle or oval-shaped. (Sneak peak below.) I know this could be hard to adjust to, but it actually does help with mobile-friendlyness.

To compensate, I'll allow images to be used in signatures. I think a 400x160 limit looks good from the testing I did. Perfect for an anamorphic screenshot! If you're not thrilled with a circular profile pic, think of this as your new avatar. Signature images are not shown on mobile devices, though.

Modifications

I re-installed and tested all relevant mods and did not run into any issues.

The upvoting mod we use has not been updated in many years and strictly speaking is not compatible with the current updates. So I don't think it should be installed. It doesn't seem that any other good upvoting mods are available. The core/default karma system is bad.

Our current beloved shoutbox will transfer right over. It's not entirely mobile-friendly, but it's passable. Still the best shoutbox from what I can see.

These important embedding mods also work:

- Youtube embed
- Vimeo embed
- Soundcloud embed

Jeremy Blackman · January 02, 2019, 11:20:14 AM

Planning to take the site down today. The transfer will probably take at least a day.

Something Spanish · January 03, 2019, 01:25:06 PM

Nice job, JB. Appreciate you, sir.