Great Adventure Outpost
Latest Updates => Outpost News => Site News => Topic started by: WadeJ on June 28, 2008, 03:29:16 PM
-
Before we invest a lot of time in graphics and logos to match the new color scheme, please let us know if you like it. Feel free to leave comments regarding the new layout as well.
-
I'll be honest, I liked it the way it was before...
-
/\ Layout or the color theme?
-
I like the new layout. Pictures of te park's coasters will look great with this color scheme!
-
I like the new layout. Pictures of te park's coasters will look great with this color scheme!
That was the plan ;)
I was figuring on using different coaster photos to indicate read/unread posts, etc.
-
I love it, though my only thing is that the Navigation looks like it should be for Fright Fest of Fahrenheit. :P
Yeah, adding the park to this would be PERFECT! Though I have to admit, Firefox<3
-
And now something is making it load very slooooowly, as happened once before. I am not sure why.
-
And now something is making it load very slooooowly, as happened once before. I am not sure why.
That would be our host pissing me off again. I get alert emails from the forum engine when the database starts to slow down. So I always know when this is happening.
Once again, I'll be pestering them. After all, I do pay them!!!
The slow down has zero to do with the changes though. Its the same code with no upgrades.
-
I was figuring on using different coaster photos to indicate read/unread posts, etc.
That would be sweet. I think the site looks great!
-
I think I like the layout, because the forums are what I think most folks come here for anyway, but I need sunglasses for the color, I liked the cool blue tones better.
-
/\ Layout or the color theme?
The color
-
This morning I am sitting at my monitor sipping iced tea, behaving myself, when a friend looked over my shoulder and said "With colors like that, that thing looks like a porn site!" Hey, it's what she said. I, too, like everything but the color, which is a bit too loud. I agree with the sunglasses comment, too. I love everything else about it.
-
I saw the theme option that was added at the bottom.
Nice...But it doesn't seem to change for me with Firefox 3.0.
-
Firefox 3 IMO isn't/wasn't ready for prime time. While its cool, were having many problems with our clients at work using it. So while I'll look into it, I can honestly say I'm not surprised. The cool thing is, if you change it anywhere; assuming you are logged on, it will remember at any computer you log in at. So change it while logged in using another browser version ;).
-
FYI...It doesn't work on IE6 either. So I don't think it is Firefox 3 this time.
I agree totally on Firefox 3. I won't even go near it with my work computer.
Although it is fast...People haven't found all the issues wit it yet.
The other day I couldn't even place an order on Eddie Bauer.
At least we have IE Tab when it doesn't work right.
Maybe they need Firefox 2.0 Tab!
-
I like the Layout but not much for the Orange
can the screen still be expand ?
i didn't look for it but i know sometimes people post 800x600 pics and they may not fit
-
Yup, next to the search button :)
Actually, that was one of the main purposes of the layout change. Removing the left bar entirely allows for larger pictures to be posted without the need to close the side bars.
Also, since the forums are now the "home" page, the WAP portal is fully function. So if you go to http://gadvupdates.com/wap2 on your phone, you can now use the up one level, message index, etc. without needing to always revert back to the URL.
-
Btw- the orange I agree is a bit of a shocker. However, that was what I was going for. I admit its waaayyy to bright and over the top for day to day use. (or boom, chicka chicka bow wow porn type color as Gadvwow put it LOL) That is why you are welcome to change your theme in the lower right corner.
BUT, for the casual visitor (maybe a link from Screamscape got posted?), you must admit, this is one theme/site you would remember visiting. That is the intention. And being that we hit 81 unique visitors yesterday which is the highest number since last fall at 63, I'd say we got some attention :D
That was the goal. And that was the purpose of this post and the poll so that I could gauge the reaction of the real and true members to make sure I wasn't impacting or upsetting you guys. As long as the layout works for everybody, you can change you theme yourself to the old one if you would like but from here on out, guests that visit will get that BAM affect from the orange.
I also think that once we have themed graphics and elements added it will help break up all the orange as well.
-
Great...except the change isn't taking...
-
Great...except the change isn't taking...
I know it was mentioned somewhere in either this thread or the shoutbox but you are likely using firecrap 3 which breaks nearly every single application at my place of business as well. So if you have IE, logon and change it and then it will also change in firefox. ;)
-
Thanks. That will probably be the only time I use IE this year...
