Server down?

[LordMiritar]

Now, I do realize that many people flood the website looking for the new comic, especially in the afternoon (EST) but lately I keep getting the "Web Page Not Availible" screen when I try to load any page on GITP.

Is this because of the massive flood of people reloading the pages and checking the forums continously Or is ti just something with my computer/browser/ISP can't handle it moving slowly?

Has anyone else had this problem? I noticed today was especially bad...

[El Jaspero, the Pirate King]

Probably because everybody was checking like mad to see if Roy got blown up by the scruffy ninjas.

[RawBearNYC]

I've answered this question elsewhere.

The message boards run fat. I tried to improve that, but they fell apart when I did. So, they continue to run fat. And I haven't spent any time trying to figure out why they fell apart.

The earlier the comic is posted, the easier it is on the server. Because people come and check it and then leave during the day. When the comic is later, people keep checking and checking. Eventually, it gets posted and the world comes to see it. That load, plus the load of people on the message boards ends up being much for the server, and it slows down.

If I run into some free time, I'll see what I can do to get the message boards running under mod_perl. But, unlike Rich, I still have a day job, so, it'll stay on the to do list.

OOTS is by FAR more popular than we ever imagined. Unfortunately, it doesn't generate the kind of income needed to set up the kind of server infrastructure it needs. So, we have to put up with the slow downs from time to time.

[LordMiritar]

I guess I didn't get my main question across.

What I really want to know is if the server, or site, actually goes down, or if it a problem on my end of the line.

[RawBearNYC]

Neither. There's likely not a problem on your end. And the server rarely goes down. What happens is that the serverload gets so high that it decides to stop responding to requests until it processes the requests in queue.

[Zherog]

If I run into some free time...

You're a funny guy, RawBear. ;)

[LordMiritar]

Thanks, RawBear. I'm not too knowledgeable about servers and websites and stuff, but it makes sense to me now. Thanks.