# Are there other Dopers who would rather deal with occasional downtime... **URL:** \ **Category:** About This Message Board\ **Created:** [March 22, 2008, 7:44am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/are-there-other-dopers-who-would-rather-deal-with-occasional-downtime/442322 "2008-03-22T07:44:54Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 2
**Author:** ![pravnik](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/8edcca/32.png) [@pravnik](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/pravnik)\ **Post date:** [March 22, 2008, 5:45pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/are-there-other-dopers-who-would-rather-deal-with-occasional-downtime/442322/21 "2008-03-22T17:45:58Z")
Yeah, I actually thought about starting this thread myself. The timeouts are only a minor nuisance - if the board isn’t working, no big deal, just do something else for a while and come back later, go play outside, work, whatever. I really couldn’t get worked up over it. Not having the search function…well, I’m strill not exactly worked up, but it’s aggravating. The worst is in GQ, since the same questions tend to get asked over and over. Someone asks a GQ you already wrote a lengthy answer to a year ago and you can’t search to link to your answer, so you have to either spend a half hour rewriting it every time someone asks it again or just let it go. ---
**Author:** ![Campion](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/4491bb/32.png) [@Campion](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Campion)\ **Post date:** [March 22, 2008, 6:29pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/are-there-other-dopers-who-would-rather-deal-with-occasional-downtime/442322/22 "2008-03-22T18:29:28Z")
[QUOTE=pravnik] The worst is in GQ, since the same questions tend to get asked over and over. Someone asks a GQ you already wrote a lengthy answer to a year ago and you can’t search to link to your answer, so you have to either spend a half hour rewriting it every time someone asks it again or just let it go. [/QUOTE] Yeah, I’ve been tempted to go start threads like “But when can the cops search your car?” and “Why do lawyers not always object to things?” and “Why does the Supreme Court get to decide what they are allowed to decide?” just to get things started. > [@GorillaMan](#): > > Not necessarily - some of us who spend all day here 🙂 do so by using the ‘new posts’ search to keep track of the last few minutes or hours of replies. But at least for you, there’s compensation in faster board time, yes? For me, there’s no compensation for lack of search ability since I didn’t really notice issues with board performance. But I agree with you that the lack of “New Posts” searchability sucks bigtime. ---
**Author:** ![Freddy\_the\_Pig](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/a587f6/32.png) [@Freddy\_the\_Pig](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Freddy_the_Pig)\ **Post date:** [March 22, 2008, 6:43pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/are-there-other-dopers-who-would-rather-deal-with-occasional-downtime/442322/23 "2008-03-22T18:43:02Z")
[QUOTE=pravnik] The worst is in GQ, since the same questions tend to get asked over and over. [/QUOTE] Yep. The next time somebody asks whether the Queen of England still has any power, whether Bill Clinton can run for Vice President, or why all the primaries aren’t held on the same day, it will have to be answered from scratch. But not by me, that’s for sure. ---
**Author:** ![Scarlett67](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/scarlett67/32/7387_2.png) [@Scarlett67](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Scarlett67)\ **Post date:** [March 22, 2008, 8:15pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/are-there-other-dopers-who-would-rather-deal-with-occasional-downtime/442322/24 "2008-03-22T20:15:13Z")
[QUOTE=pravnik] The timeouts are only a minor nuisance - if the board isn’t working, no big deal, just do something else for a while and come back later, go play outside, work, whatever. I really couldn’t get worked up over it. Not having the search function…well, I’m strill not exactly worked up, but it’s aggravating. [/QUOTE] This is my feeling too. And I surf the boards using New Posts. I can pull up each forum that interests me (I don’t usually bother with SD columns/staff reports and GD) in a new tab and go from there, but it’s a bit of a pain in the ass. ---
**Author:** ![Lumpy](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/lumpy/32/446_2.png) [@Lumpy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Lumpy)\ **Post date:** [March 22, 2008, 8:16pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/are-there-other-dopers-who-would-rather-deal-with-occasional-downtime/442322/25 "2008-03-22T20:16:03Z")
[QUOTE=Zsofia] Absolutely. I don’t subscribe to threads, I search for my name! I’m sure I’ve lost tons of threads I was participating in or even _started_ (I had almost forgotten people were helping me with my kitchen!) and I’ve come entirely unhinged from the community. I’m definitely participating less. Although maybe that’s the pan. [/QUOTE] Thirded! That’s what I use search for 95% of the time. Surely a dedicated “your posts” search would demand fewer resources than a general search? ---
