Welcome, Guest. Please login or register.

Author Topic: Why is this forum so Amiga unfriendly  (Read 9140 times)

Description:

0 Members and 1 Guest are viewing this topic.

Offline B00tDisk

  • VIP / Donor - Lifetime Member
  • Hero Member
  • *****
  • Join Date: Dec 2002
  • Posts: 1670
    • Show only replies by B00tDisk
    • http://www.thedelversdungeon.com
Re: Why is this forum so Amiga unfriendly
« Reply #14 on: May 17, 2008, 03:26:40 PM »
Quote

scuzzb494 wrote:
Hi

Sorry... Again. I don't agree. The wait was to do with dialup generally and over ambition with web content. Newsgroups are great for messenging. It doesn`t have to be complicated or graphics intensive. Most of the stuff on the pages is just not necessary... like all those stupid symbols under each post and the avatars, or what ever you call them. Just add up the bytes of info for each graphic. Even worse is when folk put all their animated crap on the posts. Honestly. Words are so easy... Specially when your up against it and trying to solve a problem. The forum has become a chat venue ... What I need at times is a helping-hand.

PS I may enjoy my retro experience and its not cus I like living in the past. Its cus it truly is more fun. Modern computing is what generates this interactive chat world online which isn`t really what I muck around with computers for.
Anyway, I seriously have to get back to my Amigas... Too much chat. Bye.

scuzz


Sorry Jack but if you can't cope with the fact that online communication is more than 2400,8,n,1 it isn't anyone's fault but your own.  Grow up.

 :-o  :lol:  :crazy:  :roll:  :boohoo:  :griping:  :roflmao:  :argue:  :bigcry:  :laughing:  :laughing:  :laughing:
Back away from the EU-SSR!
 

Offline stefcep2

  • Hero Member
  • *****
  • Join Date: Sep 2007
  • Posts: 1467
    • Show only replies by stefcep2
Re: Why is this forum so Amiga unfriendly
« Reply #15 on: May 17, 2008, 03:32:10 PM »
The title of your post is misleading: when I first read it I thought you meant the users on the forum were unfriendly.  This is the friendliest forum I belong to.

Your issue seems to be with the nature of the modern internet.  I agree: 90% of what the modern internet is being used for is rubbish and unnecessary: pictures, animations, videos (mostly porn and pirated movies)-flash advertising, music theft, stupid online fantasy games, idiots buying virtual properties with virtual personas and real money.

Governments are spending billions upon billions co-developing internet infrastructure so that I can see a video of somebody's cat lifting up the toilet seat before it pees.

Our Australian government has recently caved-in to the fear campaign that unless we spend billions on internet infrastructure we'll be left in the technological stone age.  Meanwhile I had to wait 5 1/2 hours for my son to be seen by a doctor at a public hospital where a diagnosis of bacterial meningitis had to be ruled out because we don't have enough money to pay enough doctors to work in the hospital to to treat our kids.

You can apply the same logic to mobile phones: eavesdrop and you'll see most of the conversations are inane:  "Hi, what are you doing?" "Nothing, you?"  "Not much".  "OK see ya"

I only recently got a PC with broadband, before that used an A4000 on dial-up with Ibrowse.  Did everything i need to with it including this site which was the fastest to view, but it got so cheap that broadband was worth it.  But then I don't give a rats about pictures/porn/movies/music.
 

Offline LoadWB

  • Hero Member
  • *****
  • Join Date: Jul 2006
  • Posts: 2901
  • Country: 00
    • Show only replies by LoadWB
Re: Why is this forum so Amiga unfriendly
« Reply #16 on: May 17, 2008, 05:01:55 PM »
Today's HTML is not your Grandpa's HTML any more :-D  While HTML hasn't changed ALL that much (you can look them up at w3c.org,) there are also now cascading style sheets (CSS) which are not supported, AFIAK, by any 68k Amiga browser.

When I used to browse the Internet on my modem-based Amiga, I had problems mostly due to the serial device I was using versus the modem.  Others at the time reported differences in the TCP/IP stack.  Now, these weren't directly related to Amiga.org, but general Internet usage overall.

