Talk:Home of the Underdogs/Archive 1

Coming to this page due to problems accessing the HOTU website?
You can restore access to the site by manually adding the site's hostname and IP address to your system's hosts file, using the instructions below:


 * 1) Using a text editor, open your system's hosts file
 * [[Image:Nuvola apps filetypes.svg||24x24px]] Where is my system's hosts file?
 * 1) Append the following entries (lines) to the hosts file
 * 209.120.136.200   community.the-underdogs.info
 * 209.120.136.203   dfg.the-underdogs.info
 * 209.120.136.196   files.the-underdogs.info
 * 209.120.136.205   mac.the-underdogs.info
 * 209.120.136.197   old.the-underdogs.info
 * 209.120.136.207   ron.the-underdogs.info
 * 209.120.136.194   the-underdogs.info
 * 209.120.136.195   www.the-underdogs.info
 * <tt>209.120.136.209   zzt.the-underdogs.info</tt>
 * 1) Save the file. Try going to the site, using the following URL:
 * http://www.the-underdogs.info/
 * 1) Alternatively a second temporary URL has been created at
 * http://www.underdogs.kirit.com/
 * Following a request at User_Talk:KayEss the following temporary URLs have also been created:
 * http://community.underdogs.kirit.com
 * http://dfg.underdogs.kirit.com
 * http://files.underdog.kirit.com
 * http://mac.underdogs.kirit.com
 * http://old.underdogs.kirit.com
 * http://ron.underdogs.kirit.com
 * http://zzt.underdogs.kirit.com
 * These other hosts may or may not work depending on how they're used as the links in the web sites will be for the old domain names

[[Image:Nuvola apps kate.png||24x24px]] Notes

 * If the above instructions didn't work, try the following (in exact order):
 * Restarting your computer
 * Clearing your browser's cache, forcing your browser to load latest version of the site
 * [[Image:Nuvola apps filetypes.svg||24x24px]] How do I clear my browser's cache?
 * Asking for help in this page
 * Moreover, the above instructions won't work if...
 * You (or your ISP) use proxies to access the Internet
 * You (or your ISP) use programs that use proxies to access the Internet
 * Examples of such programs include, but not limited to: filtering programs, "anonymous browsing" programs.

—Preceding unsigned comment added by 61.94.148.253 (talk • contribs) at 11:44, 1 April 2006

Talk page
I'm not sure if and how Copyrights applies here. Please enlight me! -- Anym 18:21, 15 Feb 2004 (UTC)

I fear this might be a bit POV, and could be considered site advertisement. If anyone wants to reword the information, I think the stub could benefit. --Teeks 15:30, 9 Jun 2004 (UTC)

It reads like a site advertisement, and as much as I like the site, many downloads it offers infringe copyright. I removed the link. evtkalo 19:29, 21 Jan 2005 (UTC)

Someone else replaced the link to the HotU site, but I agree with them that it can probably stay. Direct links to individual game pages where the download is available is very, very questionable. I have already removed several from Shogun (novel) and will continue to do so in other locations unless consensus says otherwise. JubalHarshaw 05:52, 11 Mar 2005 (UTC)

Maybe this entry should be kept, if it is the biggest of abandonware sites. If it is the largest one, then it deserves to be in here for the purposes of reference. Are there any other major sites that have links to download abandonware and other old games? Teh Bomb Sophist 15:28, 14 March 2005 (UTC)
 * There are 4-5 other sites within the same size range, albeit HotU is undeniably the largest one. As for removing the page, there's nothing in the WP deletion policies that say it can't stay, ergo, it stays. --TVPR 12:24, 15 May 2005 (UTC)

---
 * Er, can you list the other major sites... for reference? --

Teh Bomb Sophist 21:12, 2 June 2005 (UTC)

---

Well, Abandonia is quite big.--El Zilcho 20:09, 10 September 2005 (UTC)

---

C:Dos is pretty big aswell --Mincetro 07:25, 7 April 2006 (UTC)

I'm not quite sure why Sarinee Achavanuntakul is linked to on this article, since it redirects back to this article again. Perhaps someone would like to start a stub about him? I removed the link in the meantime.--El Zilcho 19:34, 18 September 2005 (UTC)
 * Sarinee is a her, not a him. Anyway, there used to be a stub for her, but it was POV and unsalvageable, so it got deleted. The best way to get about this one would probably sending her an e-mail with a few questions. --Sn0wflake 20:09, 18 September 2005 (UTC)

