[Pan-users] Re: Problems with news servers

[Duncan]

Jesper Anderson posted <address@hidden>,
excerpted below,  on Sun, 18 Jul 2004 20:17:44 +0000:

> When that happens (when one server runs into the limit), Pan throws up
> an error message and disconnects *all* my servers, immediately halts
> ongoing downloads (setting them as status "stopped"), and then just sits
> there until I wake up 6 hours later.

This is quite irritating behavior for a number of us.  There's no current
fix except to baby sit it, that I know of.  However, for some time there's
been a hold on some of the most major planned changes in PAN, including a
scriptable batch/command line mode for scheduled fetching and the like. 
This has been due to the fact that many of these features are really
waiting on the database backend that has been planned for some time as
well.  The thing is that various features could be implemented now, but
they'd end up having to be rewritten later, when that goes in, so they
might as well wait.

Anyway, Charles hasn't really had time to do much with PAN lately, which
has stabilized it enough that a number of database folks are working on
that side of things.  While it's still a bit early in the process, there's
been more happen with that in the last three months than I've ever seen
before, and by the time Charles gets time to work on things, it's possible
there may be one or more database backends pretty much sitting there
waiting for him to pick one and run with it.

That move is going to be a HUGE one, when it happens, and the new PAN
likely won't be a stable for some time.  However, once it /does/ happen,
it should break the gridlock and allow PAN to advance at a faster rate
once again.  Of course, that assumes either Charles finds time again at
some point, or someone else with the interest, skills, and initiative,
steps forward to take over as project lead.  That's not a /bad/ thing, and
it /has/ happened before with PAN.. see the credits.. the original author
is no longer involved, and it could happen again.

-- 
Duncan - List replies preferred.   No HTML msgs.
"They that can give up essential liberty to obtain a little
temporary safety, deserve neither liberty nor safety." --
Benjamin Franklin