If you have a box Amiga out there in the work shop, see about getting a serial card rather than using the Amiga's internal serial.  You'll have a faster and more reliable serial device that way.

If you're using an A1200 out there, get a Netgear 802.11b network card and set up a wireless access point or router in your house.  I have used this setup with Miami and AWeb before with no problems.

If your workshop is close enough to the house to run a phone line, put a network card in your work shop 4000 (steal one from the house or get one online) and replace your phone cable run with some CAT5 cable, which will easily carry your phone line and your network.  (The maximum length of a CAT5 segment is 100m, end-to-end.)

As for the problem with animated GIFs on the site, use a datatype that allows you to turn off animations or doesn't support animation at all, or disable GIFs in your browser.  Most useful images are JPG or PNG, anyway.  When I was still using my WarpEngine 4040 with my PIV, animations on websites worked fine, even here.

And finally, have a look at your phone line.  There may be some interference on the line causing problems with your page loads.  Being able to talk on the phone without hearing noise is irrelevant as we cannot discern phase shifts that the modem can.  Try testing the dial-up at other points in the house, assuming this phone line is connected to the house wiring.  Disconnect extraneous devices and try the dial-up.

Just for shyts and giggles I put my 060-based 4000 online with a USRobotics 56k Sportster.  Forum works fine with the latest demo release of IBrowse, Warp Datatypes, and Miami.  Being that I do not know where you are (and hence the quality of your phone system -- some countries still use twine rather than 26 gauge copper or better) or at what speed you're connecting, I do not have much else to offer.

So onto the next curiosity.  If someone running a simple dial-up BBS would be helpful, maybe you could set on up.  Run it on a machine with network and dial-up capability and offer two or more nodes (via modem and telnet.)  Attract some users there and there you go.  Offer a front-end to news groups and help get them livened back up.  Offer text-based browsing (ala Lynx) which works very well (latest version on Solaris) with A.org, with the exception of bad cookie roots, and you will miss out on the emoticons most of the users use in posts, so you may take some posts out of context.

For that matter, http://www.molgen.mpg.de/~alynx/

Okay, that's all I have.  Hope things work out for you.  This forum is exceptionally valuable.

 

Offline Terse

  • Full Member
  • ***
  • Join Date: Jun 2007
  • Posts: 182
    • Show only replies by Terse
Re: Why is this forum so Amiga unfriendly
« Reply #17 on: May 17, 2008, 05:53:22 PM »
Quote

stefcep2 wrote:
The title of your post is misleading: when I first read it I thought you meant the users on the forum were unfriendly.  This is the friendliest forum I belong to.


Really?  You say that after reading the tone of replies in this very posting??  I'd hate to see what other forums you belong to.
 

Offline taunusand

  • Hero Member
  • *****
  • Join Date: Oct 2007
  • Posts: 512
  • Country: dk
  • Gender: Male
    • Show only replies by taunusand
    • www.amiga.dk
Re: Why is this forum so Amiga unfriendly
« Reply #18 on: May 17, 2008, 09:22:23 PM »
Miami & Ibrowse 2.3 works great on my A4000/040, 2+16MB ram, Voodoo 3000 + PCI netcard. Amiga.org and a few other sites are running just perfectly here :-)
A1200, Blizzard 030, 2+32MB ram, 4GB CF, pcmcia netcard, Kickstart 3,1
A600, 2MB chip ram+4Mb pcmcia S-RAM, Kickstart 3,1
CD32 - Just for fun  :-D
 

Offline B00tDisk

  • VIP / Donor - Lifetime Member
  • Hero Member
  • *****
  • Join Date: Dec 2002
  • Posts: 1670
    • Show only replies by B00tDisk
    • http://www.thedelversdungeon.com
Re: Why is this forum so Amiga unfriendly
« Reply #19 on: May 17, 2008, 09:34:37 PM »
Quote

taunusand wrote:
Miami & Ibrowse 2.3 works great on my A4000/040, 2+16MB ram, Voodoo 3000 + PCI netcard. Amiga.org and a few other sites are running just perfectly here :-)


With all the replies like this, I'd say it was a PEBCAC.

