Punctuation issues

[jrevens]

It?s a little frustrating lately that when I enter an exclamation point or an apostrophe, for instance, and a question mark is posted instead. This didn't used to happen, and I see it with some other?s posts also. Is it possibly related to using an iPad? It seems like a bug that should be able to be fixed.
It doesn?t happen every time, but very frequently. Everything seems correct until submitting the post, and then the incorrect punctuation marks occur.

[Eric Page]

Yes, it does appear to be related to using iOS or Safari. A post I submitted yesterday morning on my iPad ended up full of question marks instead of apostrophes; I had to edit out all contractions in order to get rid of them. When I post from Chrome on a Windows computer (as now) all characters appear correctly.

That said, some of my older posts have changed to contain question marks as well, notably my tutorial thread on making a wiring harness. I may have drafted those posts on my iPad but I'm sure they passed through my desktop before being posted since they contain so many images. The text in those posts appeared correctly when posted and only became corrupted recently.

[Eric Page]

Any moderators monitoring this thread? We're still seeing question marks in place of apostrophes in some users' posts.

Also, there have been numerous instances recently when I've received a forum database error message instead of seeing the forum, and other times when I've seen a timeout error from Chrome and nothing displayed at all.

[jrevens]

Any moderators monitoring this thread? We're still seeing question marks in place of apostrophes in some users' posts.

Also, there have been numerous instances recently when I've received a forum database error message instead of seeing the forum, and other times when I've seen a timeout error from Chrome and nothing displayed at all.

Same issues here. In the evening sometimes lately the site will not come up at all. I've tried different browsers but it's still the same. The question mark issue involves several types of symbols... quotation marks, apostrophes, etc.

[bumsteer]

Numerous times lately the site will not come up. This occurs with Windows 10, Ubuntu and an Android phone. Phone usually says Teamkitfox "cannot handle request at this time", Ubuntu says something about compression and Windows something similar. Then like magic it starts working.

Rick

[Delta Whisky]

[QUOTE=bumsteer;111654] Ubuntu says something about compression ]



I'm guessing 65 over 80? ;)

[sshort21]

Numerous times lately the site will not come up. This occurs with Windows 10, Ubuntu and an Android phone. Phone usually says Teamkitfox "cannot handle request at this time", Ubuntu says something about compression and Windows something similar. Then like magic it starts working.

Rick

Hi all,
I want to share a few thoughts about the platform we're using. It's amazing that we?re still dealing with OS and platform-specific differences and issues between Apple, MS, iOS, Windows, Ubuntu (Linux), and Android. It?s 2024, and companies should (have?) collaborate on standardizing basic code for characters like question marks and single quotes. However, I believe part of our issues might stem from the forum's platform.
Platform Analysis:


Our forum is running on vBulletin 4.2.5, while the most current version is 6.0.5.
Version 4 was released in 2009, Version 5 in 2012, and Version 6 in 2023.
Technology has advanced significantly since 2009, making our platform quite outdated.

Challenges:


Upgrading from v4 to v6 is likely challenging due to potential data loss and the complexity of migration.
There?s a wealth of historical data that we don't want to lose.

Solutions:


As a software engineer, I can confirm that these issues are solvable. The effort, cost, and risk of data loss need to be evaluated, but there are solutions available.
System availability might be related to hosting issues, which can also be addressed.

Call to Action:


I don?t know who owns the site, but please contact me. I?m willing to help upgrade the site, both financially and technically. This resource is invaluable for Ktifox builders, and I want to ensure it remains available and functional.

Best regards,
Steve

[Eric Page]

I don't know anything about the economics of running this forum, but I'd be willing to bet that no one involved is getting rich. If passing the hat will help to get these things done, I'm sure many of us would be willing to chip in. There's a lot of value here.

[bumsteer]

If you noticed, many of Steve's (sshort21) apostrophes showed up as question marks. Except for the occasional trouble with connecting to the sight, I've had no problem with punctuation marks in my posts (that I'm aware of) and you get used to reading posts where the marks are messed up. If financial help is required to upgrade from 15 year old technology, I'd be more than happy to help. This sight has helped me tremendously and Steve (DesertFox4) has done an excellent job over the years and I will support him in whatever he chooses to do.

Rick

[DesertFox4]

Steve, Eric and Rick, thanks so much for the offers. That is so kind of you all. My reticence to upgrade to the latest greatest version of vBulletin is the potential for loss of data archived here going back to 2008.