No problem with the domain, Jacoplane? I'd seriously check again, unless there's something I really don't know. 71.97.8.52 15:38, 22 March 2006 (UTC)
 * Well, http://www.the-underdogs.org/ works fine for me.  jaco plane  16:24, 22 March 2006 (UTC)
 * Due to the way DNS works, the site will work for some people and not for others for several days after the renewal, unfortunately. --Fuzzie (talk) 16:27, 22 March 2006 (UTC)

BTW, if you add the following lines to your hosts file, I think everything, including downloads and screenshots (they break because their server rejects IP addresses as referers), will work perfectly: 209.120.136.200   community.the-underdogs.org 209.120.136.203   dfg.the-underdogs.org 209.120.136.196   files.the-underdogs.org 209.120.136.205   mac.the-underdogs.org 209.120.136.197   old.the-underdogs.org 209.120.136.207   ron.the-underdogs.org 209.120.136.194   the-underdogs.org 209.120.136.195   www.the-underdogs.org 209.120.136.209   zzt.the-underdogs.org —Preceding unsigned comment added by 61.94.148.188 (talk • contribs) on 23 March 2006

You have to update your hosts file to reflect this change.

.org in the file is changed to .info.

I have not checked that everything works but the pages are loading and the files downloading.

209.120.136.200   community.the-underdogs.info

209.120.136.203   dfg.the-underdogs.info

209.120.136.196   files.the-underdogs.info

209.120.136.205   mac.the-underdogs.info

209.120.136.197   old.the-underdogs.info

209.120.136.207   ron.the-underdogs.info

209.120.136.194   the-underdogs.info

209.120.136.195   www.the-underdogs.info

209.120.136.209   zzt.the-underdogs.info

—Preceding unsigned comment added by 70.30.68.84 (talk • contribs) on 27 March 2006 (at 14:48 and 14:50)


 * No, because now HOTU has registered a domain name (the-underdogs.info), you could access the site normally without any entries in your hosts file (you could remove all previous HOTU entries in your hosts file, but remember to access the site using the new domain, i.e.: http://www.the-underdogs .info ). —Preceding unsigned comment added by 61.94.148.94 (talk • contribs)

Hmm... when I go to the site via the new .info links, I just get a broken cannot find server, cannot be displayed page. —Preceding unsigned comment added by 130.126.71.225 (talk • contribs) on 27 March 2006
 * It isn't working for me either. —Preceding unsigned comment added by Andran (talk • contribs) on 28 March 2006

You need to first update your hosts file. —Preceding unsigned comment added by 201.141.101.79 (talk • contribs) at 05:42, 28 March 2006
 * It worked yesterday, doesn't seem to be working today. Has nothing to do with host files. Radix 11:42, 28 March 2006 (UTC)
 * I was there when UD gave that link and I can confirm it doesn't work anymore. —Preceding unsigned comment added by 62.142.13.40 (talk • contribs) at 19:11, 28 March 2006

But, I have tried that, and I get the OOPS You've been tricked page when trying to download something. —Preceding unsigned comment added by 201.141.101.79 (talk • contribs) at 05:42, 28 March 2006

I get a "server not found" error, also. The whole point of having a domain name is so you *don't* have to fuss with your host files. --James 17:45, 28 March 2006 (UTC)


 * It seems that the .info domain is inaccessible at the moment (got "can't find hostname: Server failed" error). I think we'd better add those .info entries (and, perhaps, .org entries too, just in case) to our hosts file; at least until things stabilize. —Preceding unsigned comment added by 61.94.148.244 (talk • contribs) at 12:05, 29 March 2006

- Please can anyone tell me how can I download normally the games with Getright or BitTorrent from Home of the Underdogs (HOTU), since the links are broken now? I try using the IP adresses in Getright, but it doesnt semms to work for me :( I mean, where do I update my host files in GetRight or BitTorrent, what program option do I have to change??? :( -   AcidAngel —Preceding unsigned comment added by 200.60.217.104 (talk • contribs) on 30 March 2006 (from 08:16 to 08:19)

