Upgrade Update and Schedule for Server Migration

Just wanted to provide a quick update on the progress on my ongoing updates…

The upgrade of our underlying CMS software did not complete without issue. Nevertheless, I have been able to fix most of the problems. I still have a few, relatively minor, outstanding bugs to take care of but, for the most part, the upgrade to the new version of EE is complete.

I am now in the process of re-factoring the underlying templates for performance and to prepare for the site redesign. On top of that I am testing some new php/template caching systems for use in the new design. I have already implemented some server-side caching. From what I have seen, the changes I have already made have positively impacted the load on our servers.

I am now beginning work on the redesign and preparations for the migration to the new servers. My work should only occasionally impact or be noticeable to you over the next few weeks. When it might, I will post a notice. One change I can let you know about right now is a possible outage in the week of February 19th. I’ve scheduled two weeks vacation from my day job starting the 19th—yes, Virginia, this is a part-time gig for me—to migrate the site to its new server set-up. With the lessons learned from the last server upgrade, I expect the transition to be relatively smooth and unnoticeable for most of you. Having said that, the site will be offline for a few hours in the early morning the day I make the final switch. I will be sure to let you know the exact time of the move as the date gets closer and my schedule firms up.

Keep an eye out for future updates about the redesign. I hope to open up testing to a limited beta group around the beginning of March in preparation for going live live with the redesign just before opening day. If you are interested in participating, please post in the Call of 2012 Beta Testers topic in our Forums.

To help me formalize my list of features, I also invite you to submit feature requests in the Feature Request forum. To help me manage the process, I ask that you limit each post to a single idea, try to encapsulize the idea in the subject line, and clearly explain your feature request in the body of the message. Be advised I may edit your entry to help better organize the process.

Over the last few weeks I have stumbled upon a few old comments in which people expressed a willingness to volunteer to help with the site. Unfortunately, I did not see these offers when they were made. As much as I would like to, I don’t have time to read everything posted to the site, so these offers never come to my attention unless I stumble upon them. Since I can use all the help I can get to make this place better, I will greatly appreciate, and will be very thankful, if you would please email me directly to offer your assistance. Please be sure to let me know which areas/responsibilities you are willing to lend a hand with.

Lastly, if you don’t have time to volunteer but you would still like to help out, any contribution you are willing to make to help sustain the site will be greatly appreciated.

Thanks in advance for you patience,

Jim

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