I think Steve has touched accurately on most of the issues regarding the site. Hosting is and has always been with GoDaddy. Lots of small issues with site down times through the years and one huge problem some years back when we busted through their ?storage? limit and GoDaddy shut off the site right before Oshkosh with no notice to myself. Talk about unfortunate timing. Anyway, upgrading with vBulletin is an option. Changing to a more modern and more user friendly system has been on my mind for some time now as has been moving the site to a different hosting company. We need easier photo uploading, video posting capabilities, a better site search engine ect. I have been talking to friends who are far more knowledgeable about moving the site than am I.
I also may take Steve up on his generous offer to assist with this very delicate process. Thank you again Steve.

Now for the temporary rub. I am away from home for about 2 more months while I fly a long planned Kitfox vacation that started off with the Kitfox Aircraft factory fly in. Currently I am in McCall, Idaho staying with friends out on their private air strip for a couple more days then I?m off to Montana for a visit. Minnesota will be my next extended stop and I will stage out of there for AirVenture where I will work again this year with the Kitfox Aircraft group at their booth talking to hundreds of folks throughout the week. My expected return back home to Arizona is the end of August or beginning of September. I am escaping the summer heat for a couple months. If everyone can tolerate the punctuation annoyance for a little while yet, I will be more able to dedicate time and resources to improving functionality with as little risk to the data base as possible.

I hope to talk to many of you at AirVenture again this year if you are attending. Come by the Kitfox Aircraft booth and check out the amazing new Kitfox factory Speedster and it is sporting the new 916 Rotax engine. If you attended the factory fly in a week ago, you were able to see it.

Thanks again gentlemen for your offers of assistance. I?ve always been able since this sites inception to cover operating costs courtesy our generous site sponsors. I hope to continue to keep use of site resources free for all who need it.
Thanks for your patience.
Steve aka Desertfox4

[sshort21]

Steve, Eric and Rick, thanks so much for the offers. That is so kind of you all. My reticence to upgrade to the latest greatest version of vBulletin is the potential for loss of data archived here going back to 2008.

I think Steve has touched accurately on most of the issues regarding the site. Hosting is and has always been with GoDaddy. Lots of small issues with site down times through the years and one huge problem some years back when we busted through their ?storage? limit and GoDaddy shut off the site right before Oshkosh with no notice to myself. Talk about unfortunate timing. Anyway, upgrading with vBulletin is an option. Changing to a more modern and more user friendly system has been on my mind for some time now as has been moving the site to a different hosting company. We need easier photo uploading, video posting capabilities, a better site search engine ect. I have been talking to friends who are far more knowledgeable about moving the site than am I.
I also may take Steve up on his generous offer to assist with this very delicate process. Thank you again Steve.

Now for the temporary rub. I am away from home for about 2 more months while I fly a long planned Kitfox vacation that started off with the Kitfox Aircraft factory fly in. Currently I am in McCall, Idaho staying with friends out on their private air strip for a couple more days then I?m off to Montana for a visit. Minnesota will be my next extended stop and I will stage out of there for AirVenture where I will work again this year with the Kitfox Aircraft group at their booth talking to hundreds of folks throughout the week. My expected return back home to Arizona is the end of August or beginning of September. I am escaping the summer heat for a couple months. If everyone can tolerate the punctuation annoyance for a little while yet, I will be more able to dedicate time and resources to improving functionality with as little risk to the data base as possible.

I hope to talk to many of you at AirVenture again this year if you are attending. Come by the Kitfox Aircraft booth and check out the amazing new Kitfox factory Speedster and it is sporting the new 916 Rotax engine. If you attended the factory fly in a week ago, you were able to see it.

Thanks again gentlemen for your offers of assistance. I?ve always been able since this sites inception to cover operating costs courtesy our generous site sponsors. I hope to continue to keep use of site resources free for all who need it.
Thanks for your patience.
Steve aka Desertfox4

Hi Steve,


Thanks for the response. I'm happy to help and understand that you're off having an adventure (I'm envious!). There's nothing urgent that we're discussing. I did some preliminary research, and there are options for moving hosts and upgrading the tools. I found helpful discussions about both topics. I've sent you a DM with some thoughts and ideas.


Let's connect when you have some time. I'm happy to assist with anything you need.


Happy flying and safe travels!


Best,
Steve

[DesertFox4]

Steve. I responded with a Private Message.
Thank you so much.