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What kind of hardware does Slashdot run on?

Slashdot is running on 18 web servers, each with an 8-core Xeon, 8GB of RAM, and two 250GB SATA drives in a RAID1. Two more servers of the same config run Slashd. There are five database servers, each containing quad-core xeons and 8 15k RPM SAS drives in a RAID5.

Answered by: Soulskill
Last Modified: 6/13/00

Why doesn't Slashdot display in Browser X?

This could happen for a couple of reasons. If you're using an old, outdated browser (IE6 I'm looking at you), we're only really worried about major display bugs. If you have Javascript turned off, many things simply won't work. Other than that, we develop for the browsers most of our readers use; Firefox first and foremost, with an eye toward Safari and later versions of IE. If you're having a problem in any reasonably up-to-date browser, let us know. There may be a bug we're not aware of, and we'll fix it as soon as it's feasible. We add new functionality to the site every week (or clean up/optimize existing functionality), and we test extensively, but nothing quite compares to a hundred thousand readers hitting pages. The sooner and more descriptively you let us know about a problem, the sooner we'll fix it.

Answered by: Soulskill
Last Modified: 05/01/09

What kind of logging does Slashdot do with regard to its readers?

We log the usual stuff (IP, page, time, user, page views, moderation, and comment posting, mainly). A few other odds and ends too, but mostly the data is used to make moderation possible. We keep the logs for 48 hours.

Answered by: CmdrTaco
Last Modified: 10/28/00

Can I have your poll scripts?

The poll scripts are included with the Slashdot source code.

Answered by: CmdrTaco
Last Modified: 6/21/00

Can I import Slashdot headlines?

Sure, be our guest. Please read 'Importing of Slashdot Headlines' before you begin.

Answered by: Robo
Last Modified: 2/07/02

What about the source code to this site?

The source code is called Slash and it has been released under the GPL. It contains pretty much everything that you see on Slashdot, but cleaned up a bit for general purpose use. You can use it to create your own weblog. With features like an online story editor, mass moderation, customizable user preferences and oh-so-much more. It's a fun little adventure. However it's not for the faint of heart either; it's got bugs.

To learn more about Slash check out Slashdot's 'code' page, or go directly to slashcode.com.

Answered by: CmdrTaco
Last Modified: 6/13/00

If you were just starting to code Slashdot.org today, what would you code the site in PHP or mod_perl?

Perl.

Answered by: CmdrTaco
Last Modified: 10/28/00

Do you guys ever worry that some site might steal Slashcode and try and outdo Slashdot?

Go for it.

Answered by: CmdrTaco
Last Modified: 10/28/00

How did it feel when you opensourced slashcode allowing people to tinker with your 'baby' as it were? Are you still involved with the process as much or is your time taken up by reading email and such?

It was hard. People were mean about it. Attacked me personally. Insulted my code. I don't regret it, but a big company wouldn't take it. They'd say, "Forget this GPL thing." These guys are ungrateful jerks. I'm still involved, but less so. I still direct where the code goes and control the features that go in.

Answered by: CmdrTaco
Last Modified: 10/28/00

What's the biggest benefit to come out of the opening of Slash so far? Better efficiency? Tighter security?

Yes. Both of these. Also, it's just cool when people submit patches.

Answered by: CmdrTaco
Last Modified: 10/28/00

What do I see loading from fsdn.com?

That's our new image server.

Answered by: Soulskill
Last Modified: 05/01/09


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