Good day, Sir!

Just a thought about messages and timezones...

Whenever I read through QWK and FTN-based messages, I see each message tagged with a timezone or offset. This is great, yet I also feel it isn't necessary. Instead, why can't we inquire with the user during sign-up and within the Default User Config.

Asking the user their timezone, utilizing a similar manner to that of RHEL and Debian-based /usr/share/zoneinfo/zone1970.tab could help populate the request from the user. Then, when displaying messages, all messages are displayed based upon the offset and not the original source message.

Just a thought...

Brian Klauss <-> Dream Master
Caught in a Dream | caughtinadream.com a Synchronet BBS

---
þ Synchronet þ Caught in a Dream - caughtinadream.com

Re: Message Timezones
By: Dream Master to Digital Man on Thu Mar 31 2022 10:47 am

Good day, Sir!

Just a thought about messages and timezones...

Whenever I read through QWK and FTN-based messages, I see each message tagged with a timezone or offset.

Unfortunately, not all messages are.

This is great, yet I also feel it isn't
necessary. Instead, why can't we inquire with the user during sign-up and within the Default User Config.

I've considered it. Users do move around however, sometimes between time zones. The BBS usually stays in one time zone.

If the standard was to timestamp messagse in UTC, then at least for message creation, it would be a moot point (what zone the BBS or the author was in), but unfortunately, that's not how existing BBS message networks work. The date/time stamps of messages are generally expected to be in the local time of the BBS.

Asking the user their timezone, utilizing a similar manner to that of RHEL and Debian-based /usr/share/zoneinfo/zone1970.tab could help populate the request from the user. Then, when displaying messages, all messages are displayed based upon the offset and not the original source message.

Just a thought...

A message reader could already do that in theory: just display a message's timestamp in UTC or convert to the user's preferred zone on the fly.

I kind of like seeing the originating timezone and the local time myself however. <shrug>
--
digital man (rob)

Rush quote #8:
One likes to believe in the freedom of music...
Norco, CA WX: 62.5øF, 69.0% humidity, 4 mph SE wind, 0.00 inches rain/24hrs
---
þ Synchronet þ Vertrauen þ Home of Synchronet þ [vert/cvs/bbs].synchro.net

Re: Message Timezones
By: Digital Man to Dream Master on Thu Mar 31 2022 12:48:52

I've considered it. Users do move around however, sometimes between time zones. The BBS usually stays in one time zone.

Just a thought...

What if the time zone was derived from the location of the user's IP address?

---
þ Synchronet þ ANSUN - ansun.synchro.net

Re: Message Timezones
By: Digital Man to Dream Master on Thu Mar 31 2022 12:48 pm

I kind of like seeing the originating timezone and the local time myself however. <shrug> --

I prefer when it didn't matter what time it was, because the transfers were measured in days.


- Andre

---
þ Synchronet þ Radio Mentor BBS - bbs.radiomentor.org

Re: Message Timezones
By: Martin Rayburn to Digital Man on Thu Mar 31 2022 03:53 pm

Re: Message Timezones
By: Digital Man to Dream Master on Thu Mar 31 2022 12:48:52

I've considered it. Users do move around however, sometimes between time zones. The BBS usually stays in one time zone.

Just a thought...

What if the time zone was derived from the location of the user's IP address?

It's a possibility.
--
digital man (rob)

This Is Spinal Tap quote #32:
Derek Smalls: [A jog?] We don't have time for that.
Norco, CA WX: 61.3øF, 72.0% humidity, 12 mph SE wind, 0.00 inches rain/24hrs ---
þ Synchronet þ Vertrauen þ Home of Synchronet þ [vert/cvs/bbs].synchro.net

On Thu, 31 Mar 2022 15:53:07 -0500
"Martin Rayburn" <martin.rayburn@VERT/ANSUN> wrote:

Re: Message Timezones
By: Digital Man to Dream Master on Thu Mar 31 2022 12:48:52

I've considered it. Users do move around however, sometimes
between time zones. The BBS usually stays in one time zone.

