The site is only available briefly while most people are asleep, so it is and has been, for all intents and purposes... dead since the summer.  It's on an unsupported platform so the casual observer might conclude that there is no maintenance being done and we shouldn't be surprised if it just disappears one day.  People have been donating regularly to the site for many years so that begs the obvious question about the obvious err elephant in the room. What was all the $$ used for ?  


No opportunity in 4+ months for a quick post explaining the exact issue and what's being done about it? Geez, I hope they're OK.



There are experienced IT types among the membership here but how would that work ?  Someone dons their pirate uniform and commandeers the site from the hosting company ?  

W3JN has responded several times in different forums and is well aware of the problem
The other two administrators, K4HX and KA1KAQ, the last time they were here was after 9:30 PM EST in November when most of the time the web site has typically awaken.  K4HX is the chief cook and bottle washer. I sent him several e-mails some time ago to the e-mail addresses I found and received no response.

I could be, the software being so old, is running on life support (cross your fingers and pray). Generally, when the Error 500 flag goes up, both the webmaster(is there one even here?) and the host company generally need to get together and solve the problem. Since security protocols on servers has escalated over the last several years, it could be that old software and new protocols aren't very compatible and stuff doesn't work all the time and/or breaks.

Don't know: but, it could be the administrator(s) have many other important personal day to day tasks and the web site doesn't command a high priority for them especially for the time involved to fix, upgrade, manage, etc.

It might be time to pass the baton to someone, who could step forward, to take the reins, to manage, plan, get web site creative, maybe create some member cost initiatives (money reserve for maintenance and support), and thrust amfone.net into the 21st century.  

it may be a while before anyone hears from an admin.  Out of the 3 most active admins, 2 have not logged in for over a month. The third logged in just over a week ago.

Did your idea work out?
I was'nt completely kidding with Bell system Western electric...relay/tube technology,
Relay logic is at least... as interesting as computer logic..
Fun project,
good luck.

 

I am only an occasional poster, but I do come by and read the tech posts fairly often.   Recently its been down quite a bit, so much so that I thought it might have been shutting down permanently.   It would definitely be a shame if this site went down.   If the problems are financial in nature I'd think many here including myself would gladly help.

Bill, Thanks for the great laff about the poop.   I've scooped out a few shovels of that myself.    Like you said, it makes you a little cautious.

   It's winter, what I consider "radio season," and I've got plenty of projects in the works and plans to share them all on this forum, but with the site up and down (mostly down), it's discouraging. But, I'm holding out hope that it will be resolved, and I'm not giving up yet. I did a brief stint in IT work, mainly as a humble desktop support and network tech, but it was twenty years ago, and my knowledge is both outdated and largely forgotten. I wish I could suggest something that might help.

And then there are those projects that, in the long run, you wish you'd never started. I have a Simplicity riding mower that I inherited from my father; essentially in working order other than a few minor fixes. The first time I used it, I noticed a slight vibration when engaging the mower deck. Feeling what I thought, or imagined to be, a slight run-out in the arbor bearings, I pulled the whole mower deck apart, figuring I'd replace the bearings quite easily. Whether it's a radio, an engine, a piece of machinery, or a bit of household plumbing, inanimate objects laugh at you when you make assumptions like that. It's subtle, almost inaudible, but they laugh. The drive pulley, and the bolt that secures it to the arbor, were rust-welded in place. The only way to get the whole thing apart and removed from the bearing housing was to cut the arbor with my reciprocating saw, but only after I'd first destroyed the pulley in my attempts to remove it, initiating a long and tedious parts search that is still ongoing. Bottom line: it was working fine; the problem was minor, or maybe even imaginary, and I should have left it alone.
The broken rotary switch in my G-50 wasn't imaginary, and the project certainly isn't a waste of time, but I'm careful these days about diving headlong into rabbit holes when sometimes all you find at the bottom of that hole is rabbit poop.

I been lurking, maybe I get in 25% of the time.

I have yet to hear much about the technical issues of why this web forum is struggling to stay on the air. I am not a network/website guy, but I bet we have many on our roster. Did our admin talent go away, and if not, just what is happening? I think some transparency instead of sarcasm could benefit the members, and get the troops fired up in an effort to help.

Here in Texas, AM is good, and growing. People regularly meet using am on 3725 (8pm CST almost 7 days a week), 3740 7PM Wednesdays, 3740 7am M-F, 3890 6am to past 7am M-F, 3890 sat 7am, 7160 sat 11am-12:30pm, 7160 most days at 2pm. There is more, sometimes past 7:30 am on 3875, or 3880.

Jim
Wd5JKO

Just maybe, if the forum was at 80 pct or better uptime it would get some action.  Hard to post somewhere with a 500 error during almost all waking hours.  That really limits your audience.

It's time for introspection.  QRZ and Facebook am forums are going great.  With a lot of people who used to be regulars here.

Why are they gone? 

A tyrant can ruin a web forum just as fast as 500 errors.

Making flippant statements when supporting members are asking why the website is usually down now doesnt help to get people to come back.  Or making zero statements whatsoever.

Happy Holidays.   Here's to AMFone being around another year.

--Shane
WP2ASS