Monster Island News
| Welcome to M o n s t e r l a n d F o r u m s! We are a growing, casual and friendly online community of movie fans who like to talk about giant monsters, horror and sci-fi in cinema, on television and on DVD. There are forums for sports, casual chat and video games as well. For those of you who like making art, writing stories and creating videos, our community includes a forum for these submissions as well. Check out our main index page and other board forums! Anyone is welcome to join our community! M o n s t e r l a n d F o r u m s was created on January 29, 2006 for the purpose of giving fans of giant monster films and other sci-fi/horror movies a friendly online meeting place to discuss all of their favorite films and other things of interest. -Lee "Packmule" Merritt Site founder |
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| ZetaBoards Conversion of Monsterland Forums; Please read! Very important! | |
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| Topic Started: Jan 21 2008, 10:50 PM (391 Views) | |
| packmule | Jan 21 2008, 10:50 PM Post #1 |
Site founder - Searching for Cropsy
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Several days ago, and at the recommendation of both Invisionfree and Zeta Boards support techs, I decided to "opt in" to have this message board's primary format converted to the ZetaBoards format. Invisionfree has been a most reliable web hosting service, with little or any downtime from IF server #15, which this site is assigned to. I have been told that the ZetaBoards format will include more features and functions for members, which is why I decided to opt for the upgrade. The conversion process of IF boards to Zeta Boards is currently underway by the Zeta Boards staff. The conversions are being done manually right now, which is more time consuming. An automated format converter is being designed, and tested by ZB staff. It will be used after it has been successfully tested. I may, or may not, receive some advance warning that Monsterland Forums is about to undergo the format change which, for a message board this size, will probably take 2-3 hours. Within the next week, possibly two, members trying to access this message board, including myself, may receive a message, when trying to login, that the board is being upgraded and that access is impossible. This will be a temporary issue only. There are currently a far more limited number of forum skins and site modifications available for ZetaBoards sites than there are for Invisionfree hosted boards. That means that after the conversion this site may lack a "skin". I'm told coders are busy compiling skins and other CSS and HTML codes to be made available for those IF admins who have opted for the upgrade, and it is an upgrade, to ZetaBoards web hosting. I will open a topic thread called "ZetaBoards Comments/Questions" after the upgrade is finished, so that any members here with questions/comments about the new format can post them. I would like to ask everyone here to bear with this change, and me, as I work to stay on top it. If anyone has any questions right now about this upgrade to ZB please PM me or email me at packmule84@yahoo.com. Here is a link with some info about ZetaBoards and forum hosting services provided for IF admins: http://s1.zetaboards.com/zb/learn/ Thank you. Sincerely, Lee "Packmule" Merritt :) |
 Packmule's Pen Latitude Zero(1969) The Relic(1997) | |
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| packmule | Feb 17 2008, 01:52 AM Post #2 |
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Site founder - Searching for Cropsy
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An update: I have been monitoring activity at the ZetaBoard Support board. The ZetaBoard conversions of Invisionfree hosted sites continue manually, which is obviously a time consuming process. There continues to be testing, of some kind, on the automated program that will ultimately be used to covert IF boards to ZetaBoard format. The testing for this program, for "bugs", has not yet been completed, which is why it has not been released for download to IF board admins, like myself, for use here. The manual conversions will continue. The conversion of this site, Monsterland Forums, could happen in the next few days or in the next couple of months. I just cannot be more specific at this time. Once the conversion starts this board will appear as "offline". The estimated actual conversion time for this site is 2-4 hours. I will continue to post any updates regarding the IF to ZB conversion, as I see them. Many thanks. :) |
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Packmule's Pen Latitude Zero(1969) The Relic(1997) | |
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| packmule | Mar 22 2008, 11:13 PM Post #3 |
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Site founder - Searching for Cropsy
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Here is an update, from 3/14/08, posted by "Brandon", the creator of Invisionfree(and Zetaboards) at the Zetaboards support site, and about the IF>ZB conversion process "auto converter", a program that will, after being created, be used to convert Invisionfree boards(like Monsterland Forums) to the Zetaboards format: Since it has been some time since we opened up the Conversion process to those of you with IF boards, I wanted to give everyone an update. As you may know we're are currently working on an Auto-Conversion process that will drastically speed up the process of conversions. Unfortunately due to some complications, this has taken longer than we initially expected. I want to make sure everyone is aware that we're doing everything we can to make sure that the Conversion process is smooth and safe for everyone's board. When I have a better idea of when the Auto-Convertor will be completed and activated I will let everyone know. I appreciate everyone's continued patience with us as we work to get this process completed. Thanks So there it is. They're working on smoothing outsome "bugs" in the auto-converter program. |
