smokey01.com is closing "shortly"

[peebee]

The screenshot says it all....... there will be lots of dangling links once it does close........

Screenshot.png (141.99 KiB) Viewed 813 times

[rockedge]

@peebee @smokey01

Unless........ we can have the domain name and we can transfer the domain or change the name servers to point to our host server. Depending on the storage size we can take the files and transfer them to another location and I can set up a similar file tree structure it would be possible to retain the links. We can add the domain name registration fee to the budget.........

Thoughts?

[mikeslr]

Cloning smokey01.com and adding the cost of maintaining such repo might be easier. But recently I've been thinking about how irrational humans really are: 'The Golden Age' which never was; how sad that WindowXP and Windows 7 and the many great Puppys we published and enjoyed are now of limited use.

So I preused thru smokey01. Likely a great deal of its space holds ISO and addons for Puppys which are no longer maintained, nor would be recommended to newbys. And some of those may have been mirroned on archive.org.

With 32-bit operating systems being phased out, I'm not sure how much of the applications it holds will have lasting value. Certainly some do, especially those which are exclusively scripts so may be usable even in 64bit systems.

I think we should consider as an alternative to cloning smokey01, those interested should examine its contents, download what he or she considers sufficiently valuable to retain and then have someone upload them to, say, ibiblio.

[rockedge]

Good point. I have been looking through what's there and most is pre-2015. I agree the site has run it's course, job well done.

[mikeslr]

Well, actually the "Job well done" should go to smokey. He was there when we needed him most.

Browsing thru this Section of the Repo with more attention, https://smokey01.com/devs.html I'd note that there were many fine pets created for Saluki by jamimah and for Carolina by Geoffrey, Battleshooter and rg66 which may still run under recent 32-bit Puppys.

Saluki and Carolina were my favorite 32-bit Puppies. pWidgets by Zigbert --an application I consider essential-- is on his Section of the Repo. While his work may also be found elsewhere, I note that peebee has creations there. Other Puppians may be more familiar with the creations by other Devs.

I found my 'old-style' Wine-portable 2.16 which smokey preserved. But I don't think it's essential thanks to Mikewalsh's 'new-style' portables.

And AFAIK, pets to install Icon themes, Cursors and fonts are likely to be architecture-'agnostic'.

We all really need to examine Smokey's repo carefully, each of us downloading that which we believe should not be lost, then compare what we have.

[proebler]

Note also the Puppy Newsletters, which smokey01 produced for more than 2 years starting in 2017.
They contain a treasure trove of practical, useful information as well as interesting profiles/interviews of Puppy contributors.

Grab them while they are available !

[peebee]

It is my understanding - from Grant - that he won't be renewing the domain name when it expires.
The significant increase in cost of keeping the server is the reason he has decided to close. Quote: "They are proposing that I upgrade to another plan for 293% increase in price and only 10 GB of storage space."
I have already moved all my content (mainly involved in Woof-CE builds) to other servers (mainly SourceForge).

[mikewalsh]

In all honesty, I can't say I blame him. Grant's provided access AND free storage space to scores of Puppians over the years, yet - ultimately - all good things eventually come to an end.

It's an unfortunate fact of modern life, isn't it? Everything costs more, and more (AND more).....and you get less & less - in REAL terms - for what you DO pay.

Ultimately, to keep such 24/7 access going, AND to be able to exert some kind of control over the cost, I'm guessing the only real answer is to run your own server. But is even that cost-effective nowadays?

Mike.

[rockedge]

I have downloaded all of the newsletters in the Notecase versions. Looking to grab the HTML copies......maybe @smokey01 can make a tarball of them to send me.......

The plan is to make a new webpage on puppylinux.com to feature what exists of the newsletters...........

Any of those working on web pages perhaps a design submission is a possibility???

[mikeslr]

Just out of curiosity, does anyone know of adverse information about namescheap? They offer shared hosting for $1.98 per month, https://www.namecheap.com/hosting/shared/ and, currently, you could obtain a domain named like smokey02.store for $.99 per year. They also offer a shared, stellar-plus plan, which includes domain name for the first year with unmetered SSD and unlimited websites for $34.88 per year. https://www.namecheap.com/hosting/domai ... ng-bundle/. The 'coveted' .com suffix is offered with that plan. AFAIK, namescheap has an excellent reputation. https://www.trustpilot.com/review/www.namecheap.com

Renewal costs don't seem to be 'off the wall' either. https://webhostingadvices.com/namecheap ... ng-review/:

Renewal Costs.png (55 KiB) Viewed 568 times

Note, I'm writting 'pre-1st cup of coffee' so may be more confused that normal.

