Server problems (disk full, need to upgrade and need donations)

donations paypal doesn't work: "This organization can't accept donations right now."

 

So I have noticed that many of the magazine and catalogue scans are are in PNG format, in fact many of my earlier ones were as well as this is the default for my scanner. I have converted a few to JPG and they are 6 times smaller in file size for the same resolution, and the difference on the screen is pretty much unnoticeable. An added bonus is that the pages load much faster, or at least they do on my "arse end of the world" internet. I am not sure if there is a way we can batch convert existing images which would save a considerable amount of space, although I suspect that would not be an easy process if it were possible.

It might be something to think about for users attaching scans going forward though.

 

This seems to be the wrong way 'round. PNG uses a lossless compression format (like, for example, FLAC) so there will be no degradation of the picture quality, but larger file sizes. JPG uses lossy compression (similar to MP3), so is pretty much always going to be smaller, with image quality being affected if too much compression is used. Note that pretty much all cameras use JPG unless they are set up to use RAW which is not relevant for a website.

I always reduce the size of any picture I am uploading to maximum 1920 x 1280, particularly photos as my camera has a native resolution of 6000 x 4000 and my phone 4032 x 3024. This also gives me control on what the image is going to look like as the sites do not have to compress them. I did try your idea of downloading a scan, in particular one of the Sharp Visual Integration pamphlet pages that I had updated to JPG, and the file that cam down was identical to what I had uploaded. I did notice the "upload" dialogue shows a maximum of 2000 x 1600 so I wonder if pictures larger than this are automatically converted.

Just for reference, here are the sizes of page 1 of the Sharp VI catalogue.
Original scan - 8,097KB (2643 x 1461 resolution PNG)
Downsized copy - 3,843KB (1920 x 1061 resolution PNG). This is the one I originally uploaded.
Converted copy - 638KB (1920 x 1061 resolution JPG). This is the one that is currently uploaded.

I was looking up the model number of my old minidisc player the other day (before I realised that the unit in its box was sitting on the floor next to me) and found a photo of my (old) bedroom in the search results that I had uploaded here, so they are definitely scraping the site!

 

I'm having the same problem. I also can't work out how to increase my Paypal monthly payment. I guess that has to be done from this site rather than the Paypal one.

Another observation is that the "Donate Now" button doesn't seem to appear until you have logged it. I donate to Wikipedia and The Internet archive without being a member of them.
The last Internet Archive donation was in response to finding an instruction manual which wasn't on the equipment manufacturers website there.
Something I don't like about the Boombox site is that you can't view photos properly without logging in. I only log in here when I have something to say.

 

How do I donate? I don’t see any donate button.

 

The Donate button is in the right hand navigation panel of the homepage just under New Posts (desktop) or near the bottom of the page, again under New Posts (mobile). As others have mentioned, pressing it comes currently comes up with the error "This organisation can't accept donations right now." I can also confirm that it doesn't show at all (along with Members Online, Most Likes and Forum Statistics) if you are not logged in.

Strangely, the Today's Birthdays section appears to only show up if you are not logged in!

 

Please let me know if I can help in any way. My background is actually in Quality Assurance, but as such I have used a few different programs to design and style websites, and I don't mind learning something new. Otherwise, I can certainly test any changes that are made on a few different devices at least.

 

Donate button leads to this:

This organization can't accept donations right now.

Please address this.

 

I have sent a donation using the link you posted.

My point above is that some people might consider sending a donation without wanting to sign up.
Wikipedia is a good example of a site I regularly donate to despite not being a member. Every three months or so they do a fundraiser. They must track peoples usage using cookies or similar as during fundraisers when accessing their home I get messages like
"In the last 3 months you accessed 93 articles. Do you thing this knowledge is worth $3 ? I everyone donated $3 our funding needs would be met".

 

I do believe there may be people out there that find information on this site, but don't necessarily want to join just to show there appreciation.