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| packmule | May 18 2008, 10:51 PM Post #4 |
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Site founder - Searching for Cropsy
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I just wanted to post a reminder that Monsterland Forums should undergo the conversion to Zetaboards format not later than 5/28/08. This site will be inaccessible during the conversion, which should last 2-3 hours and no more. Members will receive an error message when trying to login during the conversion process. This conversion is considered an upgrade and will improve, among other things, the security of the site and also provide members with more features and options. I will open a topic thread about the conversion after it happens for anyone who has any questions about the IF>ZB conversion of this message board. Lee "Packmule" Merritt |
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| packmule | Jun 12 2008, 06:44 PM Post #5 |
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Site founder - Searching for Cropsy
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Monsterland Forums has just undergone the conversion to Zetaboards format. At the moment I'm having a technical issue installing the new forum skin so that is on hold...momentarily. Anyone logging in right now will see the ZB default skin. I'm working on this. The emoticons we were using have also, it would appear, not made the transition so I will be, over the next few days, installing more emotes until they are comparable to what we were using before. Anyone with any questions about the conversion please post them here and I'll try and address them. Member's passwords should continue to work. Anyone with a password problem, that is, your password doesn't work, email me at one of the following email addresses and I'll take steps to fix this immediately: merritt.84@hotmail.com packmule84@yahoo.com merritt84@gmail.com I hope everyone will be patient while I work with ZB to work out any bugs that may arise. Late edit: I have been told there are some glitches being worked on by Brandon involving server 15(our server) that involve my admin cp functions and also the emoticon functions. Edited by packmule, Jun 12 2008, 07:11 PM.
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| packmule | Jun 12 2008, 08:09 PM Post #6 |
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Site founder - Searching for Cropsy
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Until the technical issues with server 15 are resolved, and I've been given no timetable as to when that will be, the skin for this message board will remain "Zetaboard default". I also will be unable to upload any of the emoticons from our IF format. |
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| Vince S. | Jun 12 2008, 10:42 PM Post #7 |
Monsterland Associate
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This has come to my attention as well, though I am not bothered with the bland skin. When the custom is installed, will it remain the same as it was with invision free, or an entirely new skin? Vince S. |
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[size=1]"The recklessness of science gave birth to you, Godzilla. Why do you appear before us?"[/size] "Because we humans gave birth to this monster." --Godzilla 2000: Millennium Godzilla 1998 Database | |
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| packmule | Jun 13 2008, 04:52 AM Post #8 |
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Site founder - Searching for Cropsy
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You better believe it bothers me. It pisses me off. I spent the better part of an entire week scouring several boards looking for a ZB themed skin that would work for this site. I find several and, immediately after the conversion(yesterday), I cannot install any of them because of this "technical issue" which was mentioned to me by a ZB staffer. This issue also is why I cannot upload into of our former emoticons either. In my opinion there is absolutely no excuse whatsoever for this problem. There was a nearly three week delay in the conversion of this board because Brandon(and whoever else may be helping him) encountered "an unforeseen hardware issue". Unforeseen? Okay, I was willing to roll with that. But more of these problems after the conversion? Come on. The ZB support site is choked with complaints about the conversion: a lot of people are having issues. While some are caused by the members themselves most are legitimate beefs and involve real bugs that have been caused by what I believe was a poorly handled conversion overall. It's a new skin that resembles, somewhat, the former IF skin we were using called "Reclutex". The banner we were using(KK and the V-Rex) would look fine, IMO, with this new ZB skin called "Byte". It is long been established that a message board that is subject to technical problems loses posts from those members who opt not to visit the site(or can't like yesterday when the site was down). I don't expect any of the active and long time members here to discontinue their activity here. What concerns me, honestly, are members like you, recently registered and relatively new around here. It's these kinds of members that sites generally lose, in some numbers, when these technical issues arise. At the time of this post I still cannot install a new forum skin or upload any new emoticons. I can tell you this: losing even one member, or one post, due to these technical issues, is absolutely goddamn unacceptable in my book, and I hold, and will continue to hold, Brandon and anyone else tasked with this changeover personally responsible. They mucked it up. Period. Considering how hard I have worked to get Monsterland Forums up and running, and active with posts and members, you cannot imagine how angry I am right now. Edited by packmule, Jun 13 2008, 04:57 AM.