-
Tried that....it did...exactly nothing.
So tried it in Opera.
Also did...nothing.
-
Strange. Let me tinker later. I can't test while on my phone. Maybe just having ff3 installed at the time? Anyway. Its really no biggie. This is just trial/tinkering. I can change it globally in one click ;). I'm just glad everybody likes the layout. That was a bit more work.
So no worries.
-
The up one level function is a nice change Wade
-
Im not trying to be brutal, but I was saying to myself that we needed a facelift. I LOVE the new layout, but would prefer a different color scheme!
[/$.02]
-
Update on the slowness:
My host provider (IpowerWeb) is aware of the problem and is working to resolve the problem on the slowness.
In my opinion, things were rocking when they migrated us to the new server. THEN, they moved way too many other customers onto the shared servers which killed our performance. It seems to go through cycles where its fast and then it completely dies. This indicates somebody else on the same server is doing something very intensive throughout the day.
So hopefully they fix it soon - or I'll be changing host providers lol
As for the theme box, sorry guys, I goofed the permissions!! I'll probably fix that tomorrow. I had no intention of making everybody stick with this theme. I'm glad the new layout works for most of you though.
-
Yay, the blue is back! Much more restful! And not like a Cedar Fair coaster/porn site (is there a difference?)
-
Hahaha, good one GADVwow
Now my eyes are relaxed and i dont feel as stressed
-
Um, crap... sorry about the number of smilelys. I'll be combing through to reduce this list a tad bit. Or figure out a way to only show the first 20 or something LOL
Btw- currently only the original blue ones actually display. I'm working on it but unfortunately have a meeting to get to.
So don't bother with the new ones yet.
;D :D ;) :) :o 8) ::) :P :-[ :-\ :'( :vampire[1]:
-
I noticed in the posting page that after the smileys there are about 100 words
here is an example some have 4 letter words :o
assassin[1] banned[1] beee[1] beta[1] blush2[1] brunette[1] derisive[1] dirol[1] fan_1[1] flood[1] fool[1] fuk[1] good[1] grin[2] haha[1] heart_smiley[1] help[2] hi[1] hunter[1] jester[1] king[1] kiss[1] lazy2[1] lazy3[1] lazy[1] lol[1] love-smiley-086[1] love1[1] mamba[1] mda[1] meeting[1] meowth[1] moil[1] nea[1] new_russian[1] nhl2[1] nhl3[1] nhl[1] nhl_checking[1] nhl_crach[1] nhl_fight[1] no2[1] no[1] nono[1] not_i[1] nyam[1] offtopic[1] ok[1] op[1] orc[1]
-
As I said above, don't try the new ones yet!!!
-
Site has been very slow and got the message:
Connection Problems
Sorry, SMF was unable to connect to the database. This may be caused by the server being busy. Please try again later.
Several times..Seems like the server they put us on is overworked.
-
It just took over 45 seconds to load this page....
-
If I continue getting no results, I'll start posting the transcripts of my online chat sessions with our sucky host, IpowerWeb. It gets rather nasty at times. They give me the same crap every single time. I just logged another ticket this morning and as usual, when they check everything is fine.
Ken, that error you get I also get via email everytime it happens. So I have a record of it each and every time it happens :D
-
^ Agreed, the pages have been loading painfully slow
-
And now its flying again. go figure. They must be reading our posts lol
-
Well, its just my luck that apparantly we aren't alone in the issues with migrating to the new servers.
Imagine my surprise when I looked them up on the BBB's website to find this:
Customer Experience
Based on BBB files, this company has an unsatisfactory record BBB Definition:
unsatisfactory record - A company has an "unsatisfactory business performance record" with the BBB is based on the experiences reflected in BBB files. This file condition results when the company has failed to resolve or respond to complaints, repeatedly failed to respond or resolve issues in a timely manner, failed to resolve the underlying issues for a pattern BBB Definition:
pattern - More than 2 complaints involving the same allegations usually within 12 months that are significant in relation to the company's size and volume of business.
of complaints, failed to honor their commitment to mediate or arbitrate disputes or honor mediated agreements or arbitrated decisions, failed to substantiate, modify or discontinue false advertising claims that are challenged by the BBB, or failed to discontinue unauthorized use of the BBB name and logo, a Federally protected trademark.
with BBB due to one or more unresolved BBB Definition:
unresolved - The company failed to resolve the complaint issues.
complaint(s). However the business has resolved BBB Definition:
resolved - The company resolved the complaint issues.
most complaints presented by BBB.
