mySQL errors and theme/tech sites

from WinCustomize Forums
What is it with mySQL? Is it the traffic on these sites that brings mySQL to it's knees or the other way around? Neowin used to suffer from it, now ThemeXP regularly spits out mySQL erros, and ieXbeta is now similarly affected. If a site can't stand the traffic, why can't it be configured to simply be slow? That's bad enough, put presenting the viewer with a string of errors looks like sh*t.
2,955 views 6 replies
Reply #1 from WinCustomize Forums Top
Mark....graphics and skinning sites are very demanding on bandwidth, and sites as hugely popular as Wincustomize have considerably more than just one or two people downloading 'stuff' at any one time...
Reply #2 from WinCustomize Forums Top
I understand that, but I've never seen that kind of error here at WC, so I was wondering about these "other guys", and why they can't run a site/database that doesn't spew errors when it gets overloaded. It's as if a truck is overloaded with weight. Okay fine, run slow, stall out, but don't shoot parts through the hood.
ObjectDock - Access shortcuts and frequently used applications from an animated dock.
Reply #3 from WinCustomize Forums Top
I love your analogy Mark.

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Reply #4 from WinCustomize Forums Top
Well, for one, those site may not have the budget that Wincusto have. MySQL is free and good enough for modest web sites but is not made to handle hundreds of simultaneous connections (I think it's limited to 100 and some). MS SQL used for this site is very expensive.
And lets not forget that errors happen. I've seen a few time the infamous error "Maximum number of connection reached. Please contact your administrator" (or something like that) a few times even here.
Sometimes websites are victims of their success and being popular is not always good. :/
Reply #5 from WinCustomize Forums Top
Though I am not familar with mySQL or PHP, I do know that in ASP trying to code error handling is not very simple. You put in error handling when you know you absolutely need it or until you find something that comes up often.

So initially I could understand why the error message would turn up. But after it coming up enough you would hope that they would attempt to but in some error handling around it.

And yes, WinCustomize has had its share of errors display. I try to keep on top of them and fix them as soon as possible but they still slip through from time to time.
Reply #6 from WinCustomize Forums Top
I think that what I see most often is the connection limitation. I suppose they're trying to run as lean and mean as possible, but sometimes exceed the number of connections allowed by the license. Thanks all for the info!