Back away from the EU-SSR!
 

Offline taunusand

  • Hero Member
  • *****
  • Join Date: Oct 2007
  • Posts: 512
  • Country: dk
  • Gender: Male
    • Show only replies by taunusand
    • www.amiga.dk
Re: Why is this forum so Amiga unfriendly
« Reply #20 on: May 17, 2008, 09:45:22 PM »
PEBCAC  :-?
A1200, Blizzard 030, 2+32MB ram, 4GB CF, pcmcia netcard, Kickstart 3,1
A600, 2MB chip ram+4Mb pcmcia S-RAM, Kickstart 3,1
CD32 - Just for fun  :-D
 

Offline bloodline

  • Master Sock Abuser
  • Hero Member
  • *****
  • Join Date: Mar 2002
  • Posts: 12113
    • Show only replies by bloodline
    • http://www.troubled-mind.com
Re: Why is this forum so Amiga unfriendly
« Reply #21 on: May 17, 2008, 10:00:52 PM »
:-D

Offline KThunder

  • Hero Member
  • *****
  • Join Date: Aug 2002
  • Posts: 1509
    • Show only replies by KThunder
Re: Why is this forum so Amiga unfriendly
« Reply #22 on: May 17, 2008, 10:03:54 PM »
pebcac- problem exists between computer and chair

there are people here who have used and are using amigas to view and use this site. this guy is having problems, but he thinks the problems are with the site  
Oh yeah?!?
Well your stupid bit is set,
and its read only!
(my best geek putdown)
 

Offline Boot_WB

  • Hero Member
  • *****
  • Join Date: Feb 2005
  • Posts: 1326
    • Show only replies by Boot_WB
    • http://www.hullchimneyservices.co.uk
Re: Why is this forum so Amiga unfriendly
« Reply #23 on: May 17, 2008, 10:59:05 PM »
I think Scuzz has been quite clear that the problem is not with the site per se, but with the site only when using a slower service (ie dialup) and/or lower end machines. It's a valid point, especially - as Scuzz points out - for users with low end machines/connections, which is perhaps not such a small percentage of the demographic of the users of this website, compared to generic (eg PC/Mac user) websites.
Perhaps there _should_ be an option to minimise content on the website, eg text only mode.

If you haven't visited Scuzz's site, I suggest you do. You might appreciate that this guy is not an inexperienced Amiga user, knows what to expect from its performance, and is just making a suggestion which could be useful for low end users.

Regards



Rich
Mac Mini G4 (1.5GHz, 64MB VRam, 1GB Ram): MorphOS 3.6
Powerbook 5.8 (15", 1.67GHz, 128MB VRam, 1GB Ram): MorphOS 3.8.

Windows-free since 2011-2014 (Damn you Netflix!)
 

Offline AmigaHeretic

  • Hero Member
  • *****
  • Join Date: Oct 2002
  • Posts: 821
    • Show only replies by AmigaHeretic
Re: Why is this forum so Amiga unfriendly
« Reply #24 on: May 18, 2008, 12:04:25 AM »
Quote
Now... I could ethernet connect them and set up Samba etc to use my broadband, but really ... My point... You would have thought that anyone with the crudest of Amigas should, could access some online help facility. A simple bulletin board would suffice or newsgroup style answer page. Its not rocket science. The Amiga Org page suffers worse than most forums I frequent. Absolutley loaded with bloat and unecessary graphics that when your up against it you could do without.


It sounds like maybe you found a niche market and you could set up a website that is more or less a text only forum.

I think asking to make a text only version of this site would be a lot of work, but I could be wrong.


The other option, as pointed out, is already available and is built into your web browser for cases just as your are talking about (slow dialup) and it is a little check box to turn off loading of grahics which make it..... text only  :-D   Which I think is what you are asking for anyway??  :-?   So there is a solution already I think.


Lets layout the options.

1. Turns off loading of graphics --  You get a text based version of A.org!!  Yay!!!

2. Get the A.org owners to write a script(s) to create a "switch" to make it possible to turn the site to text based and graphics based at the users will.  -- seems like a lot of work but I don't know.

