This thread title used to include ($423.51) needed, which is the price of hosting for 1 year. In the brief time the beta version of the board has been up, we've exceeded that number by a little bit.
We're going to continue the contribution request for now, but we just want to clarify that further contributions will go to the ~500$ we will need to work out the issues from the old site with the 'host' (database and domain name). That is a venture not without risk, although one of our stipulations is that we won't pay the money until first verifying the database is works.
In the event that the deal never materializes, the money will go to the next year's hosting.
/UPDATE
Dear friends of MormonDiscussions,
Years ago, Dr. Shades set out to create a forum that would solve a long-standing problem within the online Mormon community: Mormon-themed message boards censor their rival factions. Dr. Shades believed that this stifled the quality of discussions, and though a critic himself, vowed to start a community where apologists could not only have equal say to critics, but thrive as the dominant faction should their numbers and arguments prevail. And so with a little bit of money and a few associates who could help him get started, he began the Mormondiscussions message board. The board worked out famously, but its success rapidly outgrew its technical crib, and withing a couple of years, if not a couple of months, the board began to break down. The technical problems mounted over the years, until early this year, when it became unworkable for many, and we not only lost valuable contributors, but have had no way of bringing on new participants.
Perhaps we should have seen the storm brewing long ago, but as consumers of substance over form, few cared about losing features or technical hiccups, as long as things basically worked. Well, as of May of this year, things stopped working. And this time was different as far as getting things fixed: Lives had changed and people had moved on. The board had been going for 14 years, after all. Suddenly, his service provider was no longer in a position to get things going for him, and so he's relied on forum contributors to help come up with a solution.
We don't have a perfect solution. But we are doing our best, and that starts with this new forum that is much like the old one, except all the software is up to date, the features work, and it's secure. It has a robust hosting package that will allow us to get going with a forum that actually works for now, and we hope at a future date, we can integrate the content of the old forum. Also, there shouldn't be a problem in the future where we can't get things fixed when they break, and should we ever need to changing hosting, it should be straightforward to do.
As they say, you get what you pay for, and in the old arrangement, neither Shades nor any participants ever paid a cent to keep things running, and because the board never worked properly, ads didn't pay for anything either. It's amazing it lasted for so long. To (hopefully) recover what we've lost and ensure things work smoothly for the future, we can't rely on the cheapest options out there. For now, the yearly cost is exactly, $423.51. That is just to keep this board going, to integrate the old content and get our old domain name, we'll be out an additional few hundred extra.
With the uncertainty of the pandemic, do not feel forced to give if it's a risk to you and your family's financial security. For those doing well during these times, perhaps throw in a little more under the assumption that some might not be in a position to help as much as desired.
Payments go to Dr. Shades account for the board:
We will update us as money flows in. For now, all contributions are considered toward the continuance of this board. When we get to the point of getting the old content, we will announce that and it will be a separate set of contributions.
When I say "we", I mean two people, Dr. Shades and myself. As of now, we are the only ones with access to board Software. Shades is command in chief as always, with full board privileges, and I am tech support. Shortly, my moderator privileges will be stricken. As we go forward, Shades will need moderators to help, and we'll need one or two more technical people. I am documenting everything needed to support the board, and that information will be with Shades so that others can step in if ever needed. If I were to disappear tomorrow, there is nothing exclusively tied to me that would prevent things from getting done with the board. If Shades disappears, I can keep things limping along until we find a long-term solution. (with the exception of moderation
)If there is any single objective here, it's to make sure the board can continue in the future without a crisis such as we experienced this year.
The Plan, and status of the old board
Our fundamental problem is that we don't have a proper copy of the database. There are three ways to get a phpBB database, the best method is blocked, the worst method -- through the board software -- works partially. This method isn't supported for databases as large as we have. The second-best method should work for us, but only Shades' 'provider' has access. The good news his his provider is generally agreeable with our plan, it's just that he has life things going on, and it's up in the air as to when he will help by either exporting the database and handing it over, or given us credentials so that we can do it. We do have a fragmented copy of the database that covers ~ up to 2018. We have 1.5 GBytes of shear posting data as of now. Worst case scenario is we can at some point get that online if all else fails.
Our hosting package allows us the flexibility to keep this board going as-is as it's own entity. Should we obtain the database, we can make that available as an archive site linked to this site. And then, we can have yet another site in the works, in a "sandbox" state, where we fuse the two sites together. The plan to accomplish all of this is in part what drives the need for the more expensive hosting.
There is still uncertainty. Even if we get the help for extraction, the old database has to be upgraded and made to work with the newer software. And so we've created the "Archive" forum, where folks can transplant any material they are fond of from the old forum, while it still exists, "just in case".
After we make the general announcement that we're moving here, we'll expect people to stop creating threads over there. We need to have instructions on that site for the move, and we have no way of making a topic "sticky". So we will want to keep discussions there focused on moving and not other topics drowning that out. Note that the old site is literally on its last thread. As of a few days ago, my admin login goes to an error screen. Shades' account no longer works, and the only thing we've got left is the "temp Admin" account. when that goes. ???
So the plan is to give people a few days to register over here and ask questions on that forum, before they have an account on this forum, and then probably I'll splice a redirect into the old site to send everything this way. And we'll have a link in the archive forum to get back to the old site, for as long as it still floats. Should we procure the old database and domain name, then the old service will be deleted.
Thanks everyone for the patience and continuing with the board during its dark moments!
