AnnArbor.com back up and operational after server failure
We're back. We've resumed regular posting after our Web site was temporarily unavailable this morning from about 2:30 am until 10 am. We identified a problem with our server hardware and were able to fix the major issues in order to get the site up and running by mid-morning. Until about noon, there were still some hiccups in the site, having to do with posting stories and comments from users. However, those problems also have been resolved and the site is now fully functioning again.
While the site was down, we delayed sending out our daily e-mail newsletter, and the newsletter went out around 10:30 a.m.
We are working to get a fuller understanding of what caused the site to go down, and will take the steps necessary to prevent a recurrence of these problems. We apologize for any inconvenience caused by our site being down.
As always, we want to hear from you. If you have any problems with this site, please report them to us at support@annarbor.com.
Comments
Tony Dearing
Fri, Jul 31, 2009 : 10:25 a.m.
Chuck, yes we've had some growing pains, and we've been honest about that, but we're making progress. Delivery of the paper for Thursday improved significantly, and we want to make sure you're getting your paper. If your delivery problems haven't been resolved, please e-mail me your address and phone so I can make sure you're getting taken care of. Send that e-mail to tonydearing@annarbor.com.
Tony Dearing
Fri, Jul 31, 2009 : 9:54 a.m.
Dagny, appreciate the feedback. The streaming news feed is a different concept, but one we think the world is headed in. We're listening to what people here are saying about it. We're working on ways to better differentiate news story from blogger contributions, but we hadn't specifically considered having different streams. We'll consider that. We are in the process of changing how we caption photos, and we'll soon have a better solution than what we're doing now. I also appreciate the suggestion of offering a longer list of the most commented on stories. That's good feedback and I'll get it on the to-do list. In terms of updating stories, if we have an additional piece of information, we typically go back and update the existing post. If the story is more than a day or two old, or if we have significant new developments, then we create a new story. It's a matter of judgment. Thanks for your comments.
Chuck Warpehoski
Fri, Jul 31, 2009 : 9:10 a.m.
Web problems yesterday, and then yesterday's paper didn't arrive. Looks the AnnArbor.com is having some growing pains.
DagnyJ
Fri, Jul 31, 2009 : 8:01 a.m.
Hi. The streaming news is interesting and I think I like it. A few suggestions: I wish you could differentiate between streams. I want "news" separate from entertainment and blogging. Could you have three streams at once? Can you caption photos next to the image rather than at the bottom? I can't tell if updates to the same story get a new "place" on the feed or if they are modified and stay in line. I want to have a longer list of stories with the most comments, so I can more easily see what people are talking about. Otherwise, this is pretty good, and I was prepared for the worst.
Tony Dearing
Thu, Jul 30, 2009 : 5:51 p.m.
No, didn't mean to imply that. We do use a hosting service.
redeye
Thu, Jul 30, 2009 : 5:44 p.m.
"We identified a problem with our server hardware and were able to fix the major issues" You run your own server machine, instead of using a hosting service?