# Off Topic > The Water Cooler >  >  Why has the members list been disabled again ??

## snb

Why inventing 'new' features as long as common features fail ?

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## JBeaucaire

I work in a software development company and I would have thought the answer to that question was obvious.

Even while working on new and not-so-new bugs in our products, we still introduce new features, especially easy ones.  Little wins and small progresses are never delayed forever by bugs that gnaw at us most of the rest of the time.

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## snb

I don't consider keeping a forum in the air being 'software development'.

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## JBeaucaire

The answer given still covers the question asked.

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## TMS

> The answer given still covers the question asked.



But you have to admit that snb has a point.

The fact that the issue of the forum slowing down, sometimes crashing, sometime causing double posting has been going on for months.  That's fairly fundamental.  As is not being able to display a list of members.

Yet, new and possibly unnecessary features, like not displaying the signature in every post, without even discussing the practicality of them with senior members must be an increased load on the server and a waste of the human resource that is the tech team ... whoever he or she is.

Regards, TMS

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## snb

The members list is still not working (who else isn't ?)

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## jaslake

@snb

Nor for me either...

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## xladept

When I click on it - this is what I get:





> Sorry! The administrator has disabled the list of members.

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## FDibbins

Thats what every-one is getting, Im sure it will get corrected as soon as they can - even if every-one posts in here, I doubt it will get fixed any quicker

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## jaslake

@FDibbins

One of the shortcomings of the Forum is communication. Let us know the obvious and we won't ask the obvious. You have a Banner across the Top...have the Tech Team let us know about Issues...what's it take...8 hours of their time to do so?  If so I can see WHY they don't let us know the obvious...if not please keep us informed such that we know what's going on. You don't need to tell us WHY...just that it is.

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## snb

There are only 2 administrators......

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## JBeaucaire

I remind you that we've also gotten complaints for putting up banner messages about things that only affect a few people, the number of people using the Member's List would qualify.  





> "Sorry! The administrator has disabled the list of members."



That message seems 100% sufficient and appears to those who try to access the Member's List.

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## snb

But why ? is the question

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## xladept

"Wheels within wheels - Bendreth"

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## JBeaucaire

It was causing forum performance issues, lag.  It will be enabled again when those issues are resolved.

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## JBeaucaire

_"If you can fill the unforgiving minute with sixty seconds of distance run..."_

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## TMS

I can't help thinking that, if they deleted/removed the huge number of "long term 'users'" who have never, ever posted it would a) reduce the inflated membership list and b) improve the performance of processes accessing the membership list.

Regards, TMS

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## snb

At least 5 days compared to your 60 seconds...
A simple table in a database.....




> Sorry! The administrator has disabled the list of members.



Which one of 2 administrators ?

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## Alf

The admin giveth, and the admin taketh away; Blessed be the name of the admin!"

Alf

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## JBeaucaire

Interesting question, snb.  The name of an admin helps in what way?  When the tech team has resolved the performance issue, it will be reenabled.

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## :) Sixthsense :)

Just out of curiosity when It will be enabled?

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## JBeaucaire

> Just out of curiosity when It will be enabled?



When the performance issues that it was causing are resolved, it will be re-enabled.

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## TMS

@JB: I don't really want to get involved in this any more as it seems to be going in circles.

However, ... perhaps it would satisfy everyone's curiosity if you could, perhaps, outline what performance issues you are alluding to (specifically, given there have been ongoing performance issues for months) and how they relate to the Members' List.  What is it about the members list, or the processing of it, that causes a performance hit?

I know that we are where we are, and that it may not be easy to determine when we will be somewhere else, but it may calm things down if you could explain *why* we are where we are (in terms of the unavailability of the Members' List).  And maybe what is being done to resolve the issue(s) and how it will help.   :Smilie: 

I don't think that bouncing one-liners back and forth is helping anyone's temperament  :Roll Eyes (Sarcastic): 

Kind regards, TMS

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## Simon Lloyd

The simple solution to performance issues would be to make the members list only available to members, the same with profiles too, this way search engines and bots would not be constantly polling it causing queries to mount up on the database, doing the above wouldn't give rise to too many queries as there wouldn't be that many members checking it at the same time, you should also limit the number of results per page it returns (this is done by editing the template and changing the value) this would also allow queries to release quicker.

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## JBeaucaire

I was informed the exact reason it was disabled was the "bot" issue Simon mentioned above.  When it is enabled currently web bots are polling the Members List incessantly adding to the lag we all have come to hate.  For now disabling it immediately clears all that headroom.   