[rockedge]

we use namescheap.....the murga-linux.com domain is registered through them. hosting is Bluehost and iFastnet is the home of the domain name puppylinux.com

we had to dance and run through the streets naked to regain control of the murga-linux.com domain name but eventually all the boxes got checked. Still actually "owned" by John Murga, just that I have full control of the account.

We could have smokey01.com domain name transferred to the namescheap account or over to Bluehost or iFastnet and pay for the registration from the donations received for the maintenance of these sites.

[rg66]

Hi everyone, long time.

I'm pretty sure Ally has most of the files from smokey01.com at archive.org already, last time I checked all of my stuff was there.

Cheers

[mikeslr]

Don't know how complicated it would be to 'transfer' smokey01 to namescheap AND change the links on the Forum. But namescheap offers a shared plan @ $37.88 for 2 years, renewing @ $91.88 for the next two years. 20 Gbs storage may be sufficient to contain smokey01. Considering that 'time is money', that might be more cost effective that the alternative I suggested.

smokey should know how much storage is currently needed.

And if 20 Gbs isn't sufficient, the Stellar-Plus plan with Unmetered Storage goes for $53.88/2 years — renews at $130.88/2 years. Actually, the initial mere $16 difference makes Stellar-Plus preferrable. We may think of other things to do with it. Host/mirror the many fan created applications which otherwise get scattered all over the web.

Two years from now is time enough to think about whether renewal makes sense.

P.S. If someone's willing to do the hard work of transferring, I can contribute the initial $54.

Keep in mind that I really don't know anything about this, especially concerning what it would actually cost, but smokey01.com is eligible for transfer:
https://www.namecheap.com/domains/trans ... okey01.com.

[rockedge]

@mikeslr

as long as the domain name points to a valid name server it will not be necessary to change any links. We could move the entire web site as is, to a host server and the links would all remain the same.

The challenge is getting the repo's actual files and transferring those to a new location. All comes down to is it worth it.

For smokey01 it would be a lot of work to pack it all up for a transfer.

20 G of data is significant but pretty much static, although there are copies apparently already in other locations.

Actual transfer of the domain name to another service is just a matter of a verification code and fee.

[smokey01]

There is over 250GB on my site, some of which may not be public.

Even after the site is gone you will likely be able to view and download via the Wayback machine.

Hostgator want $587.88 per year for the Pro 250 plan. This is more than I'm willing to pay.

In the past it was unlimited space and bandwidth for a lot less than this.

[mikeslr]

There is over 250GB on my site, some of which may not be public.

Even after the site is gone you will likely be able to view and download via the Wayback machine.

Hostgator want $587.88 per year for the Pro 250 plan. This is more than I'm willing to pay.

In the past it was unlimited space and bandwidth for a lot less than this.

I merely perused the Wayback machine for 'smokey01.com'. But I don't think it's archived everything, and finding specific things may be a hassle. That said I agree with smokey01. $587.88 per year isn't something I'd be willing to pay, either. If my above offer of $54 appeared generous, consider the following:

My home is paid off; my kids are independent; I drive a 12 year old Toyota whose engine is expected to last longer than I and only costs me about $1,000 per year to maintain, insurance included. And a trip my wife and I hoped to take now seems out of the question as she fears what effect a 6 hour flight would have on an arthritic knee and her doing the kind of exploring (stairs and long hikes) we took for granted a couple years ago.

To proceed with transfer to namescheap (or other), accumulate bits & pieces, or do nothing? Those are the questions.

[smokey01]

There is over 250GB on my site, some of which may not be public.

Even after the site is gone you will likely be able to view and download via the Wayback machine.

Hostgator want $587.88 per year for the Pro 250 plan. This is more than I'm willing to pay.

In the past it was unlimited space and bandwidth for a lot less than this.

I merely perused the Wayback machine for 'smokey01.com'. But I don't think it's archived everything, and finding specific things may be a hassle. That said I agree with smokey01. $587.88 per year isn't something I'd be willing to pay, either. If my above offer of $54 appeared generous, consider the following:

My home is paid off; my kids are independent; I drive a 12 year old Toyota whose engine is expected to last longer than I and only costs me about $1,000 per year to maintain, insurance included. And a trip my wife and I hoped to take now seems out of the question as she fears what effect a 6 hour flight would have on an arthritic knee and her doing the kind of exploring (stairs and long hikes) we took for granted a couple years ago.

To proceed with transfer to namescheap (or other), accumulate bits & pieces, or do nothing? Those are the questions.

I may keep the domain name for another year but I will let the space go. If I have time when I get home I may download the rest of the site. I have quite a bit of it archived locally already.

