Thanks, Pat. A lot of work does go into the speed, and my pride in it usually shows. :)
Features, well... We've got some pretty cool ones, and I'm constantly working on adding more, but keeping in mind that I want the software to be the best message-board software, generally speaking. Not specifically the best stock-related message-board software or letting the message boards aspect get too diluted with features that have el zippo to do with the main 3 features that matter for message boards:
1. Writing messages.
2. Reading messages.
3. Searching for messages.
And doing them all just as quickly and unobtrusively as possible. If a feature doesn't enable/help the above 3 items and do it without getting in the way of easy/quick communication between users, well, it's just in the way.
Oh, Mike? I let the cat out of the bag the other day. I've started working on an "Ignore" feature. Sorry to leave you bursting at the seams there. <g>
For me, it's a lot more fun to just surprise people with new features (we frequently play a game called "Find The Feature"), and I am very averse to setting up people's expectations for delivery dates so I don't risk disappointing them when those dates inevitably get missed, but this one's important enough to a lot of people that I felt I should let people know that they didn't need to lobby me anymore.
Getting back to the issue of speed, I have to admit that the sudden arrival of Zeev and company did push the hardware/software just as close to the limits as I was comfortable with, but it helped me tweak everything for even greater speed, and we can now handle about twice as much traffic before I need to worry again. By the time I get done with the current batch of tweaks, I expect we'll only be using about 25% of our capacity at current traffic levels. We're around 40% right now.
The climate there reminds me of the early days on SI with Jill, Brad, et.al.
Brad, Jeff, Jill, and maybe Bob? <g> I know what you mean, though. I was a sort of "5th Beatle" at SI. But the most exciting times were pre-GNET.
I used to think it was just too cool when Brad would get an idea for a new feature, and suddenly it'd show up. He'd be talking to someone about a feature publicly, and half an hour later he's posting "Done. Whaddya think?" or something to that effect.
And being in that role now is just as fun as I imagined it would be.
Kinda like this one, written half an hour after someone mentioned it. investorshub.com
Definitely exciting times. The ship that Brad and Jeff caught headed out of the station 3 years ago (if I may mix my metaphors), so I'm not going to be catching it, but that's arguably the best possible thing for iHub. Keeping it in the hands of those who love it most is the way to go. |
