I just lost yet another post to the “too many users” bug. Yeah, yeah, I know, “compose in notepad and then C&P to the page.” I’ve been writing computer programs for more than two decades. If I ever tried to slough off a bug like that I would be fired, and deservedly so. Every program I’ve worked on, if we find a serious bug, we’ll work around the clock to fix it.
It’s becoming more and more irritating to be told, “oh, we’re either too incompetant or cheap to bother to fix major bugs in core functionality, just work around it.” I know (all too well) that all software has bugs. But I’m not talking the font size too big or the colors not being right, I’m talking about message board software that loses posts and is impossible at times to load.
These problems are not the fault of the Chicago Reader. They’re newspaper publishers, not computer programmers. But this message board is part of their public image; I’m surprised they’re willing to present such a cheesy and half-assed image.
I’m disappointed with customers demanding nothing less than mediocrity and digusted with the members of my profession for unfailingly providing it.
Not to take anything away from your post, SD, but as I’ve yet to encounter the problem even once, the board in no way indicates to me a “cheesy and half-assed image.” You code–you know better than most that the one of the biggest problems in debugging code is replicability.
Maybe I’ve just gotten lucky, but I imagine if I’ve never had the problem, odds are that there are others who haven’t as well. For us, at least, it’s not a matter of being apathetic.
FWIW, all my posts have gone through even when I get the “too many users” page. The only time they haven’t gone through is when an incoming call disconnects me the second after I hit Submit Reply. I don’t know if we still have a CGI, but if we do, baby, I still trust it.
BUT, I must say I’m getting sick and tired of the nightly 20 minute downloads for a SINGLE frickin page of SD posts!(and that’s on a T1 line!)
I’ve heard it’s attributed to a bad router, but a week should be enough time to remedy the situation! If it’s the software, take care of the problem, and if it’s the router, do something about it!
It seems to be strangely dependent on where you are posting from. It’s a bit slow from work, no matter when I post–with a T1 line!–but fast as anything from home (with a 56k).
FWIW, the “too many users” is not a bug, as I understand it; I believe the software can only be set to handle a certain number of user-activities at one time. You can bump up the number, but that comes at the cost of slowing down the software in general (even when the maximum limit is not reached). They’re trying to find a “happy medium”.
All told, I still think it’s a damn sight better than when the board would crash twice a day and be glacier-slow for about 1/3 of the rest of the time. I’d like things to be speedy and crashproof all the time, but we’re a huge BB and we seem to strain the very limits of every system we use. As Lynn said, let us know if you find some cool (and cheap) new software that can handle forums of our size.
Gaudere - agreed. I’ve had exactly the same experience - the connection from home (56k) loads pages in no time, while at work (multiple T1, T3) pages can take way too long. This may have to do with the network (routers) here, not at the SDMB side. All kinds of things can be done to prioritize traffic on a router, while sticking other types of traffic in the lowest priority.
Single Dad, I know what you’re saying. Been playing around with computers for a living the last 18 years. I hate it when serious problems are left unsolved. This one has come up a few times, BUT, the post has always gone through in my case. The browser youuu use may also make a difference, I have IE 5, also Nav 4.7 seems to work. Good luck, avoid frustration at all costs.
Sili
Let me suggest that those experiencing a bug go to the vBulletin web site and lobby on their forums to have the bug corrected. If it’s already a verified fix in a newer version of vBulletin then let us know. If it becomes a verified fix in a future release then let us know as well. Your assistance in being the advocate for your requested changes via Jelsoft Enterprises would be much appreciated.
