| written by Alex on Feb 06, 2010 04:51 |
 | |  | | ![]() ...the old phpBB forum database back-up copy.
 Can't find it.
It's lost.
It was lost years ago, in a known way involving (sorry to say this) a disk crash caused by a very old Linux installation, which due to some software error, wiped my Windows ME installation of those times. But in part, it was my fault. I thought on that computer, back in early 2003, there wasn't important stuff, and that I had what counted already on backup. I was anyway intentioned to buy a new computer (the future Hamlet) so I was using that one to test random Linux and other less-known OSes installations. But I evidently forgot that (about 40 megabyte) file there. I know for sure it was an uncompressed SQL dump of the phpBB forums' database, so I knew what to look for in my older harddisks. I went in the (physical) attic, frumpled below the roof, poured out the old Compaq Presario where Postline was born (and found its first draft, initially titled "flatcomm"). On another disk, locked into a removable rack and which I had to shake a little before it restarted working, I've found the invoices for signing up with ez-web-hosting in 2002, the old Linoleum Sources Repository, and many other relics. But not that file. I'm sorry, I think there's no more reasonable hope to find it. I just want to say I had cared for it, and that it was completely unintentional. | |  | |  |
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  | |  | | ![]()  | Logs said: | 02:39, Cryoburner yells: YOU LOST THE PHPBB BACKUP!? I'VE STILL BEEN CHECKING EVERY DAY TO SEE IF YOU'VE PLACED A READ-ONLY VERSION BACK ONLINE, AND YOU LOST IT!
02:40, Cryoburner whispers: : P |
I'll assume you were already looking for it though, seeing as you had mentioned it in the chat frame prior to that. : P
I'm guessing no one will mind too much, though it might have been nice to look back on. We didn't have the C-disk then either though, so there would probably be quite a few broken images and links anyway. At least Postline's database is probably more secure, since a few of us likely have semi-recent copies of it. You're probably the only one with a complete C-Disk backup though, since that requires either FTP access, or clicking thousands of links. : P
So the disk was fully formatted, or it's contents have been overwritten since then? There's software that can potentially retrieve data off damaged drives, though it won't work after a full format, or being refilled with files.
Hey, why didn't you leave a backup copy on the server if it's only 40MB!? : P | |  | |  |
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  | written by Alex on Feb 07, 2010 00:40 |
| | | | ![]()  | Cryoburner said: | | You're probably the only one with a complete C-Disk backup though, since that requires either FTP access, or clicking thousands of links. : P |
Speaking of which, it's actually only two days old, and safe on three different harddisks. Not that I'd consider losing it to be anywhere probable. It could get lost if it the entire site got lost, which is however where the full backup should help anyway. | | | | |
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| written by 4616599 on Feb 07, 2010 10:14 |
 | |  | | Never mind, we can get the old site data back when we come up with efficient FTL travel and really powerful telescopes...
Anyway, I don't really mind too much, being a new(-ish) member, but it'd be interesting to look back. Every once in a while I do see stuff about the old forums; Enet4 for instance said that it was 'more relaxed', and I'd like to see some of the early Noctis/lino discussions. | |  | |  |
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| written by Alex on Feb 07, 2010 10:47 |
| | | | ![]() I've found this:
cd/pngs/Alex/oldforum (79 Kb)
It looked so. It was a heavily modded (by me) version of phpBB 2.0.4. What you see on top is the ancestor of the actual Frespych, which was called so also at those times. The conversations were streamed bottom-to-top because they were word-wrapping and browsers had the habit of always going back to the top of a frame when that frame was refreshed. The "eye" icon brought to the Noctis IV photo competition, which I never found the will to port here. Overall, the counters confirm the place had a pretty large amount of posts, which makes having lost all of them pretty painful. Overtilt, Vib Rib and Kalamazoo were quite active and often at the core of the playful atmosphere. For me, it wasn't such a good period: by those years I began to fall prey of personality troubles, that I had had in the past but which had passed for some years. I've subsequently been sort of sleeping, fixating on details, seeking an ideal perfection in order to slow me down, as I wasn't feeling ready to bring it on. Now I look at it and get the feeling that many things have changed, and so much time has passed and it feels like an abyss. It's been pretty frustrating to realize the database was gone, as I was seeking memories in there. I had the impression of having lost something along the way, and perhaps I did: an occasion to waste less years and move on. And ultimately, perhaps what I've been dreaming to do - by reviving that database - was bring back time to try again while we were all still there. It wouldn't have been possible anyway...
oh well, time to move on today, there's nothing else to do. | | | | |
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 | written by Magnulus on Feb 08, 2010 00:14 |
| | | | ![]() The past is gone and the future is yet to come. The best we can hope for is to use the stumbling block of the past as springboards for the future. As pretentious and sanctimonious as that sounds, it has some truth to it, I think.
It would have been nice to relive some of the old forum days, but I know for a fact that even the early posts of mine from THIS forum make me cringe sometimes. I can only take that cringing as signs that I've grown without really being aware of it most of the time. | | | | |
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