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Please Read - WAMAS Subscriptions


Origami

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*** Scroll down to the last post to see the latest ***

 

In the next day or so, I'll be updating our subscription processing software.

 

For many years now, we've used a third-party plug-in to manage our subscriptions, including integration with the Paypal payment gateway. All paid members have interacted with the software (typically once a year). However, we've been unable to update the forum software from version 3.8.x to version 4.x.x for a few years now because our plug-in is not available for the 4.x software.

 

The 3.8.x software reached end-of-life over a year ago and is no longer supported. It's time for it to be upgraded. But, before we can do that, we need to update the subscription software so that we can smoothly transition to the 4.x software.

 

I'm told that the new subscription software, built around Invision's IP Nexus package, will import and convert our existing subscriptions automatically. I'll believe that when I see it. There's always a chance of some sort of error or unforeseen difficulty. However, I'm guessing that WAMAS isn't the first to go down this path, so it may be just fine. However, I wanted people to know what we're up to before we do it.

 

Last night, I laid some of the groundwork in anticipation of this next step. That required rebooting the server a couple of times and, if you were on WAMAS last night between 11:30 and midnight, you may have noticed that we recycled the server a couple of times. This next step that we'll be taking may involve some recycling like that or may temporarily close the subscription service down as it's being converted. As usual, we'll do our best to keep things running smoothly.

 

Thank you.

Edited by Origami
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I think that I have it functioning now. I'm sure that there will be some challenges. Please PM me if you experience problems and I'll try to get things worked out. Thanks for your patience.

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It's early yet, but pre-existing auto-renewing subscription payments set up at Paypal are being paid but subscription records at WAMAS are not being updated. This may be because, as part of the payment, Paypal makes the transfer and calls on the old software to update the records. Of course, the old subscription software is not there to process the payment record. I've seen this happen 3 or 4 times now in the last two days.

 

Going forward, I'm going to continue to monitor the old system of renewal for a few more days and, if this pattern of auto-payments failing to link to your membership continues, I'll probably go into Paypal to unilaterally cancel all standing auto-renewing subscriptions in the Paypal system. This would be a fairly drastic action and could affect nearly 600 members who today have this kind of relationship with us through Paypal.If you're one of the affected members, you'll receive an email from Paypal noting that we've canceled your subscription. Don't be alarmed - we still want your support. This notice is to let you know what's behind that email in the event that this is what we have to do. If it comes to having to do this on a large scale, I'll send a bulk mail out to everybody in the community to let them know in advance what we're doing and why.

 

The new system sends out renewal invoices. If you receive the invoice and pay it, your record is updated smoothly.

 

In the long run, this change was necessary to maintain the health of our online community's IT infrastructure.

 

Thank you for your patience.

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This bulk mail is going out to all members at this time:

 

 
Within the last week, WAMAS replaced its subscription processing software in anticipation of a larger software upgrade to the forum. In the process, links between Paypal and WAMAS for automatic renewal subscription-processing were broken. As a result, we'll be forced to cancel existing automatic renewals made from the old software in the next 24 hours. If you're one of the affected members, you'll receive an email from Paypal noting that we've canceled your subscription. Don't be alarmed - we still want and need your support.
 
The cancellation will NOT affect your existing membership term.
 
For many years now, we've used a third-party plug-in to manage our subscriptions, including integration with the Paypal payment gateway. All paid members have interacted with the software (typically once a year). However, we've been unable to update the forum software from version 3.8.x to version 4.x.x for a few years now because our plug-in is not available for the 4.x software. Furthermore, our 3.8.x software reached end-of-life over a year ago and is no longer supported, leaving us vulnerable. Therefore, the WAMAS Board of Directors decided that our best course of action for the future of our community was to proceed with the software upgrade. 
 
The new subscription processing system sends out renewal invoices and no longer requires a Paypal account to subscribe. If you receive the invoice and pay it, your record is updated smoothly, and your membership will be automatically continued. Alternatively, you can also sign into your account and go to http://www.wamas.org/join.php or, from a regular web browser, click on "Join" in the ribbon towards the top of the page, to reach the WAMAS store where you can subscribe.
 
We apologize for any inconvenience that this situation is creating. However, in the long run, this change was necessary to maintain the health of our online community's IT infrastructure, and to continue to bring you the best experience that our community has to offer. 
 
Thank you for your understanding and your patience. And thank you for your continued support of WAMAS.
 
Happy Reefing!

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