• Quick note - the problem with Youtube videos not embedding on the forum appears to have been fixed, thanks to ZiprHead. If you do still see problems let me know.

Ed This forum will cease to exist on 15 August 2021

theprestige said:
Nitpicks!

The forum won't cease to exist. Its domain name will be dropped from the Domain Name Service (DNS) for lack of payment. The forum itself will continue to be alive and well and in full existence. You'll just have trouble finding it, since DNS is what tells your browser that "internationalskeptics.com" can be found at the address 104.131.54.4.

It's not the URL that's being paid for, it's the domain name. The Universal Resource Locator (URL) is a complete path to a web resource. It includes the protocol (http(s)), the domain name (internationalskeptics.com) and the resource being sought at that domain. For example, the URL for this thread is http://www.internationalskeptics.com/forums/showthread.php?t=353418

Also, note that simply knowing the IP address that goes with the domain name is not enough. If you send your browser to 104.131.54.4, the webserver will promptly redirect you to the domain name. You can see the change in your browser address bar when it happens. Right now, that works fine, since DNS will tell your browser where to find the domain. But once DNS stops doing that, that redirect will fail. Not only that, but all the URLs provided by the forum software start with "www.internationalskeptics.com". So even if you could get to the front page at 104.131.54.4, as soon as you clicked on a link your browser would give up.

Fortunately, your computer has a system configuration file, usually called "hosts", usually stored in a folder called "etc". In West Coast IT jargon, it's usually pronounced "etsy-hosts". You can put domain names and IP addresses in this file. Your computer will use these name-address pairs instead of DNS results, if present. If Gord adds "internationalskeptics.com 104.131.54.4" and "www.internationalskeptics.com 104.131.54.4" to his hosts file, he will indeed be able to browse the forum while the DNS record is unavailable. (This, by the way, is more than sufficient to prove that the forum has not ceased to exist.)
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Lol 2 silly nitpicks: the forum will not be dropped from DNS which stands for Domain Name System, not Service. Sure you can type in the IP addr, point your own DNS server to it, or edit your lookup file... but that will stop working if the IP addr changes. It will be dropped from the top level domain servers (or second level maybe?), because ICANN and their designated registrars own those servers, and everyone just rents a name, thru a registrar that they license. All other DNS servers out there periodically pick up changes to the root servers and update themselves, unless an admin specifically protected the record for our little forum, it goes bye bye.

Also, URL stands for Uniform Resource Locator, not Universal.
 
rjh01 said:
I expect the people who are giving this sort of advice to make at least one post each on the forum when it is down for everyone else. My money is that these posts will not be made.
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This is why the Jrefugees group exists on facebook. Nobody can post when the forum is down. Not you, me or anyone else. Posts will not be made when the forum is down. By anyone.
 
rjh01 said:
That does not work for me. It goes and does a search.
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You have to put these lines into the hosts (file)WP. And then maybe restart the browser. At the moment you will see no difference, though, as the DNS entry for the domain still works. On the 15th there will be a difference if the entry has expired (the forum will still exist).

To see if the lines in the hosts file work, just put a different IP into them.

127.0.0.1 internationalskeptics.com
127.0.0.1 www.internationalskeptics.com

The forum should fail to load now. It ceased to exist. ;)
 
Childlike Empress said:
You have to put these lines into the hosts (file)WP. And then maybe restart the browser. At the moment you will see no difference, though, as the DNS entry for the domain still works. On the 15th there will be a difference if the entry has expired (the forum will still exist).

To see if the lines in the hosts file work, just put a different IP into them.

127.0.0.1 internationalskeptics.com
127.0.0.1 www.internationalskeptics.com

The forum should fail to load now. It ceased to exist. ;)
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Alternatively you can put in the correct IP addresses but the give the forum an alternate name to demonstrate that it works. Note that that would just be demonstrate the concept now. It will need to have the correct current name of the forum to work when/if this really happens.
 
theprestige said:
Then you probably won't be loggin in on D-Day, since hitting the IP will just redirect you to the domain name, which your browser won't be able to resolve without help.
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Yup. You are correct. Ignore my (and similar advice). I took my Internet course before this fancy DNS stuff and we typed the bang path in by hand on our teletypes. I'll go and stand in the corner now. :o
 
abaddon said:
What a daft idea. The forum is up, but one cannot post or read it. But it is still up? WTF is that about?
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The forum is up, but no-one can find it. It's like a building still exists but all the signposts that direct people to it are missing.
 
arthwollipot said:
The forum is up, but no-one can find it. It's like a building still exists but all the signposts that direct people to it are missing.
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And if someone wanted to pay for the signpost after the lease expires and point somewhere else they could?
 
abaddon said:
What a daft idea. The forum is up, but one cannot post or read it. But it is still up? WTF is that about?
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The bridge is out, but the town on the far side of the river is still alive and well and full of activity.

Or, if you don't like analogies: The server is up. The forum software is running. It's all connected to its local network, and it to the internet. Anyone who knows a few certain tricks can still find it and interact with it. It's just that the internet service that normally finds it for you, and makes the tricks unnecessary, isn't going to find it for you until the annual payment is made.

Or, if you do like analogies: The engine is running but the car won't move because the transmission is out. The lungs are fine, but the windpipe has been cut. We have a fully stocked bar but the state won't allow us to take any customers right now. The server is up and running, but DNS won't resolve.
 
Sideroxylon said:
And if someone wanted to pay for the signpost after the lease expires and point somewhere else they could?
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Here are some answers:
Please note if the domain is a few days past the expiration date the domain is not lost forever. Additionally, buyers out there who think they can just wait until the clock strikes 12 the day the domain expires with the idea they can immediately scoop the domain up must understand that this is simply not possible.
...
Day 1 after expiration: The domain will be deactivated and "parked," indicating that its registration has expired. Other services associated with the domain, such as email, may cease to function. You can renew the domain or set the domain up for auto-renew.

Day 30 after expiration: The renewal grace period will end and the domain will be put up for an expired domain auction. If someone else bids and wins the domain, the domain name registration will be transferred to that new owner. You can renew the domain or set the domain up for auto-renew with an added renewal registration fee.
...
How do you keep from letting your domain expire? Call your registrar, renew it to the max, which is 10 years, and then leave another 10-year's worth of renewals as a credit in the account. It sounds like overkill, but for what the domain means to your business, it is the cheapest insurance policy you will ever own.
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(https://www.forbes.com/sites/forbes...ens-when-your-domain-expires/?sh=29234f536446).
 
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