la-femme

Hi everyone. After what seems like 100 phonecalls and crossed wires over activated/deactived hosting accounts and what domain names were where... I think we've done it ! So at least I'll have access to the domain name again ! Thank you all so much for coming together on this. I cannot thank you enough. I would love to say that we can now move forward but unfortunately one of the donators ( as is absolutely their right ) wishes their donation returned in full and has started a Paypal fraud ( ?) case against me. I have no idea what's up with that or what happens next in these cases as it's never happened to me before. This will put on hold any changes or updates we need over the next month or so ie ipb forum software renewal etc as I'm obviously going to refund the donation instead of putting it towards the £170 hosting bill I actually needed it for. I do apologise but it is what it is and I can only do my best with what I have. But.. at least I have will the domain name safe for our use which is a start ! Thanks again everyone LF xxx

It's not time for you to jump off the island just yet Hungry imo. The dust needs to settle first from this kick up the arse I've just gotten first, and changes need to be made. You're not surely jumping ship before things have even started in that dept ? Why ?

I'm not really willing to go into my own personal finances right now. I don't think it's appropriate and it's a little bit invasive never mind screenshotting them.. However site costs are as follows Shybi has been hosted by Unitedhosting since 2009. It's on the 'Gold server' package listed below but paying an extra £20 per month for extra GB's of space. https://www.unitedhosting.co.uk/dedicated-hosting/managed-dedicated-servers . So yearly I've been paying roundabout £3000 a year to keep the site going and free for everyone. About £25,500.00 over the last 9 years... wow. That's really weird seeing it written down like that ! £25k... For me it had just become a monthly bill that came out of the account every month like clockwork and I was so used to seeing it in among all the monthly bills. I didn't really think about it even when things for my own finances got tighter.. The ads in the past helped a bit, but haven't really brought anything much in for the last 3 or 4 years. They're so old and outdated now. While I recognise there is a need for more admin people here. Especially as I don't have the time to spend the last few months. It's always been the same old story when it comes to appointing them, like with moderators. The drama ! When someone is put into place when others don't want them there, or would like a chance themselves, or don't think they'll be any good at it. My very first co-admin here went on a massive deletion spree when she fell out with a few members.. she banned them all. I was unaware and this went on for a period of about a year when she disliked anyone or she felt slighted by any member. It was only when I was contacted offsite that it came to my attention. We nearly lost many members who went on later to become moderators here. Naturally, since then I have been very reluctant to invoke similar drama, or to place the site in that sort of deletion happy/suck up to Admin or else type places since then. But I am open to it ( all going well over the next few weeks and the site is safe ) if it can be done with little fuss and with a consensus. There's nothing worse than logging in here to see several messages all really annoyed with the latest possible moderator choice, threatening to cancel accounts if X gets picked etc etc. The future changes are up on the IPB forums to see. The new 4.3 is due out soon. Featuring clubs, paid memberships etc etc . This will be the direction the site is most likely going in.. a sort of mini facebook/twitter/social media platform featuring groups with different interests yet self contained within Shybi itself. I need also to pay IPB subscriptions every year. Lets secure the site firstly. Yes I'm willing to appoint more Admins and yes am open to ways of supporting the site financially. Yes I'm open to changes within IPB forum software constraints. But no, I won't be singing any contracts.

UPDATE : - I "think" we're going to be ok. I called yesterday again and after a bit of clarification and finding of old account/contract numbers the person I was speaking to said they would be happy to reopen the account so I can gain access as long as the payment was made. He did take my paypal details over the phone... but I got this email today asking me to once again phone and provide the details needed which I will shortly do. So hopefully and with much fingers crossed. Things will be sorted properly with new cloud hosting and access to the domain name once again. I do have to ask for a bit of leeway in when I can get back in here and update as at the moment I am working for an agency and am often out on 12 hours shifts at a few hours notice. So I can't always be on hand to instantly update etc. I do apologise for this. I am currently awaiting a start date for a new permanent job in the NHS which will be much better suited to my own family life and worklife/balance. Anything NHS however as regards paperwork.. those from the UK will know, seems to take forever. So am in a real limbo land at the moment. It's one of the reasons I didn't want to let the site die. I AM in a horribly insecure place right now re finances but there is light at the end of the tunnel. I'll address other points made on this thread shortly, but wanted to let you all know where things stand as regards immediate financing.

