MaiaMadness - That would be entirely your decision. You can leave it up if you truly do have an intention to continue the story.
bondman007 - May I remind you again not to answer for moderators.
Indigoenigma - Banners should not be affecting the database. The problem at the moment is that we have more members and stories than our system can tolerate. It is the data stored that is the main problem, not the banners (which only make a profile load slower for some people). However, you are certainly free to delete banners if you want to help people with dial-up or a slow Internet connection!
To add to the above post -- if your profile takes up more than two screens it's probably too big. There used to be a rule around here somewhere to that effect, but since I can't find it either, call it a request for kindness on the part of authors. There's DEFINITELY a rule about not having your full name available to all the world and its less savory occupants, however, and some of you are in violation. Definitely take full names, addresses, birthdays, credit card numbers, and whatever other personal information off the site.
Just a question, please don't bite my head off, but why can't I, if I state specifically that I am speaking unofficially/not a mod, answer someone's question when I know the answer perfectly well?
bondman, even though you think you might be giving correct advice, the mods want all directives to come from them. If one member starts giving answers, then others may start to do the same, and that is where conflicting information and problems arise. Therefore, it is appreciated that all questions be left to be answered by a moderator.
I posted this on the previous news topic, but obviously nobody bothers to read it once a new one has been posted, so here goes:
To all mods who manage the Romance category:
I previously submitted a story into the queue last Sunday, the 13th. I seem to remember someone telling me that stories usually take 4-5 days to go through the queue. Are the stories taking longer due to the problems we're having, or should I expect a result before the week is out? I am addressing this comment to the mods who manage the Romance category because the story in question is, indeed, one of love, involving the most perfect (canon-based) pairings in the history of literature: Harry James Potter and Ginevra Molly Weasley. For modly reference, the story is, as of this time (3:51 PM, Friday, January 18, 2008 by the site clock) still in my Manage Stories section, and under Validated, it says No.
bondman007, I did read this comment on the previous post. Unfortunately, you re-posted it here before I had a chance to respond. I am not sure where you got your information about the 4-5 days as we have a general policy of 7-10 days on average. Depending on the category to which you submitted, it may take longer due to the backlog and issues we've been dealing with since the hacker attack. Please be patient.
I submitted my fic to Romance->Harry/Ginny. Is there any backlog or hacker problems there?
This is not the place for these types of questions. Please contact the moderator of the category directly with any questions. Any further posts here not related to the news post will be deleted.
Is the cleaning affecting the queue time or is that still the hackers? I've noticed not as many stories make it through the queue quickly. I don't mind at all, whatever you lovely mods are doing to get MNFF is wonderful!
Alrighty then, thanks for the heads-up!
lovely_witch - We have a lot of staff members dedicated to cleaning the database of over 100,000 members manually. So yes, expect a longer wait in queue, though we will try as best as we can to moderate on schedule.
How many "junk" usernames/stories are going to have to be purged before the strain on the database is eliminated?
bondman007 - Not entirely sure. Let's just say that 10,000 users is usually the maximum a system like ours can safely accommodate without glitches.
OK, then let's just say we end up with 50,000 users (just as an estimate) when you factor in the people who put "Please do not delete" in their bio and/or when you factor in the people who reply to the mod email saying that they want to keep their account. Will the system be any better if that's how much you end up with?
bondman007 - Well certainly, a strain of 50,000 is better than 100,000. But we cannot say for certain. Don't concern yourself with numbers and the system; you'll only put unnecessary strain on yourself.
LOL it's no strain (on me that is), I'm merely curious
bondman007, I really must ask you to stop commenting here now. You have made 13 comments in the last 3-4 days in this thread alone, with more in the previous news post, and are beginning to seriously spam our comments system. I have already given you a warning so this is your second. Serious action will be taken if you continue.
Good Luck dealing with the hackers!
I have a spare account I would like deleted. I'm not sure if I was on during the last six months or not and I would like to make sure it's deleted. It's "nevilles_girl". Thanks for trying to fix MNFF up! I love this site. I love the stories, authors, reviewers, and the active mods!
Dearest modlies, I have a question about the site, I suppose. The reason, or so I've gathered, that some accounts will be deleted is because this site has simply expanded to a point where it can no longer function efficiently. This is also why authors are being asked to delete those stories that they are no longer fond of or have no desire of continuing. Thus, I have a question. Should numerous banners on our author pages be removed as well? As I'm not particularly computer literate, I have no idea if the banners would affect the site. I'm just curious, as I would happily remove some banners if it meant that the site would opperate more efficiently. Thank you!