FAQ
Q: I am trying to reach the CDG/CSS/Bottletop/etc. web site, but I can only see some crummy intro. page - what??
A: If you are following a link to (say) www.cavedivinggroup.org.uk, but instead see the SCI page it means that the 'virtual hosting' feature is not working. The most likely explanation for this is that you are using a browser that does not support the modern http-1.1 protocol. This has a feature that allows one 'real' address to support several web sites, switching automatically depending on the one requested. If your browser is very old (in Internet years) this is probably the problem.
For me to upgrade at this end would need an extra annual expenditure of the equivalent of 3 months mortgage payments - I can't afford it. You'll have to upgrade your kit or find a friend who'll let you use their modern browser. I'll have to check exact version numbers, but 'old' means pre version 2.0 in this context - Windows 3.1 users may have problems.
If you have a modern (less than 2 years old) browser and are having this problem, get in touch with me and I'll look into it.
Q: How can I get in touch with you?
A: Email me at web@cavedivinggroup.org.uk
Q: Tell me more about the technology behind these pages and how they are hosted.
A: I'm glad you asked! These pages are bog-standard html, this is intended to allow as many people as possible to view them, I try to avoid proprietary features like the plague. If you come across a feature that does not work in your browser, please let me know what it is and what you are using. The pages are hosted on a 'virtual server' by DSVR. This gives me a whole Linux/Apache server to play with at a very reasonable cost - if you're looking for server space and are comfortable with Linux you should check them out.
There are a few scripts to manage the dynamic stuff (message boards, library and newsletter indexes, Vis-Bot, dynamic graph plotting) and these are all written in Perl at present. There is a MySQL database behind the scenes storing all the data.
Q: Your site looks funny, in fact I think it's broken.
A: Email me and let me know the details. Thanks for doing that, it is much appreciated.
Q: Do people really ask these stupid questions?
A: No, but if ever anyone did I'd be ready for them.
Q: I have a question that's not answered here.
A: Please send it to me and I'll try to answer it.
Back to the SCI cover page
Last modified 30th November, 2001