Thanks Simon, I'll pass on your thoughts, very very helpful.   :Smilie:

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## TMS

Yeah ... thank you for sharing ... maybe we have closure (and a solution)

+1 to Simon.  I do hope the "Tech Team" have the technical ability to do something constructive with his advice.

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## Simon Lloyd

To be honest it's not rocket science, anyone with a modicum of sense and vbulletin knowledge would have done this in an instant. Now hopefully you'll all be able to put this one to bed.

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## TMS

Yup ... give it a couple of months for the Tech Team to implement it ...

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## xladept

@Simon

I thought that we had a rocket scientist on the team - but then, as you say, it's not rocket science :Smilie:

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## Mordred

After almost 2 years, double posting is still an issue.  I guess it's the members list?

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## :) Sixthsense :)

> When the performance issues that it was causing are resolved, it will be re-enabled.



Thanks for the reply JB, Is there any approximate time frame to fix this one?

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## arlu1201

The members list is back online.

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## Pete_UK

Thanks Arlette. Have the Tech Team taken on board what Simon suggested, so it won't have to be withdrawn again in the future?

Pete

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## arlu1201

Am not sure, but i can check with them.

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## Winon

the Members List seems to have been disabled again.

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## arlu1201

I can see it, anyone else not seeing it?

I will have to check if it has been enabled only for a smaller usergroup on a temporary basis.  Thats just my guess.

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## Mordred

I can see it and I can navigate it.

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## FDibbins

yup, I see it too

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## Tony Valko

I can see it as well.

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## xladept

I've got it too - but 13 echoes, on Sixthsense's reply to the "opinion" post :Smilie:

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## Winon

And now it is available to me as well. :Wink: 

Thank you arlu1201. :Smilie:

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## :) Sixthsense :)

Again member list is not accessible  :Frown:  It is happening only for me or for everyone?  :Roll Eyes (Sarcastic):

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## Kyle123

I can't see it

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## :) Sixthsense :)

Thanks for the confirmation Kyle123  :Wink: 

Not sure when we see a complete fix for this one  :Frown:

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## Alf

> Not sure when we see a complete fix for this one



Perhaps 





> As Mars enters Scorpio forming a sextile to the  Sun and a trine to Neptune, exalting our need to help others and the awareness of other people’s pain, to then,  sextile Mercury on September 5th, which gives us the opportunity to do research and concentrated we may also be able to see the “members list” again



Alf

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## Mordred

Not only is the Member's List not there again but link jumping here is extremely slow again.  No worries though, I've got a roll of duct tape, floss, a toilet paper tube, and some gum; all should be good in a moment.   :EEK!:

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## xladept

Hey Mordred,

I didn't know that you were a Physics Teacher too! :Smilie:

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## JBeaucaire

The beginning of any good science project: 




> ...I've got a roll of duct tape, floss, a toilet paper tube, and some gum

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## JosephP

what information from the member list is it that people want? perhaps it could be added somewhere else and retrieved in a better/simpler way (none of it seems particularly dynamic to me)

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## Winon

I cannot access it. :Frown: 

@ Alf,

Lets hope your Astrology prediction, and assumptions do materialise.LOL. :Smilie:

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## Alf

Hi Winon

So do I and if it does on the 5th of September I'll ask admin to change my title to "Forum Astrologer"

Alf

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## Miraun

I can't see it either...  sad...  :Frown: 

As far as the duplication issue that was raised on page 3... I know we've been having some duplication issues internally as well that were traced to packet losses between the webserver and the database server.  Typically associated with too much strain on the database server, which would result in a lack of remittance to the webserver, and the webserver re-transmitting the request, even though it was already cached by the database, but hadn't been fully processed.

An old friend of mine used to always say that it's not rocket surgery...  Always liked that better than rocket science of brain surgery.

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## Miraun

> what information from the member list is it that people want? perhaps it could be added somewhere else and retrieved in a better/simpler way (none of it seems particularly dynamic to me)



I personally pull up the member list, sort on reputation, and see my ranking on the most reputable excel people on the forums...  It gives me warm fuzzies to know that I'm in the top X of Y excel users on such a well known forum.

Although... then I look at the people above me and die a little inside, because they're so much higher than me.

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## Alf

> then I look at the people above me and die a little inside, because they're so much higher than me.



Why? Once they all started at the bottom of the list but they spent time and effort helping others so now they are at the top of the "list" and so can you if you are willing to do the same.

Alf

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## JosephP

perhaps it would be possible to add the current rank to the user profile

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## xladept

> perhaps it would be possible to add the current rank to the user profile



- JosephP


Yeah - There could be three ratings: Formula, VBA and Combined :Smilie:

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## :) Sixthsense :)

Any update??

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## RobertMika

Any update??

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## arlu1201

The members list is active again.

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