Tech: Problems connecting with Mudcat

Subject: BS: Problems connecting with Mudcat
From: Fiolar
Date: 21 Sep 03 - 05:50 AM

I have had problems connecting with Mudcat several times over the past few weeks. I get various messages such as "unavailable". Does any body else have the same problem? I thought it might be my firewall but the access seems OK today.

Subject: RE: BS: Problems connecting with Mudcat
From: old git
Date: 21 Sep 03 - 05:59 AM

i couldn't get on yesterday either

Subject: RE: BS: Problems connecting with Mudcat
From: Little Robyn
Date: 21 Sep 03 - 07:14 AM

Check the gaps in the times at the side - it becomes obvious that no-one has been able to get on at certain times. I thought it was just me until I saw the spaces with no messages.
Robyn

Subject: RE: BS: Problems connecting with Mudcat
From: Joybell
Date: 21 Sep 03 - 07:17 AM

I thought it was just me too. Good to know it's not.

Subject: RE: BS: Problems connecting with Mudcat
From: running.hare
Date: 21 Sep 03 - 07:43 AM

No I've had major probs too...

The Question is does anyone know why?

Subject: RE: BS: Problems connecting with Mudcat
From: Jeri
Date: 21 Sep 03 - 07:48 AM

I couldn't get on at all yesterday until night. I kept getting a message that the dns server couldn't associate the name 'www.mudcat.org' with an address, but then I get that message sometimes when Mudcat's down. I could ping the server though, and when I DID get on I noticed other people had been posting all day! (See Messages by Date and check yesterday's - 20 Sep.)

This could have been my timing, but I doubt it. It might have been some glitch with the name/address that propagated through the system but didn't reach everybody. It could have been a router problem. It could have been goblins.

Subject: RE: BS: Problems connecting with Mudcat
From: artbrooks
Date: 21 Sep 03 - 10:15 AM

I expect the basic problem over the past 2 days has been the hurricane that rolled through the east-central US. It caused a lot of power failures.

Subject: RE: BS: Problems connecting with Mudcat
From: Allan C.
Date: 21 Sep 03 - 11:15 AM

I'll go with the router problems as the source of the difficulty. I'm sure Isabel had something to do with it. I've also experienced 6 to 10 hour delays in receiving emails.

Subject: RE: BS: Problems connecting with Mudcat
From: tuggy mac
Date: 21 Sep 03 - 12:38 PM

tried yesterday with new p c . thought it was a bummer p c.

Glad its not!

Subject: RE: BS: Problems connecting with Mudcat
From: Leadfingers
Date: 21 Sep 03 - 12:41 PM

Max has had a few problems over the last couple of days.Lots of power
outages and the like.

Subject: RE: Tech: Problems connecting with Mudcat
From: AliUK
Date: 21 Sep 03 - 05:14 PM

I couldn´t get on for over a year ( nearer 2 actually) and believe me I tried every day at different times. Must be a problem with the router or something. It kept telling me it was unavailable or unable to connect.

Subject: RE: Tech: Problems connecting with Mudcat
From: curmudgeon
Date: 21 Sep 03 - 06:30 PM

Mudcat is currently being very squirrelly. One reply I sent earlier just went off into the aether. Right now, it's slower than a dial-up and I'm on broadband with everything else responding rapidly. My money is on the router for the problem -- Tom

Of course, I really don't know what constitutes a router.

Subject: RE: Tech: Problems connecting with Mudcat
From: Joybell
Date: 21 Sep 03 - 07:04 PM

Can't be just the current weather. I think it's monkeys myself.

Subject: RE: Tech: Problems connecting with Mudcat
From: kendall
Date: 21 Sep 03 - 07:12 PM

I thought the telephone wires were too long...

Subject: RE: Tech: Problems connecting with Mudcat
From: Gray D
Date: 21 Sep 03 - 08:00 PM

Wellll, its a digital thing really. It is not that the telephone wires are too long, they just stretch in high winds which makes them narrower. Then the ones can get through, as long as your modem turns them on their side before sending, but the zeroes get stuck whichever way up they are.

No need to thank me,

Gray D

Subject: RE: Tech: Problems connecting with Mudcat
From: Gray D
Date: 21 Sep 03 - 08:40 PM

Oh, and routers, as far as I understand these things, are electrical tools that spin interestingly shaped cutting tools at high speed to produce novel edges on pieces of timber. I would have to surmise that anyone using these on an internet connection could reasonably expect to have trouble with their service.

Once again, no need for thanks,

Gray D

Subject: RE: Tech: Problems connecting with Mudcat
From: katlaughing
Date: 21 Sep 03 - 08:42 PM

LMAO!! Great descriptions!

Subject: RE: Tech: Problems connecting with Mudcat
From: Mark Cohen
Date: 21 Sep 03 - 08:49 PM

Gray, we have just the opposite problem in establishing communications between Hawaii and the Mainland. Depending on atmospheric conditions, water temperature, etc., the zeroes will float just fine, but the ones sink straight to the bottom. Nice to know we're not alone.

Aloha,
Mark

Subject: RE: Tech: Problems connecting with Mudcat
From: The Fooles Troupe
Date: 21 Sep 03 - 09:55 PM

Been having intermittent problems over the past few months.

Sometimes can't get in for hours - only a few of those times showed up as an acknowledged Mudcat problem, FWICS.

Been getting a few DNS related "page not available" probs, but also getting a lot of "Gateway not available" probs too.

I'm in Australia.


