Film-Tech Forum ARCHIVE: ISP Change Announcement

This is topic ISP Change Announcement in forum Film Handlers' Forum at Film-Tech Forum ARCHIVE.

To visit this topic, use this URL:
https://ft-forum.com/ft/cgi-bin/ubb/ultimatebb.cgi?ubb=get_topic;f=1;t=001212

Posted by John Pytlak (Member # 331) on 07-19-2000, 01:47 PM:

Don't take away Film-Tech, even for a minute

I think it's a tribute to Brad and the participants in Film-Tech that this site is so busy with lively discussion that we keep outgrowing the server. If there is an outage next Friday as it is switched to a new ISP, let's all be patient, knowing that Film-Tech will be back soon, better than ever!

Pretty soon, Film-Tech will be larger than the 30-40 Gigabytes it now takes to store a compressed movie with the 76 Mbits/second data rates required. Anyone selling used Pluto or QuVIS QuBit arrays? Maybe Brad can use one.

------------------
John P. Pytlak, Senior Technical Specialist
Worldwide Technical Services, Entertainment Imaging
Eastman Kodak Company
Research Labs, Building 69, Room 7419
Rochester, New York, 14650-1922 USA
Tel: 716-477-5325 Fax: 716-722-7243
E-Mail: john.pytlak@kodak.com

Posted by John Pytlak (Member # 331) on 07-19-2000, 01:55 PM:

Brad:

Can you share the latest statistics on the Film-Tech site? How many registered participants? How many "lurkers"? How many "hits" a day. Average length of visits? Total file size? etc. I have a feeling the numbers will surprise us.

Posted by Gordon McLeod (Member # 33) on 07-19-2000, 02:21 PM:

Christie probably bought out the ISP to retaliate about the negative comments
If this ISP can't handle the amount of traffic this site gets maybe the ISP mail wouldn't handle the angry filmtechers rage of complaining email
maybe Brad should list the offending company's email address to be taught a filmguarded lesson
It is a comment on the dedication of this group into the quality preservation of this indusrty that this site has grown this much

Posted by Ian Price (Member # 14) on 07-19-2000, 03:37 PM:

What is the ISP's email address so we can politely ask them to hold on a bit or flame them if they pull the plug?

Posted by Jason Burroughs (Member # 68) on 07-19-2000, 03:40 PM:

This site has come a LONG way. From a little spot on the AOL members pages out growing at least 2 web hosts, From just a few posts and rants to the highly informative formum that it is today. All the posters and lurkers owe a great thanks to Brad and his team. Good luck on the upcomming server change, hope all goes smoothly.

I have to agree with John it would be quite interresting to see some of the stastics from this site, and I'm sure they would be quite suprising to some of us.

Posted by Brad Miller (Member # 2) on 07-19-2000, 04:17 PM:

Actually, it's been 5 hosts the site has outgrown, counting the impending doom of the current one. Currently "the" site is sitting on 3 servers divided more or less equally to handle the load.

Stats? Well, the only one I've checked recently is the increasing record of visitors to the main page. Last week we had a single day with 39,880 visitors. (Damn, so close to a cool 40,000!) Joe's last review (the one with Bevan-poos) got 1600 reads the first week. The forum is of course the most popular part of the site. Hundreds of manual downloads is not uncommon for a single day, but I do not remember the exact manual record off the top of my head. I'll have to check on that. Visitors are coming mostly from the US, but a huge chunk is from all around the world. Lurkers are some incredible number, to say the least. Come on everybody, register and participate! (Especially those few manufacturers who only quietly lurk here.)

Everyone be sure and thank Mr. Scott Norwood, who is a major, MAJOR part of getting this final mega-server set up. I don't know what I would be doing right now if it wasn't for his help.