3. Start a "NEW" simple text based (dialup friendly) site for help.

Seems like option 1 is the best, but????
A3000D (16mhz, 2MB Chip, 4MB Fast, SCSI (300+MB), SuperGen Genlock, Kick 3.1)
Back in my day, we didn\'t have water. We only had Oxygen and Hydrogen, and we\'d just have to shove them together.
 

Offline stefcep2

  • Hero Member
  • *****
  • Join Date: Sep 2007
  • Posts: 1467
    • Show only replies by stefcep2
Re: Why is this forum so Amiga unfriendly
« Reply #25 on: May 18, 2008, 12:56:47 AM »
Quote

Terse wrote:
Quote

stefcep2 wrote:
The title of your post is misleading: when I first read it I thought you meant the users on the forum were unfriendly.  This is the friendliest forum I belong to.


Really?  You say that after reading the tone of replies in this very posting??  I'd hate to see what other forums you belong to.


Except for this thread ;-)
 

Offline sandpiper

  • Full Member
  • ***
  • Join Date: Apr 2005
  • Posts: 133
    • Show only replies by sandpiper
Re: Why is this forum so Amiga unfriendly
« Reply #26 on: May 18, 2008, 02:04:28 AM »
scuzz

Over at Amigaworld.net there is a pda page which has reduced overhead to load faster over slower connections (pda.amigaworld.net). This is certainly an option for dial-up connections too. I looked for a similar A.org page but it may not exist. Maybe this is the solution that you are looking for?
 

Offline Plaz

Re: Why is this forum so Amiga unfriendly
« Reply #27 on: May 18, 2008, 02:29:20 AM »
Just my 2 cents....

Even when I'm on windows with 6mb DSL A.org has been responding slower than normal lately. Not a big deal, I just have to hit refresh once in a while. I'm guessing the web host system is getting over worked.

Plaz
 

Offline B00tDisk

  • VIP / Donor - Lifetime Member
  • Hero Member
  • *****
  • Join Date: Dec 2002
  • Posts: 1670
    • Show only replies by B00tDisk
    • http://www.thedelversdungeon.com
Re: Why is this forum so Amiga unfriendly
« Reply #28 on: May 18, 2008, 03:16:19 AM »
Quote

Boot_WB wrote:
I think Scuzz has been quite clear that the problem is not with the site per se, but with the site only when using a slower service (ie dialup) and/or lower end machines. It's a valid point, especially - as Scuzz points out - for users with low end machines/connections, which is perhaps not such a small percentage of the demographic of the users of this website, compared to generic (eg PC/Mac user) websites.
Perhaps there _should_ be an option to minimise content on the website, eg text only mode.


Oh my God - a website loads slower on dialup than on broadband!

Someone get Tim Berners-Lee on the Hotline, quick!

Back away from the EU-SSR!
 

Offline Tenacious

  • Hero Member
  • *****
  • Join Date: Jul 2002
  • Posts: 1362
    • Show only replies by Tenacious
Re: Why is this forum so Amiga unfriendly
« Reply #29 from previous page: May 18, 2008, 03:45:44 AM »
Until last year, I logging in with dial-up on a similar spec machine and the same software as you.  There are a few tweaks you may be un-aware of. The problems you mentioned:

"..refresh after refresh..."

I'm not sure why you need to do this.  It reminds me of the sluggish behavior I experience if I leave Javascript Support ENABLED.  This slows browsing by a factor of 4 even with a high-speed connection.  Java script isn't required here.

"..dumped out for no reason.."

This has been known for some time.  It seems to come from not logging off every time.  I still get stung by this, but only rarely now.  Two proceedures help help greatly: 1. Actively log off every time you log in.  2. Just before hitting the Submit key, select something on the page and choose "View link in new window".  If that window shows that you are still logged on (at the top), switch back to the posting window and Submit.  If not, log back in and then submit.  Beats loosing your post.

I have to agree with most here, Amiga.org is great.  Thanks to all who make it possible!