Dear <<First Name>>,
I can see from the barometers that many players are having little or no problems, whilst others continue to have difficulties. I accept this fully and it is unacceptable of course. So what have we been doing over the last 24 hours to address these overloads?We have made some server adjustments, the fourth so far, that utilize more of our pool of CPU/Mem resources - with plenty more available.
A new Server Version has been released to address the problem of members exiting without pressing the Exit button. If you don't then our rugged system 'holds' your session to enable you to return safely. The settings are now set such that if we see no activity by a member within 10-15 minutes, then you are either asleep, drunk or have a connection issue and will be ejected! - thus ensuring space and tables are available.
We are monitoring the pressure points in our system and methodically dealing with them as fast as we can, without disturbing the majority of the games that seem to have no issues!
The Guest room has been removed completely for obvious reasons.
Many of the issues members complain about in emails and on the Comment Board, are issues we have been dealing with over the last 20 years and have a solution, such as:- your ISP has a problem
- your computer needs a reboot
- your router needs a reboot
- you have an ageing computer that is slow
Tips in the short term to help alleviate congestion in addition to the above.
- If you can, avoid peak times (1700-2100) for a few days - look out for clock change this weekend.
- Refresh the HOME page of BCL - check the number in the club before you enter.
- Newcomers, please start in the Social Room and Spectate or Kibitz while you get familiar with the software.
- Do not enter a competition room yet, until you feel confident.
To reassure you about our capacity to cope, our server "Cloud" is NOT shared by anyone as ours is a "Dedicated Cloud" where we control 100% of all the host computing power and the only issues outside our control are in the Network from our ISP to your own ISP. We have tasked a full audit by our ISP but they too are a bit busy. I experienced an error screen from Lloyds Bank today so the big boys are in the same boat - not that this is any excuse for us!
I hope this clarifies where we are at the moment and I will continue to keep in touch as we resolve these system issues.
Yours sincerely,