Ipowerweb is currently transitioning its customers to a new platform. This maneuver is expected to be performed with minimal disruption. In the instance that some customers experience issues, the company has conducted special training for its customer and technical service staff to address such potential situations. Should customers need to report BBB Definition:
report - A summary of activity reflected in a company's BBB file. Includes basic business background, BBB Accreditation information, and BBB complaint activity over the previous three years. Also reports may include any known government actions, advertising issues BBB Definition:
advertising issues - Claims alleging print or electronic media advertised claims or practices misrepresent the service or product offer.
or other information that results from activity conducted by the BBB.
any difficulty during this transition, Ipowerweb requests its customers call 888-511-4678 for assistance prior to filing a report BBB Definition:
report - A summary of activity reflected in a company's BBB file. Includes basic business background, BBB Accreditation information, and BBB complaint activity over the previous three years. Also reports may include any known government actions, advertising issues BBB Definition:
advertising issues - Claims alleging print or electronic media advertised claims or practices misrepresent the service or product offer.
or other information that results from activity conducted by the BBB.
with the BBB.
When considering complaint information, please take into account the company's size and volume of transactions, and understand that the nature of complaints and a firm's responses to them are often more important than the number of complaints.
The BBB processed a total of 388 complaints about this company in the last 36 months, our standard reporting period. Of the total of 388 complaints closed in 36 months, 281 were closed in the last year.
Contract Issues BBB Definition:
Contract Issues - Claim of alleged failure to honor contract or agreement, work performed without authorization, or invalid contract.
Resolved BBB Definition:
Resolved - The company resolved the complaint issues.
5 - Company resolved BBB Definition:
resolved - The company resolved the complaint issues.
the complaint issues. The consumer acknowledged acceptance to the BBB.
3 - Company addressed the complaint issues. The consumer failed to acknowledge acceptance to the BBB.
3 - Company resolved BBB Definition:
resolved - The company resolved the complaint issues.
the complaint issues, but not within the BBB's timeframe.
Administratively Closed BBB Definition:
Administratively Closed - The BBB determined that the complaint could not be satisfactorily settled using standard methods of voluntary dispute resolution
4 - BBB determined that despite the company's reasonable effort to address complaint issues, the consumer remained dissatisfied.
Billing or Collection Issues BBB Definition:
Billing or Collection Issues - Claim alleging billing errors, unauthorized charges, or questionable collection practices.
Resolved BBB Definition:
Resolved - The company resolved the complaint issues.
27 - Company resolved BBB Definition:
resolved - The company resolved the complaint issues.
the complaint issues. The consumer acknowledged acceptance to the BBB.
2 - Company offered a partial (less than 100%) settlement which the consumer accepted.
14 - Company addressed the complaint issues. The consumer failed to acknowledge acceptance to the BBB.
25 - Company resolved BBB Definition:
resolved - The company resolved the complaint issues.
the complaint issues, but not within the BBB's timeframe.
Administratively Closed BBB Definition:
Administratively Closed - The BBB determined that the complaint could not be satisfactorily settled using standard methods of voluntary dispute resolution
5 - BBB determined that despite the company's reasonable effort to address complaint issues, the consumer remained dissatisfied.
8 - BBB determined the company made a reasonable offer to resolve the issues, but the consumer did not accept the offer.
Sales Practice Issues BBB Definition:
Sales Practice Issues - Claims of alleged sales presentations made in person or by telephone that contain misrepresentations of the product or service, high pressure sales practices, failure to disclose key conditions of the offer, and verbal representations not consistent with written contractual terms or agreements.
Resolved BBB Definition:
Resolved - The company resolved the complaint issues.
6 - Company resolved BBB Definition:
resolved - The company resolved the complaint issues.
the complaint issues. The consumer acknowledged acceptance to the BBB.
1 - Company offered a partial (less than 100%) settlement which the consumer accepted.
4 - Company addressed the complaint issues. The consumer failed to acknowledge acceptance to the BBB.
3 - Company resolved BBB Definition:
resolved - The company resolved the complaint issues.
the complaint issues, but not within the BBB's timeframe.