Cost is not the only concern. I have too many interests and not enough time. Being retired is far too busy. I might have to go back to work for a rest.

[Clarity]

... I might have to go back to work for a rest.

Yeah, its taken me several years and I am still contemplating to go back to an office.

Better, though, to leave that option for younger peoples and just work in volunteer to help students and senior who find value in the help and encouragement we can give them.

I admire what I seen of you in the community in your site's assistance AS WELL AS admiring what @rockedge has done (and continues to do) for this forum.

Thanks @smokey01!!!

[wiak]

Personaly I was delighted to escape from work life, but alas I was kidding myself - I have been dragged back in and very much to an office where I am busier probably ever before in my life. At least a lot, but not all, of it is directly IT/network-services related, but thus far my hobby forum pursuits have had to take a back burner seat for well over a year now. That much is regrettable for me, but despite time waiting for no man I fully intend to remain technically active for at least another ten years and sooner or later will find time for the forum project work that overall interests me more than any of the necessary business-related IT I currently have so much to do.

It is alarming, I must admit, to see some long-established sites 'closing'; not only does that make me feel a bit more of my age, but is evidence of how important new blood as driving forces become and how little point there is to nostalgia, which fades along with those who hang onto it. Aside from illness related matters, I truly feel that age is just a number until such time as the lights get put out... but I mean that in an entirely positive way, because every human on earth has but a limited time, mere mortals that even the youngest child is. Worrying about age as a number is truly a meaningless mistake - there is always plenty of time to live with energy and enthusiasm - at least while the sun is shining, which it is.

Certainly, though I have admired many, I am never a fan of only one distro - not even those that derive from my own project efforts (I would maybe be the first to ditch them as soon as something obviously better came along...), but the side of such matters that is more than just any distro, but forms a group of similar-minded individuals in a positive social way is truly worth a great deal and for me that is the value of this forum whether any or all of its discussed distros (the first to the last) is particularly successful before or now or not. The work remains worth doing, being developed, being expanded, being discussed - a surprising quantity of amazing work continues to come out of it and all such should be encouraged since that is what brings life to the forum and shapes it also for the newcomers who may well sometimes have no knowledge nor interest in the past.

As long as forum members continue to produce exciting and interesting new creations so too, I expect, will others provide new resources for the next decades to come, but obviously a lot is owed to smokey01 for providing, for probably everyone here, for so amazingly long.

[rockedge]

The hosting prices have soared upwards in the last 2 years. rockedge.org started 15 years ago with around $60 a year for unlimited bandwidth and unlimited storage on a shared server. Same with puppylinux.com which also started off with registration and the shared host server costs being around $70 a year for the same features.

Last year the price went up for puppylinux.com to around $450 a year and with almost unlimited bandwidth and a storage cap (fairly liberal). rockedge.org went up a little in price per year but now have to pay the fees monthly instead of once a year in a lump sum.

Lucky we have donors that help cover the costs which worked out this year perfectly. Thank you to all of you who sent money. The rent is paid and registration for domain name puppylinux.com and murga-linux.com are also paid and came in just under our budget. We do get good tech service from our host providers and they did throw in SSH access on a remote terminal for us that usually doesn't come with our package but since the Puppy Linux world is known and there was a sympathetic fan on the controls that day....we got a little extra thrown in.

[wiak]

The hosting prices have soared upwards in the last 2 years. rockedge.org started 15 years ago with around $60 a year for unlimited bandwidth and unlimited storage on a shared server. Same with puppylinux.com which also started off with registration and the shared host server costs being around $70 a year for the same features.

Last year the price went up for puppylinux.com to around $450 a year and with almost unlimited bandwidth and a storage cap (fairly liberal). rockedge.org went up a little in price per year but now have to pay the fees monthly instead of once a year in a lump sum.

Lucky we have donors that help cover the costs which worked out this year perfectly. Thank you to all of you who sent money. The rent is paid and registration for domain name puppylinux.com and murga-linux.com are also paid and came in just under our budget. We do get good tech service from our host providers and they did throw in SSH access on a remote terminal for us that usually doesn't come with our package but since the Puppy Linux world is known and there was a sympathetic fan on the controls that day....we got a little extra thrown in.

Yes, these prices hit opensource projects hard. Whilst it is great that they threw in SSH access, it is a pity that host providers don't generously provide free service to certain special long-established opensource projects like Puppy Linux and finance that from a tiny part of their commercial hosting operation. My view is based on the fact that opensource community is based on the principle of volunteering creativity, time and effort free of charge for the good of the whole community, but, oh well, great to dream - maybe the host providers don't make much profit overall either and everyone deserves some way to make a reasonable living.