Is this thing still on?

[Bonz]

For me to log in, I have to enter my UN and PW, check the box, enter. The next screen is the error message. I use the back arrow to get back to the login screen. I then refresh and suddenly I am logged in. Who is ever going to figure that out?


So Phil, you are correct. There is definitely a seizure of the muffler bearing and it is affecting the electrical circuit in the carburetors. Not to mention reduced MPG!

That is my exact login procedure as well. Come on guys, do we need more money? Many guys have pitched in a little here, little there, if we need more just say so and let guys pitch in if or when they want to.

[Bonz]

For me to log in, I have to enter my UN and PW, check the box, enter. The next screen is the error message. I use the back arrow to get back to the login screen. I then refresh and suddenly I am logged in. Who is ever going to figure that out?


So Phil, you are correct. There is definitely a seizure of the muffler bearing and it is affecting the electrical circuit in the carburetors. Not to mention reduced MPG!

My exact the login procedure as well. Come on guys, let us know if the money still wasn’t enough to do what needed done. I’d rather pitch in more money and have a workable site and a lot of other guys would too. Come on and keep us informed.

[JeffH]

TC had posted this update dated 2/11/19 on the other thread following the .com upgrade project:
…… but further posts kind of buried it

Hey folks,

Here is latest reply from the Database GURU/IT guy who's involved with handling the majority of the workload for the upgrade. It's kind of technical jargon that I'm not totally knowledgeable about, but I'm sure some of you IT guys will understand. JP is the Owner/Webmaster, you know me, and Mike is the Database Guru. Yes BEN, apparently we do have lives outside of XS11.com and looks like it's going to POT for Mike, so I can understand what happened during the Holidays and such. I hope he doesn't mind me posting this from his EMAIL reply to me! I've removed all email addresses/last names and such, so it's fairly anonymous for him at least.

And since the site is broken beyond my capabilities, that's partly why I've taken a short sabbatical from the site UNTIL the upgrade gets done, I can't do anything ADMINISTRATIVELY at all right now, I can't fix forgotten passwords, logins, register new members, etc. The ADMIN section is also hosed, so right now "we" are just floundering until the upgrade can get done. Sorry I can't do anymore.
T.C.
************************************************** *******
"quote" Hey TC,

I dropped the ball. I learned a divorce is in my future this year. Thus I have not been *thinking straight*...
I will revisit setting up the upgraded site in the near future. Perhaps that will be a good diversion.
I keep looking at the 30 years of "stuff" I have accumulated and it is daunting.
Since I am unemployed I am researching where I want to live and subsequently work a few more years.
Selling the house here will be a windfall but the cost of living in the Silicon Valley is ridiculous.
This may be my ticket out to free America!

Mike
************************************************** **********
On Sun, Feb 10, 2019 at 2:29 PM TC wrote:

Hey there Mike,

I saw this last email from you to JP and his reply, could see/read the Encredulity in your post regarding no need for "testing" of the upgrade. Just wondering if you've thrown up your hands in disgust or what?

I haven't been on the OLD site for over a month, just got a FB plea from one of the members asking what's happening, that they/we thought we were just a few weeks away from performing/installing the upgrade, and then in their eyes nothing has happened since??

Just wondering?

T.C./Curtis
************************************************** ***********
On 12/15/2018 2:10 PM, Mike wrote:
> What are we testing?
> We already tested on my home machine.
>
> Next stop is a production upgrade.
> Done on a new environment is safer and have a fall back
> or
> we upgrade production in place.
>
> I'm confused.
>
************************************************** ***********
> On Sat, Dec 15, 2018, 11:07 AM JP(WEBMASTER/OWNER of XS11) wrote:
>
> Spoke to Elliott (317) 406-0054.
>
> He recommends using a subdomain for testing. Call him to work out the details.
>
> Best regards,
>
> JP
************************************************** *********

On Sat, Dec 15, 2018, 12:22 PM Mike wrote:

Ahh I would call that staging - which would/could be promoted to production or be the final code line used in a production upgrade.

Mike


On Sat, Dec 15, 2018 at 10:17 AM JP wrote:

Environment between Dev & Production

Best regards,

JP

On Sat, Dec 15, 2018, 11:57 AM Mike wrote:

Thanks for the update.
What exactly is a Q environment?

Mike

************************************************** **********
On Sat, Dec 15, 2018 at 8:06 AM JP wrote:

I'm expecting to hear from the hosting company about a Q environment. I'll provide details when they contact me.

Best regards,

JP "/quote"

[Rickrod3]

Enough questions being asked on Facebook to indicate there is a NEED for the expertise of this site. If the issue of signing up new members can be resolved i expect a huge resurgence of interest in this site.

Phil

I've read complaints on on of the XS Facebook pages that they were unable to join here. Any way sorry to see this happening.

[Bonz]

Really sorry the fellow helping with this is having personal issues. With that said it’s almost March and there’s nothing different. Is it possible to move on and thank him for his time? People losing interest, when it gets to a certain point it won’t come back.

[madmax-im]

Really sorry the fellow helping with this is having personal issues. With that said it’s almost March and there’s nothing different. Is it possible to move on and thank him for his time? People losing interest, when it gets to a certain point it won’t come back.

Yeah..that is my concern too..We have to wait on some poor soul to get his personal life together...Personally I am skeptical about donating money when crap like this happens...so I have adopted a wait and see attitude.

[cajun31]

I haven't been able to login since last fall. Finally messed with it today and was able to work around to get in. Any updates?

[Mathh]

Same here ... once in 20-25 tries I am able to reach the site and continue reading. A real shame as I have always liked this site and its visitors.. Hope it all works out ...