1 - Company resolved BBB Definition:
resolved - The company resolved the complaint issues.
the complaint issues, but not within the BBB's timeframe. The Complainant did not acknowledge acceptance to the BBB.
Administratively Closed BBB Definition:
Administratively Closed - The BBB determined that the complaint could not be satisfactorily settled using standard methods of voluntary dispute resolution
1 - BBB determined the company made a reasonable offer to resolve the issues, but the consumer did not accept the offer.
1 - BBB determined that while the company addressed the complaint issues, the complainant was dissatisfied and the matter was outs
ide the BBB Rules of Arbitration BBB Definition:
Arbitration - http://www.dr.bbb.org/ComSenseAlt/bindArb.asp
.
2 - BBB determined that despite the company's reasonable effort to address complaint issues, the consumer remained dissatisfied.
Delivery Issues BBB Definition:
Delivery Issues - Claims alleging delayed delivery of ordered merchandise.
Resolved BBB Definition:
Resolved - The company resolved the complaint issues.
2 - Company resolved BBB Definition:
resolved - The company resolved the complaint issues.
the complaint issues. The consumer acknowledged acceptance to the BBB.
3 - Company addressed the complaint issues. The consumer failed to acknowledge acceptance to the BBB.
3 - Company resolved BBB Definition:
resolved - The company resolved the complaint issues.
the complaint issues, but not within the BBB's timeframe.
Administratively Closed BBB Definition:
Administratively Closed - The BBB determined that the complaint could not be satisfactorily settled using standard methods of voluntary dispute resolution
1 - BBB determined the company made a reasonable offer to resolve the issues, but the consumer did not accept the offer.
1 - BBB determined that despite the company's reasonable effort to address complaint issues, the consumer remained dissatisfied.
Repair Issues BBB Definition:
Repair Issues - Claims of alleged incorrect diagnosis of a problem, delay in completion of repair, or inferior workmanship.
Resolved BBB Definition:
Resolved - The company resolved the complaint issues.
2 - Company addressed the complaint issues. The consumer failed to acknowledge acceptance to the BBB.
1 - Company resolved BBB Definition:
resolved - The company resolved the complaint issues.
the complaint issues, but not within the BBB's timeframe.
Administratively Closed BBB Definition:
Administratively Closed - The BBB determined that the complaint could not be satisfactorily settled using standard methods of voluntary dispute resolution
1 - BBB determined the company made a reasonable offer to resolve the issues, but the consumer did not accept the offer.
Service Issues BBB Definition:
Service Issues - Claims of alleged delay in completing service, failure to provide promised service, inferior quality of provided service, or damaged merchandise as a result of delivery service.
Resolved BBB Definition:
Resolved - The company resolved the complaint issues.
44 - Company resolved BBB Definition:
resolved - The company resolved the complaint issues.
the complaint issues. The consumer acknowledged acceptance to the BBB.
36 - Company addressed the complaint issues. The consumer failed to acknowledge acceptance to the BBB.
29 - Company resolved BBB Definition:
resolved - The company resolved the complaint issues.
the complaint issues, but not within the BBB's timeframe.
Unresolved BBB Definition:
Unresolved - The company failed to resolve the complaint issues.
1 - Company failed to resolve the complaint issues through the BBB voluntary and self-regulatory process.
Administratively Closed BBB Definition:
Administratively Closed - The BBB determined that the complaint could not be satisfactorily settled using standard methods of voluntary dispute resolution
11 - BBB determined that despite the company's reasonable effort to address complaint issues, the consumer remained dissatisfied.
10 - BBB determined the company made a reasonable offer to resolve the issues, but the consumer did not accept the offer.
1 - The parties could not provide sufficient information to support their positions nor were they agreeable to make reasonable efforts toward resolving the issues of the dispute.
Customer Service Issues BBB Definition:
Service Issues - Claims of alleged delay in completing service, failure to provide promised service, inferior quality of provided service, or damaged merchandise as a result of delivery service.
BBB Definition:
Customer Service Issues - Claims alleging unsatisfactory customer service, including personnel's failure to provide assistance in a timely manner, failure to address or respond to customer dissatisfaction, unavailability for customer support, and/or inappropriate behavior or attitude exhibited by company staff.