Since the site is now registered under the .info domain, but still does not resolve and IP address is needed to load the page, don't add the .org hostnames in your hosts file, but the .info ones. 209.120.136.200   community.the-underdogs.info 209.120.136.203   dfg.the-underdogs.info 209.120.136.196   files.the-underdogs.info 209.120.136.205   mac.the-underdogs.info 209.120.136.197   old.the-underdogs.info 209.120.136.207   ron.the-underdogs.info 209.120.136.194   the-underdogs.info 209.120.136.195   www.the-underdogs.info 209.120.136.209   zzt.the-underdogs.info —Preceding unsigned comment added by 158.197.196.128 (talk • contribs) at 19:42, 30 March 2006

Again, I don't want to sound like a hopeless newbie, but can somebody explain to me why, if my ISP uses a proxy, the mappings in the hosts file get overridden? I would have thought the hosts file took effect over all else... —Preceding unsigned comment added by Andran (talk • contribs) at 21:16, 1 April 2006
 * if you connect through a proxy your computer doesn't recognise a connection to 209.120.136.209. you connect to the proxy instead. i hope that makes sense. i couldn't really think of a better way of saying it. thanks for the help, guys. —Preceding unsigned comment added by 172.189.12.231 (talk • contribs) at 22:56, 5 April 2006

Since I cannot edit my hosts file due to the security restrictions, can anybody help me with the set up of the RefControl? I just downloaded this plug-in but dont know how to use it properly. Thankx me_lobo 06:09, 6 April 2006 (UTC) —Preceding unsigned comment added by 62.209.198.70 (talk • contribs)

Like the above guy, I can't get the hosts file nonsense to work. Believe me, I've tried everything. Does anyone know how to use the RefControl workaround? —Preceding unsigned comment added by 24.19.198.197 (talk • contribs) at 19:03, 9 April 2006

this is a random techincal stranger, fearing the info to come might be POV. Here is a VERY TINY FAQ taking into consideration the "locking" of the hosts file: (please note for Windows)

Problem: my computer complains the host file dosen't exist when I made/make changes to it! A: simple. open up the C:\WINDOWS\system32\drivers\etc file. right click host, and choose properties. uncheck "read-only" and hit apply. VERY VERY QUICKLY save the changes and re-add the read-only parameter on the hosts file.

Problem:I can't type in the file! A: easy. some bot,virus,trojan or any other hacking system saved a parameter to the host file which hides it so Notepad can't fetch the text when you type, thus "locking" your typing cursor when you try to type. un-check it and do a FULL-BLOWN virus scan before saving the changes.

Problem:Notepad closes when I try to open the hosts file. A: YOU ARE HOLDING AN UNDETECTABLE VIRUS IN YOUR COMPUTER!!!

that's all. email won2win@walla if you need more technical help. AND ERASE ANY PLUGINS CLAIMING TO OVERRIDE MICROSOFT'S OVERRIDING PROCEDURE! THEY ARE TROJANS!!! —Preceding unsigned comment added by 69.34.189.61 (talk • contribs) at 23:24, 12 April 2006

Return of HotU
As of 00:00, 13 April 2006 (UTC), http://www.the-underdogs.org/ is back. (Hooray!) But the image links still don't work. Has Ms Achavanuntakul said anything on the IRC channel about this? Could someone with more information please bring the article up to date? —Chris Chittleborough 00:00, 13 April 2006 (UTC)
 * Bah. It's gone again. —Chris Chittleborough 12:49, 13 April 2006 (UTC)
 * The IP address doesn't even answer anymore. Could this be it for the underdogs. GeminiDomino 03:29, 22 April 2006 (UTC)
 * No :( I won't beleive it! 68.108.253.121 07:10, 22 April 2006 (UTC)
 * Nooo! *sobs* --- The Geek
 * Dangit! http://www.the-underdogs.info was finally working perfectly on 20 April, but sometime shortly after that the site apparently died.  What gives?
 * As of April 22, the .info site is still unavailable.
 * April 23, 13:30 EST: .info site is available again.
 * Actually, the site IS back up, check out http://www.underdogs.kirit.com/
 * Working as of 4/23/06.
 * Ooh, lookey, the-underdogs.info is back! --- The Geek

Wow, this is the second time the website has had to switch domains. WTF is up with that? XPav 05:32, 28 April 2006 (UTC)
 * As the guy who removed this info from the article, I had better answer that. While Ms Achavanuntakul was trying to reclaim the .org domain and move to the .info domain, the nice people/person at http://www.kirit.com set up a mirror of the HotU site. So there was really only one switch by HotU itself (so far!). Cheers, CWC (talk) 10:36, 28 April 2006 (UTC)
 * Not true. HOTU was originally hosted at www.theunderdogs.org (note there was no dash in the URL), but Sarinee lost the domain to a squatter in a similar way. So it IS the second time this has happened. Andran 03:49, 30 April 2006 (UTC)
 * So it is. (Third name's the charm? Let's hope so.) I've added a sentence about this to the article.