Posted by Mark Gulbrandsen (Member # 72) on 07-19-2000, 04:33 PM:

Brad.....
Kudos to you and your staff for keeping all this up and running!! I don't think I know anyone else out there that has the fortitude as you do to make it all happen. Its gone through 5 different servers...man!
Scott,
Thanks in advance for all your hard work to keep things moving forword!
This site is indeed very special!
Mark

Posted by Jason Burroughs (Member # 68) on 07-19-2000, 05:56 PM:

Since Scott is heading up the new servers I'm going to assume that they're going to be either Unix or Linux based, if I remember right Scott is a Unix guru, so the site should be quite stable

Posted by Joe Redifer (Member # 3) on 07-19-2000, 06:03 PM:

1600? You told me 16,000!

Posted by Gordon McLeod (Member # 33) on 07-19-2000, 06:48 PM:

How about this idea Brad just before the plug gets pulled email evre filmtech and have use simulatiously download the complete manual library
I can already see the mushrooming cloud

Posted by Scott Norwood (Member # 30) on 07-19-2000, 07:09 PM:

Jason - you guessed it: the main server (web, mail, ftp, dns, etc.) will be a PC running Linux with a ton of disk space for all of Mr. Layton's manuals.

There will also be a machine running SunOS 4.1.4 for backup DNS and mail service.

Actually, I'm both an NT geek and a Unix geek, but I try to avoid NT for anything that requires stability and needs to be able to be managed remotely.

Posted by Russ Kress (Member # 461) on 07-19-2000, 07:45 PM:

Brad, what about becoming your own ISP? I personally don't care who gets my monthly $19.95 internet bill!

If there are enough of us to sign up, it might be do-able.

Any one else game?

Russ

Posted by Oscar Neundorfer (Member # 458) on 07-19-2000, 08:38 PM:

Brad,

I am preparing TONS of megabytes of pdf manual files to send to you. That should help overload things a bit more. You think maybe I should send them to you on a CDROM instead of jamming up your e-mail?

Thanks for persevering through all this and thanks to Scott for helping you out. This is truly a great site and deserves much more than some wimpy little ISP who can't cut it!

------------------
Oscar Neundorfer
Chief Engineer
SMART Devices, Inc.

oscar@smartdev.com

Posted by Joe Redifer (Member # 3) on 07-19-2000, 08:56 PM:

It seems like most servers out there do not want your site to do tremendously well. That's why Film-Tech will be on its very own server here locally soon. This will solve so many problems. And the site will have storage to spare. We could store DLP presentations and offer them for download on the site!

Posted by Mark Gulbrandsen (Member # 72) on 07-19-2000, 10:04 PM:

Actually the event that I am waiting to see is when Brad sells out to AOL for 30 million dollars. Christie may just also offer a similar sum just to shut everyone here up permanently.
I'll go for the ISP service as long as you guys offer DSL service. I really like my DSL!!
Mark

Posted by Brad Miller (Member # 2) on 07-19-2000, 11:14 PM:

Joe,

Sorry, yes that was a typo. It WAS 16,000 the first week on your reviews.

Oscar,

Definitely looking forward to your manual submissions! A cdrom will work nicely. We'll have 55 GIGS of space to start with, so that ought to do it. Of course, that won't last long, for as soon as a couple of new plans for the site are implemented, that won't cut it. Just wait and see...

Gordon,

Let's not go downloading the entire manual library all at once just yet. Most of those are on another server that hasn't completely threatened to pull the plug. Scott and I are going to try and move the forum and navigational files over to that one until the new bad boy is up and running. I figure by the time they realize they are being overloaded, we'll be off of it!

...of course, once the site is moved over to the new server, perhaps we could set a date and time for everyone around the world to download Joe's 25 MEG training video all at once. Think we could completely crash the server? hehe

Posted by Joe Redifer (Member # 3) on 07-19-2000, 11:23 PM:

You can set up certain pinging programs to crash a server. I hear that they work extremely well!

Posted by Dave Cutler (Member # 515) on 07-20-2000, 09:05 AM:

Pretty much what I read into this thread is that we are all a bunch of film junkies that need our fix of the forum everyday. With the upcoming possible black-out we are afraid we won't get our fix for a couple of days.

Joe's review was read 16,000 times in the first week?!? I had no idea there were so many people lurking around here. That's awesome!! Kudos to the whole Film-Tech team.

