Residents' Association Forum

This is a heads-up that from 1 May, hosting company 1&1 are discontinuing support for the database version used by this forum software.  It's not yet clear to me whether the db will continue to work as it is, or would still work under the more recent db version.  

There may be interruptions as I test options, and conceivably the forum could go down altogether on 1 May until I install another one - whereupon members would almost certainly have to re-register and start afresh (the password encryption algorithm has also changed in the new version of the forum software).  There is something to be said for a fresh start, as the number of attempted spammer registrations is rowing to be insupportable.

Would a fresh start mean we lose all the past threads? That would be a shame.

Or do you think you would be able to migrate them (at least to be able to search through etc)?

With some cursing I have today managed to migrate the lot 'as is' to a new MySQL5 database.

However, there might be bugs either in the forum or on our groups page or business index.  In which case, let me know exactly what the bug and error message is.

The next problem is to see if I can customise the registration process to reduce the vast number of infernal attempted registrations by spammers, now maybe 200 per day.  But Simple Machines' code is not easy to deobfuscate...

Trying out a new filter - let's see.  If there are problems for genuine new registrants, they may email me : webmaster@residents-association.com

... my non-standard modification appears to be working.  No spambots got past during the last 36hrs, one new registrant (and several tests) successfully registered.  So far so good.  It will save me about 15 mins work per day.

How much work do you do?

Averaged out over the months, maintaining and monitoring the website adds up to about three or four hours a week and researching and adding news items around five hours a week.  Migrating the databases and coding a spammer trap took me about six hours over the past few days (could have taken ages but it went surprisingly well with few bugs).

Lately, as you've noticed, I have not been as active as usual adding news.  That's because I have a lot to do in other areas of (family) admin, and frankly I get fed up with sitting in front of a computer sometimes.  

The site was coded up as a mere six pages in 2005; fortunately I planned ahead for scaleability and it's stood up well.  But I'd like to give it a complete overhaul in the light of operating experience, and code up a fresh one that would enable more colleagues in the Association to post their own material rather than sending it to me to process.  However, I estimate that would take about three months' work including coding, testing and content.  Meanwhile I have played with a couple of ready-made open-source applications (joomla and wordpress) but they all have disadvantages.

Any recasting of the website has to wait until I have handed on the editorship of TD Today.  Unfortunately nobody suitable has as yet stepped forward to take that on....

Alternatively, if anyone would like to take the website on....... experience in HTML / PHP / JavaScript and basic database/MySQL required.

Thats an awful lot of work!!!! I appreciate it and am sure others do. I can't offer to help as both are way beyond my capability! Have you thought about a group of people maybe taking the magazine on? It might not be so daunting then. Another option might be to pay someone to do it. I would be willing to pay more for my membership if it meant freeing you up. Would others be?

Yes I would happily contribute a fee for the magazine and/or maintenance of this website. I too appreciate the amount of work it must be to maintain this website alone (and no free time to offer to help).

Erm - I suppose I should also pay my subs for this year... oops... can't remember if I have or have not!

Would be so much easier if we could do it via online transfer !

;)

Yes, that's one of the things I'd look at setting up on a revamped version of this site.  But not until the RA has taken out a credit card and with that, its own web hosting account (I include the hosting since the beginning of the site on my own web hosting account with 1 & 1 for the Association, gratis).  And not until I have passed on the magazine.....

It's best to keep these things voluntary.  Including the voluntary contributions towards the cost of the mag, which is partly met through advertising and partly by member donations (there's a place on the subscription form to donate).

Might we find a third party, for instance, a technology company based in the village who might like to support the whole site?  We often see their vans parked around TD indeed my company use them.  Does anyone know personally the owners?

Our hosting company are discontinuing support for PHP4 in which much of the code for the back end of this website is written, and we are migrating to PHP 5.2 or 5.4.  I have just made the switch here to PHP5.4 and it looks OK so far, but there may be some new little problem somewhere....  If you get a website malfunction, please be sure to copy exactly the error message that appears, and email me with it, together with the page you were on and what your last instruction was that led to the malfunction.

I think it's most probably a case of PEBKAC but I tried replying to Keith on the garage development thread and went I went to look it was an empty post!

Don't think its your code change though... lets see if this reply works!

So further to my above post - its definately a 'bug' that has crept in and not me being a PEBKAC!

Phew!

I think I've worked out that the bug occurs more often when quoting than not?

i.e. if I just reply it seems to be ok but when I try and quote - it seems sometimes (most of the time?) I get the mysterious blank post!

So the above worked ! I am now going to post again but this time quote your last message...

 

And the above is blank when I tried to 'quote' you...

To prove this definately the issue can someone else try and quote and reply?

How's about that then?
Midibob

Here's another...

The bug has cropped up for me when I try to modify a post, then re-save.  But in either case it does not seem to be 100% reproducible - yet!  Gah!

Bummer!

This erratic and inconsistent bug seems to have disappeared in the last two weeks 'of its own accord' - I can't claim credit.  Let me know if there are further instances.

Our web hosts have stopped supporting PHP 5.0 and it is quite possible that you may experience glitches when posting or registering in the forum.  If this is the case, please let me know, giving:

1. the url of the page on which you had a problem

2.  the nature of the problem

3.  The exact circumstances that produced the error and any error message (verbatim) that the system threw.

Could not post on the south worst trains thread.

I understand that you tried to copy in text from the clipboard.  I have had the same problem since the PHP version changed.  I can't identify its source in the code, as there is no error message to give a clue as to which file and line number causes the error.