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| KaijuFanatic | Jun 13 2008, 04:09 PM Post #9 |
DVD Fanatic
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I can't even begin to imagine how pissed you are about the 'glitches' with the changeover, Lee....I do hope they smooth themselves out, sooner than later and I know I'm the last person that can really say this and have anyone take much stock in it, but I'll be here now and when you are able to have it running as it was, before. :) |
| Hers, Mine & Our DVDs | |
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| packmule | Jun 13 2008, 05:49 PM Post #10 |
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Site founder - Searching for Cropsy
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I appreciate the words of support Kimi. As I mentioned before I'm not concerned about long time members like you, Dan, Trent, Josh, Matthew or even Kex leaving the site. What concerns me are all the other members who either recently joined and have just started getting into the "flow" of the site and/or those who post a little more sporadically...and might post more if I continue to tweak the board here and there with improvements. To finally get this site converted, three weeks after servers 1-14 were converted on schedule, and then to be subject to another delay in customizing the skin and emoticons, which are of the most basic functions of a message board, is absolutely ridiculous. Period. When I chose Invisionfree, Kimi, back in late January, 2006 I was under the impression IF was a company, staffers with IT and web design professionals. In actuality, IF is basically a college student who runs IF on the side...and has a small staff of helpers and assistants. That, IMO, is part of the problem: an internet message board hosting service, any service, should be run by computer pros and not part timers who are, for the most part, college students. I'm going to look into paying for professional hosting service for this site...after our issues have been fixed. Speaking of issues, I still cannot install a custom theme(skin) for this site, nor can I install new emoticons, at the time of this post. The technical problems have not been resolved by Brandon, creator of IF and Zetaboards. |
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Packmule's Pen Latitude Zero(1969) The Relic(1997) | |
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| packmule | Jun 15 2008, 01:36 AM Post #11 |
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Site founder - Searching for Cropsy
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I have been able, at the time of this post, to successfully install our old IF emoticons for member use. I am still unable to install a custom theme(skin) for this message board, so the default ZB skin will remain in effect until this remaining technical issue can be fixed. It took about two days for the emote glitch to be fixed so it may take that long, or longer, to get the theme installation "bug" fixed also. |
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| KaijuFanatic | Jun 15 2008, 10:59 AM Post #12 |
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DVD Fanatic
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Nice job in getting the emoticon package from the old board, installed, here. 
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| Hers, Mine & Our DVDs | |
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| KexMex | Jun 15 2008, 12:32 PM Post #13 |
Transgendered transcultural transracial transspeciesist
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 sums up my feelings about this look, but since that's apparently gonna be fixed I'm pretty fine with this.
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| This is a signature. Signatures on message boards consist of text and/or pictures appearing underneath every post by the signature's owner. | |
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| packmule | Jun 15 2008, 12:54 PM Post #14 |
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Site founder - Searching for Cropsy
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Here's what sums up my "look" regarding the absence of a custom skin here:  The issue with the emoticons was fixed which is a good sign. Whenever I try to edit the layout or CSS of this site I get a white screen with "Database error". Every ZB admin whose site was recently converted, and is using server #15(as we are), is encountering this problem. Hopefully it will be fixed within the next few days(or less). |
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| Ro-Dan | Jun 15 2008, 01:25 PM Post #15 |
Administrator
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Wow. I didn't even know that this thread existed. I've been emailing Lee regarding this topic but if I knew this thread were here I would've been posting here instead. Anyway, Lee stated to me in an email that any members who try logging into the old site would be redirected to the new one. That's cool. I really don't see why new member would leave just because we're using a generic skin. Even if we do we'll just have to keep chugging along and wait for more to join up. As the saying goes, "Two steps forward, one step backward." |
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7:54 AM Nov 23
