magdamunro

Really? No-one has a clue? I’m the only one seeing 127.0.0.1 (localhost) getting blocked?

Well Wangguard was never free. You were supposed to pay a fee after you had a site over a certain size. If I remember correctly this was about the number of calls within a time period or some other metric based on money. The terms were quite liberal anyway.

One of the sites I govern was at least nearing that level so I remember looking for how to pay and couldn’t find how to do that. As it weren’t above whatever the level was I unfortunately never asked about the details.

If this is behind there were too little money coming in to pay for costs I cannot say. Maybe the terms shouldn’t have been so high set?

Well, the alternatives would seem to be

• Find another plug-in that does the same
• Find another service that can be called from Wordpreess with some work
• Build a similar plug-in or service yourself or ourselves
• Find another developer, or group of developers, willing to make a similar plug-in or service to fill the void.
• As an extension to the development choices above: Start a new multi-stage campaign for financing development of a new plug-in concept with the same features as Wangguard and start development. None of the money should be able to get touched before the promised development had started. Some may be held until completion.
• Contact @jconti and see whether there is a chance he can be persuaded by a body of supporters and backers to bring back Wangguard in some form or another
• Ask @jconti about whether he’d contemplate releasing Wangguard as open source or otherwise co-operate with the community

Personally, maybe I’m daft or something, but I looked for how to donate last autumn and couldn’t find a way prior to the IndieGogo campaign. And when that was up it seemed like too uncertain to recommend backing this. How can I tell clients needing Wangguard, not understanding why exactly, that they should donate to this project that may or may not go on?

That’s unfortunate.

I understand completely the move to shut down the service. I also think it could have been avoided.

I think this is the state of WordPress now. In other technologies big companies with big money sponsor (there typically open-sourced) services like this one. WordPress is a hack, but technologically and socially.

• This reply was modified 7 years, 7 months ago by magdamunro.
• This reply was modified 7 years, 7 months ago by magdamunro.

For unknown reasons you leave out the URL to the article WangGuard Plugin Launches Indiegogo Campaign to Fund Development and Support as well as this quote:

‘Conti wants to keep the plugin free for all users and plans to create a campaign every year to raise funds for WangGuard development and support.

“I have always believed that WangGuard is truly needed and everyone deserves to use it for free,” Conti said in his campaign overview. “But, on the other hand, I can’t afford to keep paying all expenses for the maintenance of the best (in my opinion) anti-splog service. I need help.”

@kech61, The developer may simply have run out of money for the server resources.

I still don’t understand the unclear communications so far. Uncertainty is very bad PR.

• This reply was modified 7 years, 7 months ago by magdamunro. Reason: proper tagging

Yeah, but I’m quite confused whether @jconti actually wants to get paid. The indiegogo was confusing as well. There already was (hopefully still is) a plan for revenue before, that probably was viable at the set out. At the moment just making it possible to be in a relationship with @jconti and pay a fee, once, monthly or otherwise would be an improvement.

Likely combining that with a basic free service, if at all possible, that would allow a blog starter to jump on at once without hesitation and when the site grew over a certain size, maybe lower than what was though initially, you’d start pay some kind of fee. I think that could be viable and combined with a indiegogo campaign as well for those wanting to further support the project, maybe also not only with money, but with server space or other services.

A great plug-in like this could be a win-win for all involved including @jconti.

• This reply was modified 7 years, 9 months ago by magdamunro.
• This reply was modified 7 years, 9 months ago by magdamunro.

Your suggestions and thoughts are somewhat surprising as “conversion to a Premium Plugin model” would seem excessive given the fact that a company using, or wanting to use, Wangguard and that is fulfilling the economical terms for becoming a fee paying company would find it quite hard to even learn how to pay for a license or how much. I only remember reading this set up was the thought.

The problem would rather seem to be that @jconti haven’t really laid out these details clearly and made it easy pay and nor has he made it clear what quality of service can be expected for the fees paid, if any beyond what is obvious.

I had clients I wanted to recommend to support this project, but the uncertainty makes this impossible to advocate. Certainty is key, no matter the model chosen.

Well, you assume too much.

Are you under the impression the developer will read your post here?

If so that’s great, but posts about no response from the developer, no keys issued and no server connections convinced me it was over. At the very least the status of Wangguard seem uncertain.

• This reply was modified 7 years, 10 months ago by magdamunro.

What are you on about? This never happened in real usage of Wangguard.

Doesn’t matter though, Wangguard is no more.

• This reply was modified 7 years, 10 months ago by magdamunro.

Great. It works at my server now as well!

With so little promotion, and possibly the uncertainty around Wangguard too, 29 backers are acceptable for the time being. I maintain that those of you that feel you want to really support Wangguard should help a bit with promotion and maybe some advice as well.

For whatever reason it seems to me that this situation wouldn’t have emerged had the developer been more informative about how to pay what.

I have previously suggested to my clients to back this project when and if it becomes operative again. Even if servers are up now I think many would like to hear about how the future plans looks, at least if they’re going to contribute any larger sums. Silence isn’t very convincing. Honest communication is.

Here’s for hope!

• This reply was modified 8 years, 1 month ago by magdamunro.

Worked for me when the wangguard server was up.

OK, so installed Wangguard again after José’s message that he’s starting up the service anew and you simply still can’t connect.

WangGuard server Network Status
37.59.20.168

Obstructed

So the message on wanguard.com isn’t real then? Have anyone actually talked with Jose Conti Calveras?

Why is it so unclear how much is needed for the servers to be running now? I thought it was clear until October 20 anyway. But the servers are down. How can Jose Conti Calveras ask for monetary support that can be retained even if the backing objectives aren’t met when there is no service? Will they be up when there is $2900 in there? If not, how will it work?

With all this uncertainty I can’t recommend clients that they support this project. That’s very sad really. If only things were made a little bit more clear that would be a great help.

• This reply was modified 8 years, 1 month ago by magdamunro.