The donations are still in Paypal untouched for now until 1and1 get back to me tomorrow. If nothing comes of it, and the site closes all will be refunded. I can't thank everyone enough from the bottom of my heart who donated. Truly.. and I hope things are sorted in the next few days. I'll keep you all posted. I'm not long back from a 12 hour shift so apologies for not being able to clarify sooner. A few other clarifications :- Social media is killing off discussion/debate forums and has been for a while now. End of story.. However... women who find us here do NOT want to appear on social media. I understood that from the start and named the site accordingly... and it's also why Facebook/Twitter and all other social media icons are removed from the forum software. Too many are afraid that they share or out themselves accidentally or someone else does and cannot take that risk. Facebook and other media links and referrals are also needed now to rank highly in the internet stakes. But it's really not an option for this site and probably never will be. The internet has moved on since 2005 when this site started. The ethos of this site cannot since it's about being a safe harbour. Once moved we'll still be with the same hosts we've been with since 2009. Like an old mobile phone contract that hasn't been updated and you end up paying far more than new customers for the same or better services,... personal financial difficulties aside.. that's where Shybi has been for the last few years. On a 'bronze' server for nearly £250 a month, when newer clients were on the platinum for much less. I cannot afford £250 a month at the moment the new server is less than half that. The site may well end up moving again... but at the end of the day my appeal went out because whatever happened I did not want the site to end due to a few months financial difficulties. Better things for me are hopefully just round the corner ( new job fingers crossed )... I couldn't just let the site go down to a few skint months and that's why I reached out. Chat rooms etc... well IPB have closed even their own native and fully integrated chat rooms now. Things like that are another area dying off thanks to social media and messenger services. Other things such as 'clubs within forums' and many other progressive features are afoot in IPBoards now. But there's not point in harking back to wishing things were as they were on the net in 2010 or 2013.. Chat rooms etc can surely be done again, but integration with the database and safety is somewhat more problematic these days given that even the forum software makers have given up on them completely. IF things work out tomorrow with 1and1 the site will be ok for a while. I cannot do much about the site's fortunes in relation to Facebook groups and Twitter chats... but I do know for those that find us here and stay for a while, that this site has been worth every penny I've spent on it since 2005. Thanks once again SO much for the donations. They'll be put to the use they're intended within the next few days or refunded in full. Keep your fingers crossed. LF xxx

@ana There's a lot of stuff going on in the background just now rebuilding content, and getting the forums back to where they were before the upgrade. The chatbox is a new app and should really be used for anything much other than general chit chat. Certainly nothing which could be considered sensitive info, which in any case you're not ( or shouldn't be ! ) posting under any indentifiable info anywhere online. Lots of forums which are still appearing as normal for users right now, are actually waiting for a background task to move, merge or delete them. Either into other forums or for the mods and myself to start afresh with. Some have extremely outdated and/or info in them which sometimes goes all the way back to 2006 ! Unfortunately the forum upgrade stalled for a few days behind the scenes and a load of tasks the upgrade still has to complete are still ongoing including the shift about of old forums and data ( last on the list ! ). Shouldn't be long now. Hope this helps and please bear with me. I've had a mare of a time with these tasks.

@Golightly63 You should be ok to delete them now. They've rebuilt and I've activated the delete facility for membergroups. Don't go too mad with too many at once as they system is under a bit of a load at the moment so the forums are slowing up and down as the tasks get done. Just saw the -4000 thing on the HTFW's ... wtf !!!??? lol..

@Golightly63 I 'think' that attatchments are still being rebuilt in the background. There's a lot of processes still to finish from the upgrade as myself, the hosts and IPS between us had a few hiccups after the upgrade with nothing rebuilding and converting ( was a php memory issue ). I'll check and see what I can glean from the admin panel though. Am still getting used to how things work too.

Wall ball squats... euuurgh.. I curse my petite 5ft 0 genes everytime those come up. But get to smirk a bit at the 6ft'rs when it's burpee time....

@Becky Nope. I did got to my local rowing club for a years but their training sessions tended to focus a lot on rowing technique and ergo's. Being from Scotland the slightest hint of even fair weather meant we out on the water. So there wasn't a lot of strength training. Also the usual round of trying out yoga and spin classes over the years getting bored after a few months. Let's put it this way. My first Crossfit session I made it through one and a half warm ups ( they do two before the real workout ) before they stopped me.I was gasping for air lol. I couldn't do a sit up without dumbbells under my feet and to start the lifts I used a pvc pipe. Graduating to an empty bar before adding weights. Two years on doing everything everyone else is. Choosing my own weights and scaling exercises to suit. I don't do box jumps, I step up/down instead. And there are others who do the same ( one doesn't do kettle bell swings due to a shoulder problem etc ). I keep just about up with everyone else, and even when I'm last it's fine as they are all now good friends. Nothing brings people closer together than a good whinge before and after a workout ! I've lost a stone and a half with no changing of my diet. And I have a waist again that I thought had gone for good after having my children. My legs and arms are also now also much firmer with real muscles rather than just gaining flabbing out gaining more cellulite as they were two years back. I don't look like a rugby player or super slim, I do though look much better than I did. And I've NEVER been bored at the thought of going there since the workout changes daily. It's tough, well it was for me. Ego left at the door and all that. But it's done and dusted under an hour and I know I've worked HARD. My big red tomato face everytime I leave testifies to that.

I do Crossfit as well. Boredom being a problem for me when following a fitness routine.. I've been going now for two years and the daily changes in workouts mean I'm never bored ! Also really love learning the barbell lifts. Something I've never done before. Still a bit of a duffer and come in last regularly in workouts. But I don't really mind and neither does anyone else. I'm 200% fitter than I was when I started that's for sure.