[motoman]

Same here ... once in 20-25 tries I am able to reach the site and continue reading. A real shame as I have always liked this site and its visitors.. Hope it all works out ...

….as I'm sure it eventually will Mathh. Also, good to hear from you across the pond on occasion again!

[jetmechmarty]

I think this isn’t the only vintage bike forum in trouble. It’s a big part of the reason we morphed XS Southeast into Vintage Yamaha Rally. If we depended on this site we’d be small and getting smaller. Speaking of, I hope XS East is a big success this year. Vermont should attract new blood.

[BillyRok]

Some Thoughts

Here's my 2 cents on all this (which by definition isn't worth a nickel!)

First of all, a huge thank you to everyone who has contributed to this site over the years, moderators and members alike, for what we can all see and for what happens behind the scenes. And I'd also like to take a moment to remember those who are no longer with us, people who have moved on and especially those who have passed away. This special brotherhood is a sum total of all the large and small contributions of countless people over the years who chose to give of themselves for the benefit of somebody else.

Secondly, nothing that I'm about to say here is meant in any way to be critical of anything that any one individual has either done or not done up to this point. I'm sure most would echo my comment that I'm very grateful for what a small group of people have done over the years in bringing so many people together in a way that has brought such happiness to this community.

I know nothing about computers, web sites, programming and how any of it all works. Like many other things in my life, I just expect it to function as I want it to and so consequently get frustrated when it doesn't, especially since I am powerless to do anything about it. I suspect there are many others who feel likewise.

It seems there are 2 big issues: Problems logging on to the site and the functionality of the site.

Please forgive my ignorance here but if I can log in with no problem why can't my neighbor? I realize we have different computers and/or phones with different operating systems but I'm guessing we both can get to Google or Ebay or into our online banking or dozens of other sites without issue. So what is the real problem here with XS11.com and can anybody explain it in simple language or, better yet, do anything to help resolve it? My computer is several years old (has a Windows 7 sticker on the front) that according to my settings page is running version 1809 of Windows 10 Home OS Build 17763.316 that was installed 1/31/2019...I'm guessing via some update message I got from Microsoft because I've never purchased a newer operating system. I use Google as my homepage and there is a search box directly below the Google logo and then 10 "buttons" below that, one button for each of the 10 most frequently visited sites I'm guessing. One button is for this site and as soon as I click it I come right to the XS11.com home page, never have an issue. And my Android LG5 phone works exactly the same way with Google as the home page for any new tab opened...I either touch the XS11 button or start typing the web address and the site loads no problem. I certainly am sympathetic to the issues so many are having but haven't the capacity to understand why, it's way over my head.

The site functionality issues are equally frustrating and I'm guessing much more complicated. Last October TC updated us on some issues and asked for donations to cover $210 for a new license. Not sure what that is or why it was necessary (again, I'm ignorant about these things!) but it looks like that money was easily raised by folks who listed their donated amounts and many others of us donated without bothering to post (ignorant AND lazy I am). Even that undertaking was not without issues as many posted problems they were having with "phishing" or "404 error" messages when trying to donate...don't pretend to understand it, just reporting it.

From post #44 in TC's thread "Update for Broken XS11.com site" in the members' lounge it appears that JP is the Owner/Webmaster and Mike is the Database Guru. Correct me if I'm wrong, but I don't believe either of these two gentlemen is compensated for their time and efforts. In fact, posts #12 and #17 seem to indicate that the hosting fees have risen to $1000/yr and that JP has been spending his own money to help subsidize the cost. Post #44 also alludes to some pretty serious personal problems Mike is having so he understandably isn't focused on this site as his primary concern.

My apologies for the poorly communicated long-windedness of this post but ultimately here is what I am thinking / wondering. With anything, the torch eventually gets passed or it gets extinguished and I fear the latter is what is happening here with the XS11.com site, and that would be a huge disappointment to so many. So I'll end this with a couple questions...

-Is it possible to put together a "task force" consisting of site members with the expertise and willingness to work together with people and resources on the outside to make this site viable again?

-Does JP actually own the site and how does that work? How does the site continue if at some point JP is no longer able or interested to do what he does? How do we organize things so the future of the site and its treasure trove of knowledge isn't tied to one individual and their circumstances? And can we find someone to either help Mike with the database responsibilities or take them over?

-How do we get to where pictures can easily be posted again? Marty mentioned XS650.com so I wonder what do they have or do that we currently are not copying. What would be the real ongoing costs to run this site in a similar fashion and how would we pay for it? Imitation is the sincerest form of flattery they say!

Grateful for the work that's been done, thanks for listening.

Billy

[madmax-im]

Well for one thing Billy...the XS650 sites allow new members to join easily..plus there websites are up to date..In every respect though i concur 100% with what you have said...JP owns the site but it is unknown to what extent things are happening behind the scenes..from TC's last update it didnt sound too good that the person with personal life issues could or would be motivated to finish the job...I would hope JP would find someone else to finish the job...
We dont want this site to go down the tubes..theres absolutely no good reason for this to occur...
Someone needs a fire lit under their....behinds...

[Ranger_xs1100]

Kudos Billy

Excellent post Billy. (Post#41 of this thread)

You’ve articulated some of the very concerns, questions, and hopes that many of us have.
Thank you for that.
Very well done indeed!

We can only hope that it stimulates fruitful results.

[MaximPhil]

Thanks BillyRok.
Well said.
Phil

[dpotter58]

Odd, in general, I don't have any problems getting in. Occasionally, but not often.