**Author:** ![Rysto](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/ecccb3/32.png) [@Rysto](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Rysto)\ **Post date:** [March 22, 2008, 8:43pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/are-there-other-dopers-who-would-rather-deal-with-occasional-downtime/442322/26 "2008-03-22T20:43:07Z")
[QUOTE=Least Original User Name Ever] I don’t search very much. I can see how it’d be useful to have it…if that’s how you surfed the Dope. I don’t see why it has to be an “either or” proposition. Why can’t it be both? Aren’t less successful messageboards equipped with both? [/QUOTE] See [this post](http://boards.straightdope.com/sdmb/showpost.php?p=9603564&postcount=191) by me for an explanation of the problem. The executive summary is that a new server, entirely dedicated to handling searches, might well be the only solution. ---
**Author:** ![Savannah](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/b3f665/32.png) [@Savannah](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Savannah)\ **Post date:** [March 22, 2008, 9:12pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/are-there-other-dopers-who-would-rather-deal-with-occasional-downtime/442322/27 "2008-03-22T21:12:29Z")
[QUOTE=Cazzle] The loss of the “New Posts” link has dramatically changed the way I use the boards. I would prefer the occasional outage to the loss of that function. [/QUOTE] Me, too. ---
**Author:** ![tirial](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/ac91a4/32.png) [@tirial](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/tirial)\ **Post date:** [March 22, 2008, 9:25pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/are-there-other-dopers-who-would-rather-deal-with-occasional-downtime/442322/28 "2008-03-22T21:25:42Z")
[QUOTE=Rysto] See [this post](http://boards.straightdope.com/sdmb/showpost.php?p=9603564&postcount=191) by me for an explanation of the problem. The executive summary is that a new server, entirely dedicated to handling searches, might well be the only solution. [/QUOTE] Why a new server - why not simply a new cloned database dedicated to search? For other options vBulletin can also work with Oracle or Sybase, both of which handle more simultaneous users than MySQL (the estimate for Oracle backed vBulletin was around 10K). ---
**Author:** ![Khadaji](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/k/9e8a1a/32.png) [@Khadaji](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Khadaji)\ **Post date:** [March 22, 2008, 9:56pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/are-there-other-dopers-who-would-rather-deal-with-occasional-downtime/442322/29 "2008-03-22T21:56:27Z")
This is my opinion only and not meant as judgment of others: The whole thing is a big old meh for me. I view the boards as a hobby and a small part of my life. The loss of the \*search new posts \*feature is annoying, but doesn’t \*really \*change the quality of my life. If it goes on for many months it may be that it will become too annoying for me to endure and I’ll stop posting. But for now, I’ll sit and wait until they fix the boards. ---
**Author:** ![Czarcasm](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/czarcasm/32/4050_2.png) [@Czarcasm](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Czarcasm)\ **Post date:** [March 22, 2008, 11:22pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/are-there-other-dopers-who-would-rather-deal-with-occasional-downtime/442322/30 "2008-03-22T23:22:27Z")
Moving thread from IMHO to ATMB. ---
**Author:** ![Siam\_Sam](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/d78d45/32.png) [@Siam\_Sam](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Siam_Sam)\ **Post date:** [March 23, 2008, 2:02am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/are-there-other-dopers-who-would-rather-deal-with-occasional-downtime/442322/31 "2008-03-23T02:02:28Z")
I could tolerate some down time if it meant getting the Search back, and of course New Posts. That’s IF a solution is not otherwise imminent. They said an announcement would be made in “a day or so,” and it’s been close to a week now; maybe something’s about to happen. ---
**Author:** ![Tuckerfan](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/eada6e/32.png) [@Tuckerfan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Tuckerfan)\ **Post date:** [March 23, 2008, 2:10am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/are-there-other-dopers-who-would-rather-deal-with-occasional-downtime/442322/32 "2008-03-23T02:10:17Z")
[QUOTE=Siam Sam] I could tolerate some down time if it meant getting the Search back, and of course New Posts. That’s IF a solution is not otherwise imminent. They said an announcement would be made in “a day or so,” and it’s been close to a week now; maybe something’s about to happen. [/QUOTE] You mean like Hell freezing over? ---
**Author:** ![blondebear](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/blondebear/32/1022_2.png) [@blondebear](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/blondebear)\ **Post date:** [March 23, 2008, 2:21am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/are-there-other-dopers-who-would-rather-deal-with-occasional-downtime/442322/33 "2008-03-23T02:21:31Z")
I’m used to the board being slow. Bring back the search function. Please. ---
**Author:** ![alterego](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/6bbea6/32.png) [@alterego](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/alterego)\ **Post date:** [March 23, 2008, 3:26am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/are-there-other-dopers-who-would-rather-deal-with-occasional-downtime/442322/34 "2008-03-23T03:26:15Z")
[QUOTE=Rysto] See [this post](http://boards.straightdope.com/sdmb/showpost.php?p=9603564&postcount=191) by me for an explanation of the problem. The executive summary is that a new server, entirely dedicated to handling searches, might well be the only solution. [/QUOTE] [I believe I have found such a server!](http://www.google.com) ---