Resolved BBB Definition:
Resolved - The company resolved the complaint issues.
29 - Company resolved BBB Definition:
resolved - The company resolved the complaint issues.
the complaint issues. The consumer acknowledged acceptance to the BBB.
19 - Company addressed the complaint issues. The consumer failed to acknowledge acceptance to the BBB.
12 - Company resolved BBB Definition:
resolved - The company resolved the complaint issues.
the complaint issues, but not within the BBB's timeframe.
Unresolved BBB Definition:
Unresolved - The company failed to resolve the complaint issues.
1 - Company failed to resolve the complaint issues through the BBB voluntary and self-regulatory process.
Administratively Closed BBB Definition:
Administratively Closed - The BBB determined that the complaint could not be satisfactorily settled using standard methods of voluntary dispute resolution
23 - BBB determined that despite the company's reasonable effort to address complaint issues, the consumer remained dissatisfied.
2 - BBB determined the company made a reasonable offer to resolve the issues, but the consumer did not accept the offer.
Guarantee or Warranty Issues BBB Definition:
Guarantee or Warranty Issues - Claims alleging failure to honor the terms regarding guarantees or warranties.
Resolved BBB Definition:
Resolved - The company resolved the complaint issues.
1 - Company resolved BBB Definition:
resolved - The company resolved the complaint issues.
the complaint issues. The consumer acknowledged acceptance to the BBB.
Administratively Closed BBB Definition:
Administratively Closed - The BBB determined that the complaint could not be satisfactorily settled using standard methods of voluntary dispute resolution
1 - BBB determined that despite the company's reasonable effort to address complaint issues, the consumer remained dissatisfied.
Product Issues BBB Definition:
Product Issues - Claim alleging a product does not meet the expectations of the complainant, including defective merchandise.
Resolved BBB Definition:
Resolved - The company resolved the complaint issues.
4 - Company resolved BBB Definition:
resolved - The company resolved the complaint issues.
the complaint issues. The consumer acknowledged acceptance to the BBB.
4 - Company addressed the complaint issues. The consumer failed to acknowledge acceptance to the BBB.
Administratively Closed BBB Definition:
Administratively Closed - The BBB determined that the complaint could not be satisfactorily settled using standard methods of voluntary dispute resolution
1 - BBB determined the company made a reasonable offer to resolve the issues, but the consumer did not accept the offer.
4 - BBB determined that despite the company's reasonable effort to address complaint issues, the consumer remained dissatisfied.
Refund or Exchange Issues BBB Definition:
Refund or Exchange Issues - Claim of alleged failure to honor company policy or verbal commitment to provide refunds, exchanges, or credit for products or services.
Resolved BBB Definition:
Resolved - The company resolved the complaint issues.
6 - Company resolved BBB Definition:
resolved - The company resolved the complaint issues.
the complaint issues. The consumer acknowledged acceptance to the BBB.
6 - Company addressed the complaint issues. The consumer failed to acknowledge acceptance to the BBB.
5 - Company resolved BBB Definition:
resolved - The company resolved the complaint issues.
the complaint issues, but not within the BBB's timeframe.
Administratively Closed BBB Definition:
Administratively Closed - The BBB determined that the complaint could not be satisfactorily settled using standard methods of voluntary dispute resolution
3 - BBB determined that despite the company's reasonable effort to address complaint issues, the consumer remained dissatisfied.
2 - BBB determined the company made a reasonable offer to resolve the issues, but the consumer did not accept the offer.
Issue Not Defined
Resolved BBB Definition:
Resolved - The company resolved the complaint issues.
1 - Company resolved BBB Definition:
resolved - The company resolved the complaint issues.
the complaint issues. The consumer acknowledged acceptance to the BBB.
1 - Company resolved BBB Definition:
resolved - The company resolved the complaint issues.
the complaint issues, but not within the BBB's timeframe.
Administratively Closed BBB Definition:
Administratively Closed - The BBB determined that the complaint could not be satisfactorily settled using standard methods of voluntary dispute resolution
2 - BBB determined that despite the company's reasonable effort to address complaint issues, the consumer remained dissatisfied.
-
I just opened a last a final ticket in an attempt to get this resolved. They just seem to keep saying that everything is fine when they check the site. Apparantly they have no clue how to go back and review logs? Either the server itself has issues or there is somebody else on the same shared box that is slamming it with queries.