Proud to be a Film-Tech junkie!

Posted by John Pytlak (Member # 331) on 07-20-2000, 02:20 PM:

Joe Redifer said:

"We could store DLP presentations and offer them for download on the site!"

This is the first thing I've read about Digital Cinema that really makes me think it might happen during my lifetime -- Someone with a real business plan!

Time to order 45 megabit per second T-3 service. But since I don't have a quarter million dollars on hand right now, I'll save some money and buy a Kodak DLP projector:
http://www.kodak.com/country/US/en/digital/av/digitalProjectors/

Posted by Brad Miller (Member # 2) on 07-20-2000, 02:34 PM:

Hmmmm, someone sure seems to be pushing the Kodak digital projectors!

Say John, even considered sending one out for review? I'm sure Joe would be willing to compare a VHS dupe on it to a 70mm print.

(Seriously, send one out.)

In other news, if the studios need that kind of service, Film-Tech is the place to do it! We'll set it up.

Posted by John Pytlak (Member # 331) on 07-20-2000, 02:38 PM:

Brad:

No contest. We both know "DIGITAL" is always better.

Posted by Joe Redifer (Member # 3) on 07-20-2000, 02:43 PM:

Here is my review of Kodak's digital projector: It blows. Why? Because it can't match 70mm or IMAX. What good is that?

Posted by John Pytlak (Member # 331) on 07-20-2000, 02:55 PM:

Joe: I agree, the Kodak projectors have cooling fans that "blow". So you're saying that ALL digital projectors "blow"? Can I quote you?

Posted by Scott Norwood (Member # 30) on 07-20-2000, 08:12 PM:

Hey, this thing blows too (check out the size of the ventilation hose!), but if someone wants to donate one to my basement screening room, I'd happily set it up next to the Simplex...

Posted by John Wilson (Member # 269) on 07-20-2000, 09:25 PM:

Dave said: >>Proud to be a Film-Tech junkie!<< Mr. President, I think there's a T-Shirt there if ever I saw one. (Or maybe just a bumper sticker)

Joe said: >>Here is my review of Kodak's digital projector: It blows. Why? Because it can't match 70mm or IMAX. What good is that?<<
I don't think you're going to outdo your 16,000 record with that one, Joe...a tad (in space terms that's half a million miles) minimalist. Congratulations on being so popular.

Posted by Joe Redifer (Member # 3) on 07-21-2000, 04:36 AM:

I just received 16,001 e-mails regarding my Kodak digital projector review (above). Everyone agreed with me! If anyone can usher in the digital era and do away with film, it will be John Pytlak!

Posted by John Pytlak (Member # 331) on 07-21-2000, 06:03 AM:

Joe said: "If anyone can usher in the digital era and do away with film, it will be John Pytlak!"

Joe has demoted me from "Jedi Master Film Handler" to "usher" for promoting digital projection, even though it was only for home theatres.

BTW, Joe's photo looks like the DLP setup used last year for "Star Wars Episode 1 -- The Phantom Menace". AFAIK, most of the 30 or so current DLP Cinema projector prototypes use modified Christie lamphouses.

Posted by Paul Konen (Member # 41) on 07-21-2000, 08:17 AM:

Yes, I believe that all new DLP's are with Christie Lamphouses and the DLP Head is the color of the label. Blue-ish. It color compliments the Christie Blue.

Posted by Mark Gulbrandsen (Member # 72) on 07-21-2000, 08:55 AM:

Now Scott, That is an interesting picture. A Christie projector on a Strong pedestal with a Strong lamp and switcher????? Did Bevan pull this off?
Mark

Posted by Scott Norwood (Member # 30) on 07-21-2000, 09:08 AM:

The DLP projector in the picture is the one that was used for the SW screenings in Secaucus, NJ last summer. The Pluto disk array is not shown (it is [was] located near the sound rack behind the Century JJ which is behind the DLP projector in this picture).

Here's a picture of the more recent implementation that people have been discussing (so where does the Bevan-Poo go?):