Site Adjustments

[Mellow]

We had some strange performance numbers yesterday.

So, I readjusted some settings on the site. A couple will be real obvious.

The Unread Posts results screen will now bring back 100 threads instead of 300. Each time you read a thread/posts it's removed from your unread list so if you read one then click your unread posts again, 100 will be returned if you have more than 100... Basically, this is just a 100 thread/post window vs. a 300 window so the server doesn't have to 'serve' up as much data.

Also, I cut the window of what is considered unread down so your total number of unread posts has probably been cut by 2/3rds. Most people couldn't possibly reads 20,000 or 30,000 posts and were only able to knock out a couple thousand on a good day. Again, this helps ease the load on the server.

So far, the load numbers are much better than they have been.

[Austin city limits]

We had some strange performance numbers yesterday.

Welcome to my World!!!

:crackup

[BigTom]

Yeah, butt...

At my age, performance numbers are incredibly relative.

Yes, I'll be here all week, why do you ask.

Thanks for all you do, Joe!

[Blrfl]

Any chance we could compromise on 150 or 200? I don't usually get on for 12 hours at a time, and I think I missed some stuff today.

--Mark

[Mellow]

Any chance we could compromise on 150 or 200? I don't usually get on for 12 hours at a time, and I think I missed some stuff today.

--Mark

It only limits the resultset... if you have 1000 unread posts, it will show the 1st 100 threads... if you read a thread and have 999 unread posts/threads, then click the unread posts link again, it will still bring back 100 threads.

So, you are safe.

[Blrfl]

Problem is that I don't read all of it, so I gotta go fish at the end.

No worries, I'll find a way to work with it.

--Mark

[Bones]

Joe, thanks for all your application insights.

FWIW, I passed a DQ yesterday that was open, packed, and 100% Gold Wing free. I must admit, I was flummoxed.

[BigTom]

Quote by Bones
FWIW, I passed a DQ yesterday that was open, packed, and 100% Gold Wing free. I must admit, I was flummoxed.

You know that you can take something for that now? Flummoxed. Is one of the new prescriptions that they advertise on the TV.

I know it's early in the season in your neck of the woods, but doesn't it concern you or worry you that a DQ was open, packed, and not a single Gold Wing was in attendance? I think it would concern me, perhaps even vex me slightly.....

[Mellow]

Problem is that I don't read all of it, so I gotta go fish at the end.

No worries, I'll find a way to work with it.

--Mark

I see what you mean... One thing I do... is click my unread posts then on the right of the list click a forum - like For Sale - browse through the titles to see if there's anything I want to read.. if not or if only a couple interest me - I'll then click the forum tools drop down and 'mark this forum read'... which will do just that for that particular forum (including sub-forums)... That is actually faster for me.

Hope that helps.

[Mellow]

Joe, thanks for all your application insights.

FWIW, I passed a DQ yesterday that was open, packed, and 100% Gold Wing free. I must admit, I was flummoxed.

I have actually almost never seen a wing at a DQ... Which is strange... I wonder where this idea originated...

[Viggo]

I frequently saw at least 1 Wing at my local DQ... wait... that was my Wing.

[KrazyKooter]

I have actually almost never seen a wing at a DQ... Which is strange... I wonder where this idea originated...

It's a sign that the economy is doing bad.

[Blrfl]

Gaaak. Didn't get on until 9:00 p.m., and the earliest thread that came up in the list is noon.

Are we really starting to outgrow the server after just having upgraded? Where can I send bribe money?

--Mark

[Mellow]

Gaaak. Didn't get on until 9:00 p.m., and the earliest thread that came up in the list is noon.

Are we really starting to outgrow the server after just having upgraded? Where can I send bribe money?

--Mark

That just means that out of the hundreds or thousands of your unread posts... the earliest in the 1st 100 it at noon.

However, if you look at the general forum... look at the new posts there that interest you the mark that forum read, you might clear 500 unread posts from your total.

For now, I'm leaving it at 100... we'll see how the server loads look after a few more days.. then, I'll bump that up again and see if it affects it much. Many VB sites have it set at 50.

We aren't outgrowing our server, we're just trying to make sure we are always operating at an efficient level with all the settings.

[DeanR]

Guess I'm being dense on how to view more than 100. When I get home from work I simply want to see all unread posts since the previous evening regardless of what forum they're in.
Seems that now I miss a bunch...

[Mellow]

Guess I'm being dense on how to view more than 100. When I get home from work I simply want to see all unread posts since the previous evening regardless of what forum they're in.
Seems that now I miss a bunch...

Before, it was set at 300... now 100... This is just the slice of pie you see at one time when you click the new posts link. If you go through that 100 and read 10 or 20.. but you still have say 500 unread... you'll still get a list back of 100 as it will move replace the ones you read with un-read ones.

It was 300 before... so you never got ALL of them before, just a 300 slice of the pie. Hope that helps some.

Like I said before. I'll adjust that number in a few days to see if it has an affect on the performance.

[Peter]

Sorry Mellow It does not work for me

I sometimes when working away come back to a 1000 post but read very few except those that catch the eye now I struggle to get past the first 100

never mind

Peter

[DeanR]

Still don't get it. I just checked the first 100 posts, then hit the new posts button again and was put right back where I started..

[Blrfl]

My problem is that I don't read all 100 of the threads.

--Mark

[Snoweyowl]

I am missing a lot of threads. last night my unread was over 1500. Read a dozen or so in the 4 pages it allowed. How do you get past the 100 marker without reading posts? Ended deleting all posts. So 1400 post were not viewed, even if I might only read a couple of dozen more. Is there a way to delete pages of posts rather that all posts?