If this one doesn't get us anywhere I'll be looking for another host to migrate to.
-
Ive seen Updates down at times because of the server issues....
-
Just got a email that claims they "fixed" the problem. Lets see how this goes...
-
The site does seem better now. Please post any sucky load times here. During peak hours, I think 5-10 seconds is acceptable.
-
Agree...Load times are much better. I wonder what the did.
-
Much much better, im satisfied!
At 2AM, I should not have to wait a long time to view pages
-
It still seems to get very very slow at times and then be ok.
Something still isn't right out there in Ipowerweb server land.
-
Wade, I never received this message before, but I got the "Connection Problems
Sorry, SMF was unable to connect to the database. This may be caused by the server being busy. Please try again later. " message.
I wonder if it has anything to do with the heavy picture trip reporty. We seems to have the most pictures in trip reports than any other site I have ever read, except maybe for TPR
-
Nope. It's SQL. Most of the pictures are hosted offsite which doesn't affect Updates. Thanks for posting it though Dan. I'm nagging them every single time its reported.
-
I've started to investigate other hosts to migrate us to with better performance. I have to take many factors into consideration so please be patient with this crap called IPOWERWEB while I go through our options.
Just in case the site gets the axe due to me harrassing them so much, I've been doing frequent backups so that we don't lose anything :D
-
Yeah. It's pretty annoying when I go to update queue times while visiting, just to end up with errors.
-
This morning I applied a few tweaks to SMF to improve performance on slower shared hosts. While it seems great right now, only time will tell if it actually did something.
-
Just made some addtional changes with my host provider (about 10 minutes ago in case you were disconnected) and it seems to have helped. We'll see if it lasts beyond a few hours though.
At least they are actually working with me now :).
-
Thanks for keeping us updated Wade keep up the work!
...Although I dnt understand some of the terms and updates cause they are not in english
-
This morning, for the first time in some time, when attempting to post, I got a 404 error and the site appeared to go down. No pages would load from the database, though the home page would. About five minutes later, all was well again. . . The overall speed is way up over what it has been....almost all of the time.
-
Thanks for chiming in wow. I was hoping it wasn't just me that thought things were running faster. I honestly think we worked out the performance issue and now only have the dissconnect issue to contend with. Thankfully even that has been very limited with I think maybe three times in the last two weeks including today.
Amazing what can happen when a human actually responds that is willing to work with you.
We've got some big upgrades coming soon which is why I got so pissed off when this started happening so I may still keep shopping for another host. At least this is usable now though :D
-
I made another tweak/adjustment per their recommendation to further improve performance. So please keep me posted if you experience brutal load times or complete disconnects. Slowness at times should be acceptable as we are on a shared host. It would cost almost what I pay per year each month if we switched to a dedicated server so I don't think were ready for that right now lol.
It may still be a tad slow at the time of this post as well since I'm in the middle of truncating a table right now.
-
Everything is working fine and when I get home, should work even faster thanks to Verizon FIoS
-
Site seems good the last few days / week
really no slow downs
Robb
what FIOS tier are you on ?
Still nothing in my area but its like 2 miles down the road.
Fast
Up to 10 Mbps/2 Mbps $42.99/month
Faster
Up to 20 Mbps/5 Mbps $52.99/month
Faster Plus
Up to 20 Mbps/20 Mbps $64.99/month (this plan looks nice/affordable)
Fastest
Up to 50 Mbps/20 Mbps $139.95/month (but would love this plan)
Comcast should be boosting by the end of the year and into next to 50 Mbps (or so they say)
I'm in around 16 to 28 (average 21) at times but my uploads suck at 1.5
www.speedtest.net
-
I'm on the 20/20 plan and it rocks. The biggest issue I've seen is that the vast majority of sites/servers you are hitting can't keep up with that anyway.
And I got the 20/20 bundled with a triple play so I'm not paying anywhere close to 65 bucks for internet :D
-
I have no idea. I'm getting the freedom bundle. When the guy comes to install everything I will know more. Finally I am able to tell time warner where to go
-
Since I just got the server error a moment ago, it reminded me to let you guys know that I have purchased a new plan through a different host. So far in testing it seems to run very nice.
News and details will be coming soon when we are ready to move the current site over :D
-
FIOS Should defeat anything you throw at me :D