'Fully' functional?
It looks like the anti-leech script is still broken. Worse, when it tries to show you the old error page, you end up on the domain squatter's page because it's trying to redirect to .org. GeminiDomino 19:24, 28 April 2006 (UTC)
 * Right, it's far from functional with downloads. I don't know why she doesn't at least accept referrals from her own IP address.Profundity06 06:42, 13 May 2006 (UTC)
 * I just found a small game and downloaded it without any problems. (I didn't try doing more than one download at a time.) Does this mean the website has caught up to our article and is now "fully functional"? Cheers, CWC (talk) 08:18, 15 May 2006 (UTC)
 * That particular erroneous reference was fixed as of 28 July 2006.

Expiration
The article says that the domain name expired, but last I heard this was incorrect. According to Underdogs herself in the site's IRC channel:

--> Underdogs (Underdogs@ppp-124.120.224.150.revip2.asianet.co.th) has joined #Underdogs <Underdogs> sigh. <Jim9137> UD! <Underdogs> www.the-underdogs.info <Underdogs> can you guys broadcast that ;/ <Stuffness> Oh no. <Underdogs> have trouble with Register.com :((( <Stuffness> UD, what possible trouble? underdogs! <Underdogs> they told me they just SUSPENDED the domain but now some guy just seemed to get it :/ <Stuffness> It's just a little domain name. <Jim9137> Underdogs: I heard you're an outlaw these days? <Underdogs> mrfwagon: hey!! <Underdogs> :D <Underdogs> Jim9137: yes! :) <Jim9137> Underdogs: Explain! <Frosty840> Underdogs: Thailand got on the BBC TV news. The story was really badly reported, though. Sorry. why'd they suspend it <Underdogs> I've been going to political rallies to oust our Prime Minister now how are you, by the way? ;) <Underdogs> and we're heading toward a bogus election on 2 April :/ <Underdogs> mrfwagon: oh, they couldn't contact me <Underdogs> and I lost my password <Underdogs> so they suspended my domain and asked me to fax ID proof <Underdogs> I actually paid through Feb 2007 :/ <Jim9137> I'll go edit Wikipedia. <Underdogs> it shows up in their records. <Underdogs> that's ONE MORE year from now :( I'm not sure what should go there instead, though... --Aquillion 03:20, 2 May 2006 (UTC)


 * Thanks, Aquillon. I've changed "due to the domain name expiring" to "due to problems with the domain name", which is less inaccurate but rather vague. Could anyone who gets more information put it in the article or on this page, please? Cheers, CWC (talk) 06:57, 2 May 2006 (UTC)

Template?
There's templates like moby game and imdb title. Could we create one of these? That way, we could just refer to games like and it'd expand it to "Betrayal at Krondor at Home of the Underdogs".

Good sides:
 * Universal title format
 * It'd be much easier to deal with URL format changes, cases like this domain expiry situation

Bad sides:
 * Umm... could be viewed as endorsement of abandonwarez?

So how about? --wwwwolf (barks/growls) 10:55, 5 May 2006 (UTC)


 * Already created --> Template:Hotu. --MindlessXD 11:56, 9 May 2006 (UTC)
 * Excellent, thanks for the pointer. This sort of things should be mentioned in the article's talk page, otherwise they're pretty hard to find =) --wwwwolf (barks/growls) 19:24, 9 May 2006 (UTC)

It should be noted that not everything at HOTU is a commercial game ... for instance, a link is quite approprate in our article on Eternal Daughter. It might also make sense for the numerous cases where HoTU provides a link to someplace where the game can be purchased. --Aquillion 01:08, 22 July 2006 (UTC)

Another way to access it
you can still visit the site here: http://209.120.136.195/ —Preceding unsigned comment added by Riphal (talk • contribs)