[Mellow]

I am missing a lot of threads. last night my unread was over 1500. Read a dozen or so in the 4 pages it allowed. How do you get past the 100 marker without reading posts? Ended deleting all posts. So 1400 post were not viewed, even if I might only read a couple of dozen more. Is there a way to delete pages of posts rather that all posts?

There is a more efficient way.

When you click the unread posts... look at the right at the forum they are in. You may see that 90% of those posts are in off-topic or general. Go to those forums and you'll see everything for that specific forum... once you're done looking through it... there is a 'Forum Tools' link in the forum header, there is a drop down there that says 'Mark THIS Forum Read'... click it. That will clear the flags for you for that forum.

Then, when you click the unread posts again, you'll get the remaining posts.

I'll change this to 200 now... so, hopefully, that will be a little less of an issue.

[KrazyKooter]

:spank1:

[Brad Felmey]

Joe, I really don't want to visit each forum. There's NO point in having a search feature if we're supposed to go browse each forum. That's just dumb.

It's your site, but I can tell you flat-out I'm missing search results. Not all of us sit on top of this site all day, every day. If I can't visit every single day and miss things that have been posted in the last 24 hours, then what's the point? I mean, really? I wondered when I saw the hardware specs on this "new" server if it was going to be long before it was overloaded, and I guess I won my bet.

Ah, well. I guess what I don't see, I don't see.

[Mellow]

We are NOT anywhere near overloading the server...

Previously, the setting was 300... now it's 200. The search feature is the biggest server hog on this or pretty much any forum software.. that's just how it is..

So, why wasn't this an issue when it was 300.... which it has been for months... is that the magic number...

[scootac]

There is a more efficient way.

When you click the unread posts... look at the right at the forum they are in. You may see that 90% of those posts are in off-topic or general. Go to those forums and you'll see everything for that specific forum... once you're done looking through it... there is a 'Forum Tools' link in the forum header, there is a drop down there that says 'Mark THIS Forum Read'... click it. That will clear the flags for you for that forum.

Then, when you click the unread posts again, you'll get the remaining posts.

I'll change this to 200 now... so, hopefully, that will be a little less of an issue.

Wouldn't the most "efficient" way be to click on "New Posts" and have that bring up everything since you logged in last time? One click is all it takes. I like to look at all the topics brought up, and not have to look at each different forum to see if something interests me. As somebody said, all of us aren't sitting at a computer all the time and may only check in every couple of days. Seems like we're going to miss a lot of posts.

George

[DeanR]

Wouldn't the most "efficient" way be to click on "New Posts" and have that bring up everything since you logged in last time? One click is all it takes. I like to look at all the topics brought up, and not have to look at each different forum to see if something interests me.
George[/QUOTE]

I agree...

[Blrfl]

Thanks for upping the number. I got to see everything I missed while at work today.

This thing isn't back-ended with MySQL, is it?

--Mark

[Mellow]

Thanks for upping the number. I got to see everything I missed while at work today.

This thing isn't back-ended with MySQL, is it?

--Mark

Of course it is...

[Mellow]

Wouldn't the most "efficient" way be to click on "New Posts" and have that bring up everything since you logged in last time? One click is all it takes. I like to look at all the topics brought up, and not have to look at each different forum to see if something interests me. As somebody said, all of us aren't sitting at a computer all the time and may only check in every couple of days. Seems like we're going to miss a lot of posts.

George

Well, you sort of addressed the issue here.

You don't have time to sit in front of the computer all day and go through all teh posts... yet, you want ALL your unread posts served up to you at once.. that's a big result set which impacts performance as it doesn't take as long to give you a 100 thread slice of the pie as a 2000 thread slice of the pie. It would work great if people would only click that and navigate through just those posts for a couple hrs but, people want to see recent replies so they'll hit the unread posts again... the server would have to serve you up a 2000 block of unread posts again, or 1500 or whatever your unread post count is..

Trust me, this is the best way to do things and you won't miss anything. Most posts are in the general or off topic forums, if you do nothing more than go through those two you pretty much catch most things.

Also, there is a forum filter in place that will let you ignore certain forums you may not care about.

This is how the site, and all other vb sites you may be part of, have always worked so it's not a big surprise.

[Blrfl]

Of course it is...

Makes me wonder if the code in vB that does the New Posts function predates the LIMIT and OFFSET clauses in SELECT. Chopping the data set down in the server makes a huge difference. But you knew that. :cool:

(Non-technical users will pardon the geeky discourse.)

--Mark

[bygdawg]

And I thought you were going to inform me on how to properly adjust the sights on my revolver. Then, I noticed you typed "site". Imagine my :o: :popcorn :crackup

[Mellow]

Makes me wonder if the code in vB that does the New Posts function predates the LIMIT and OFFSET clauses in SELECT. Chopping the data set down in the server makes a huge difference. But you knew that. :cool:

(Non-technical users will pardon the geeky discourse.)

--Mark

Yes... the 100 or 200 limit is just what is served up.. if you have 1400 unread posts, it has nothing to do with the limit...

[Spencer]

Makes me wonder if the code in vB that does the New Posts function predates the LIMIT and OFFSET clauses in SELECT. Chopping the data set down in the server makes a huge difference. But you knew that. :cool:

(Non-technical users will pardon the geeky discourse.)

--Mark

Uh......what?:shock:

[Peter]

I would have thought the magic number would be nearer the average amount of posts per day that way as most of us are creatures of habit and check in about the same time every day we can get all the post's we missed since we checked yesterday and if we go away for a few days we know we have to look harder to get our missed post's

Peter