**Author:** ![Bobotheoptimist](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/919ad9/32.png) [@Bobotheoptimist](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Bobotheoptimist)\ **Post date:** [March 23, 2008, 4:45am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/are-there-other-dopers-who-would-rather-deal-with-occasional-downtime/442322/35 "2008-03-23T04:45:41Z")
[QUOTE=AHunter3] “New Posts” is how I browse the board. I can go for months without clicking on actual forum titles. Well, used to could. [/QUOTE] Yeah, what **AHunter** said. ---
**Author:** ![Tabithina](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/f04885/32.png) [@Tabithina](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Tabithina)\ **Post date:** [March 23, 2008, 5:55pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/are-there-other-dopers-who-would-rather-deal-with-occasional-downtime/442322/36 "2008-03-23T17:55:24Z")
I also would rather have downtime than do without the search function. I seldom post, but I come here to get intelligent answers on all kinds of topics just about every day, and search out older threads rather than make a duplicate thread of my own. I also like to get people’s take on current events, so I hunt for threads by keyword. Boardreader will not help me with that, since the threads there are all at least a week old. I also browse the boards with the New Posts feature, and I miss it terribly. Not having search for much longer could be a dealbreaker for me. I paid _specifically_ to have it. I don’t care about being comped for the downtime; I just want my search function back. ☹ ---
**Author:** ![Larry\_Borgia](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/larry_borgia/32/156_2.png) [@Larry\_Borgia](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Larry_Borgia)\ **Post date:** [March 23, 2008, 7:51pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/are-there-other-dopers-who-would-rather-deal-with-occasional-downtime/442322/37 "2008-03-23T19:51:05Z")
Another vote in support of the OP’s position. ---
**Author:** ![rowrrbazzle](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/rowrrbazzle/32/414_2.png) [@rowrrbazzle](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/rowrrbazzle)\ **Post date:** [March 23, 2008, 7:52pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/are-there-other-dopers-who-would-rather-deal-with-occasional-downtime/442322/38 "2008-03-23T19:52:10Z")
I don’t post very often, but I post more than I search. I don’t use “find new posts”, and I search for my own posts infrequently. But when I search, it’s because that’s best way I know to get what I’m looking for. Of course, the irony in all this is that the search is far from perfect. It sometimes doesn’t find information you know is there because the index is screwed up. But imperfect tool that it is, it’s still useful and important. Important enough for me to consider not renewing. ---
**Author:** ![Sampiro](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/2acd7d/32.png) [@Sampiro](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Sampiro)\ **Post date:** [March 23, 2008, 9:25pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/are-there-other-dopers-who-would-rather-deal-with-occasional-downtime/442322/39 "2008-03-23T21:25:53Z")
[QUOTE=rowrrbazzle] But imperfect tool that it is, it’s still useful and important. Important enough for me to consider not renewing. [/QUOTE] I don’t think I’ve ever said I was considering not renewing, but I’ll have to join the ‘if search isn’t fixed I’ll consider it’ crowd. There’s really no incentive without it. ---
**Author:** ![Dead\_Badger](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/848f3c/32.png) [@Dead\_Badger](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Dead_Badger)\ **Post date:** [March 23, 2008, 10:54pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/are-there-other-dopers-who-would-rather-deal-with-occasional-downtime/442322/40 "2008-03-23T22:54:42Z")
I don’t think there’s been any suggestion from the admins that they consider this a permanent state of affairs; questions of choosing between search and downtime seem premature to me. I think they’re perfectly aware that this needs fixing. The problem is more that each time the board goes down, there’s a certain risk of data corruption which could eventually be catastrophic. Far preferable, I’m sure you’d agree, to go without search for a week or two rather than have the database irretrievably knackered. I’m certainly not one of the “subscriptions are cheap, any shit level of service is acceptable” gang, but I think we can stand to wait a bit more than a week before assuming search is not coming back. This is after all an intrinsic problem with vBulletin that we’re experiencing, so we can probably afford TPTB a bit more time to come up with a solution. At least wait until **Ed Zotti** comes back with something definitive, eh? [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/are-there-other-dopers-who-would-rather-deal-with-occasional-downtime/442322.md?page=1) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/are-there-other-dopers-who-would-rather-deal-with-occasional-downtime/442322.md?page=3)