 * Technically, yes, but that's no longer necessary and will make it impossible to download anything, since your browser won't be sending the proper referrers. Use http://www.the-underdogs.info instead. --Aquillion 01:04, 22 July 2006 (UTC)


 * Anyone got a rough idea of when we'll be able to access the-underdogs.info without fiddling with hosts file? I've tried to view HOTU from two computers and both times get error message "the-underdogs.info could not be found [..]". When you try the-underdogs.info now are you successful ? (the 209.120.136.195 address works for me) --EarthFurst 03:11, 29 August 2006 (UTC)


 * I not even known what is the host file thingy. But just click on link in this article work for me. Don't try to download anything yet, but the link to manual of game work fine.L-Zwei 06:41, 29 August 2006 (UTC)

What's going on?
Does anyone know about that error message? Is it normal, or is HOTU in danger again? I just System Restore'd away some games, it'd be a shame if I couldn't get them back... Bduddy 04:59, 4 August 2006 (UTC)
 * Everyone is getting the error message. HOTU is in permanent danger because the owner has pretty much lost her interest on the website, so she isn't really making efforts to maintain it. I don't think this is the end, but I wouldn't lose my game backups if I were you... Andran 07:20, 4 August 2006 (UTC)
 * It'd be a shame if Underdogs was to go completely
 * "Permanent danger"? Please.  There are much older websites that have persisted (in their unchanging form) for years.  MySQL isn't something that requires constant maintenance.  Nor would I be so bold as to question Ms. Underdogs's motives; I for one have never lived in a country with an unstable political situation and been in a position to do something about it.  I wouldn't panic just yet; this might just be the installation of the promised wiki.
 * Are you a regular from HOTU? I am. The general consensus there is that UD has more or less abandoned her website and is not willing to delegate authority (she mostly doesn't answer emails or private messages). I don't question her motives; I would have got bored of such a project a lot earlier than her, but the fact remains that HOTU's status is currently "in permanent danger" (aka "it may go down at any time and no-one will be able to do anything about it"). I'm not saying this is the final crisis, but it will come any time now. The Wikification is going nowhere, by the way. Andran 21:44, 4 August 2006 (UTC)
 * The fact remains that one does not generally pay exhorbitant hosting fees for a project one has gotten bored of.


 * Which is why we don't think HOTU will last much longer. Andran 23:13, 4 August 2006 (UTC)


 * Surely she is aware that there are countless others who would willingly take on the maintenance and administration of the site, no? Is it somehow not feasible to hand it over to someone else? I'm amazed that it's lasted this long having only a single maintainer, and I would hate to lose such an incredible resource merely because its owner got tired of it. Binary 22:59, 4 August 2006 (UTC)
 * People who have tried contacting her say she either doesn't reply to emails or promises she will fix all the issues herself (and then forgets about them for months at a time). Andran 23:13, 4 August 2006 (UTC)
 * I doubt she forgets; she's probably just really busy.
 * "Any sufficiently long busy period is indistinguishable from forgetfulness" (Arthur Clarke). Andran 06:31, 5 August 2006 (UTC)
 * It is back up again
 * Oddly enough, it seems to be blazing fast now. They must have done something to the servers, because before I was getting like 20kbs max for downloads, and the site itself was painfully slow. Now it's blazingly fast and I'm getting 200Kbs+. Signs of it still being alive?
 * And I think I saw few new games as well, though I might be wrong.L-Zwei 12:48, 17 September 2006 (UTC)

Problem downloading
For a month I've been getting redirected to the error page when i try to download anything. I have just vanilla firefox, tried with IE too. The firewall option doesn't do any difference. {213.67.91.238 10:51, 7 November 2006 (UTC)}
 * I just download another small game (to be exact, Bones: The Game of The Haunted Mansion) and it's fine. However, I encounter such problem once. It's because you're looking at reference code image from your PC cache, not actual one. In IE, press Ctrl+F5 at download page to reflesh and clear your cache, it should be fine.L-Zwei 11:58, 7 November 2006 (UTC)
 * Tried both things. Same error. (The small game wouldn't download either.) Someone should start a torrent of the games. (With Bitcomet you can choose what to download.)
 * Seeing this message, I decide to grab another classic from the site, The Fool's Errand. And guess what? No problem encounter. Now I think that mean it's YOUR technical problem, not the site. And torrent issue is off-topic, find other article to discuss.L-Zwei 18:08, 18 November 2006 (UTC)