Robin

Subject: RE: Tech: Problems connecting with Mudcat
From: Rt Revd Sir jOhn from Hull
Date: 21 Sep 03 - 09:59 PM

heloo, i think it got busted becase of the bad wether in america.john

Subject: RE: Tech: Problems connecting with Mudcat
From: GUEST,.gargoyle
Date: 21 Sep 03 - 11:12 PM

JOHN-F-H....
the MC has been working just fine ....
for those of us who have contributed its health....<
big>SEND MONEY!! and it will work just fine for you.

Sincerely,
Gargoyle

Subject: RE: Tech: Problems connecting with Mudcat
From: The Fooles Troupe
Date: 22 Sep 03 - 12:32 AM

The Mudcat works fine once I am connected - usually...

But lately I have been getting quite a few "Deadlocked Thread" messages - coming from the database server no doubt. Hitting refresh button works in this case.

Doubtless casued by many people trying to post to the same thread at the same time.

Robin

Subject: RE: Tech: Problems connecting with Mudcat
From: EBarnacle1
Date: 22 Sep 03 - 01:00 AM

As the story of the lighthouse keeper goes--Thank Gawd, 'tain't me!"

Subject: RE: Tech: Problems connecting with Mudcat
From: Gurney
Date: 22 Sep 03 - 05:15 AM

I've had trouble, usually at our weekends, which are before anyone elses because of the dateline, quite often lately.
Mind you, I even had trouble getting past my ISP once, so it could have been international phones.

Subject: RE: Tech: Problems connecting with Mudcat
From: kendall
Date: 22 Sep 03 - 07:52 AM

Sinsull can explain routers, she used to sell them.

Subject: RE: Tech: Problems connecting with Mudcat
From: Sandy Mc Lean
Date: 22 Sep 03 - 08:15 AM

The heavy rains also cause a binary problem. The 0's absorb more moisture than the 1's . On a long line the 0's slow down so much that they are passed by trailing 1's causing a condition called bit errors.

Subject: RE: Tech: Problems connecting with Mudcat
From: Rapparee
Date: 22 Sep 03 - 08:16 AM

Could be a lot of things.

You very, very rarely (read "never" but I won't be that dogmatic) connect directly to anything on the Web or on the Internet. When you push the "do it" button, your data packets are routed (by a router!) to a computer ("node") that sends them to another node, etc. Each stage of the journey from node to node is called, technically, a "hop" (really!). Each hop is determined by the sending node, which determines the "best" route for the data packets to take. If your message is long enough, it's broken into pieces and then reassembled at the other end (and how this is done is too complicated to explain here, but it's on the Web and you can search for the explanation yourself if you're interested).

For instance, if I send a data packet from Pocatello, Idaho to Idaho Falls, Idaho, it usually takes about thirteen hops -- to cover a road distance of about 50 miles. (Ain't the speed of light wunnerful?)

Thus, a problem at any point in the journey can cause problems in sending your data packets. In brief, the 'Cat needn't have problems for you not to connect.

If you'd like to see what nodes your packets traverse, download a program called "traceroute" (there are several different varities), install it, and from "Run" enter "traceroute www.mudcat.org" (or whatever your target destination is).

Subject: RE: Tech: Problems connecting with Mudcat
From: GUEST,Santa
Date: 22 Sep 03 - 08:39 AM

Yesterday (Sunday) I had an e-mail from Edain in San Diego asking was Mudcat down. I said yes, since Thursday. So if it is a router problem it is in a router close to MC not the users. I can access other worldwide sites when I can't get MC.

But Mudcat is always down Monday morning (GMT, Zulu, UK time, whatever.) I put that down to servicing, but is it a sign of these problems?

Subject: RE: Tech: Problems connecting with Mudcat
From: open mike
Date: 22 Sep 03 - 07:30 PM

http://www.folkinfo.org/chat.asp
if ever tha cat is down we can go here to chat.

Subject: RE: Tech: Problems connecting with Mudcat
From: Little Robyn
Date: 23 Sep 03 - 03:54 PM

I couldn't get on again last night. And there are gaps between 12:14am and 5:08am. OK, I know you lot are probably asleep but that's when people on the other side of the world are trying to communicate!
There are a couple of other 2hour gaps yesterday too. Just a coincidence or are there problems? Is it the worm????

Subject: RE: Tech: Problems connecting with Mudcat
From: C-flat
Date: 23 Sep 03 - 03:58 PM

I can't see any pattern in the access problems I'm experiencing, but it's only with Mudcat and it's been very frequent for the past week or so.

Subject: RE: Tech: Problems connecting with Mudcat
From: MMario
Date: 23 Sep 03 - 03:58 PM

*PLEASE* remember folks that mudcat is not hosted on a commercial site - and that Max not only has a life outside mudcat - but he has a family ...including an infant!

Subject: RE: Tech: Problems connecting with Mudcat
From: C-flat
Date: 23 Sep 03 - 05:40 PM

MMario, my own comments are certainly NOT meant as a criticism of our generous host but I often wonder wether it's just me having these problems as when I do regain access, there's often no mention of an outage. To that end I'm interested and a little relieved that's it's a general problem and nothing to do with my settings or firewall or something.(can you tell I don't know a thing about computers?)

Subject: RE: Tech: Problems connecting with Mudcat
From: Joybell
Date: 23 Sep 03 - 07:32 PM

Grandma Joy here with Grandma wisdom. I remember infants. Hell of a lot of work. Now-a-days there's a good chance of them being able to take over the computer problems though. I think the problems might be solved when the Infant reaches 2. We can be patient. Good luck.

Subject: RE: Tech: Problems connecting with Mudcat
From: Little Robyn
Date: 24 Sep 03 - 02:06 AM

I ain't posting any criticism - I just love Mudcat and when I can't get through I have withdrawal symptons!
And about parenthood, been there, done that.
All the best,
Robyn.