Just a thought...

What if the time zone was derived from the location of the user's IP
address?

Unreliable, especially if the user is using the web based telnet
interface or using dialup via a modem.
--
End Of The Line BBS - Plano, TX
telnet endofthelinebbs.com 23
---
þ Synchronet þ End Of The Line BBS - endofthelinebbs.com

Re: Re: Message Timezones
By: Nelgin to All on Thu Mar 31 2022 05:46 pm

Unreliable, especially if

the user is using the web based telnet

rare

interface or using dialup via a modem.

hahah!


how about if monkeys flew out my ass.
---
þ Synchronet þ ::: BBSES.info - free BBS services :::

Digital Man wrote to Dream Master <=-

Re: Message Timezones
By: Dream Master to Digital Man on Thu Mar 31 2022 10:47 am

Whenever I read through QWK and FTN-based messages, I see each message tagged with a timezone or offset.

Unfortunately, not all messages are.

Standards, it seems that we lack standards. :)

This is great, yet I also feel it isn't
necessary. Instead, why can't we inquire with the user during sign-up and within the Default User Config.

I've considered it. Users do move around however, sometimes between
time zones. The BBS usually stays in one time zone.

Really? Why would users move around? If our users are connecting into our systems, they still have a "home" location, such as PST8PDT or MST7MDT (old school, but America/Los Angeles or America/Denver). I think I'm trying to compare BBSes and our users to that of business e-mail and messaging systems (Teams, Slack, Exchange, etc.) where each is configured to the user's timezone and the BBS is configured to whatever timezone it is sourced at. Even if we configure everything to UTC, user offsets could still be a "thing".

If the standard was to timestamp messagse in UTC, then at least for message creation, it would be a moot point (what zone the BBS or the author was in), but unfortunately, that's not how existing BBS message networks work. The date/time stamps of messages are generally expected
to be in the local time of the BBS.

Very valid point. Just one of those "nice to have" things.

A message reader could already do that in theory: just display a
message's timestamp in UTC or convert to the user's preferred zone on
the fly.

I kind of like seeing the originating timezone and the local time
myself however. <shrug> --

I'd love to see a message reader do that. Now, if I can only find the time in my overly hectic life to add something to our message readers. And your shrug, I support it. I do like seeing where people are at, generally speaking.


... Computer Hacker wanted. Must have own axe.
--- MultiMail/Mac v0.52
þ Synchronet þ Caught in a Dream - caughtinadream.com

On 03-31-22 12:48, Digital Man wrote to Dream Master <=-

I've considered it. Users do move around however, sometimes between
time zones. The BBS usually stays in one time zone.

I'm a case in point. I'm currently 1 hour behind my BBS, but because this laptop is still configured for my home time zone, timestamps on this message are also an hour ahead of where I am. :D

If the standard was to timestamp messagse in UTC, then at least for message creation, it would be a moot point (what zone the BBS or the author was in), but unfortunately, that's not how existing BBS message networks work. The date/time stamps of messages are generally expected
to be in the local time of the BBS.

Yeah that has been the standard, rather than letting each end work out its own offset.

Asking the user their timezone, utilizing a similar manner to that of RHEL and Debian-based /usr/share/zoneinfo/zone1970.tab could help populate the request from the user. Then, when displaying messages, all messages are displayed based upon the offset and not the original source message.

Just a thought...

A message reader could already do that in theory: just display a
message's timestamp in UTC or convert to the user's preferred zone on
the fly.

Assuming every link in the chain was set correctly, otherwise you'll see apparent feats of time travil! :D

I kind of like seeing the originating timezone and the local time
myself however. <shrug> --
digital man (rob)

It is an interesting curiosity, but harder to work out transit or response times. :)


... What if I told you I'm here to set you free?
--- MultiMail/Win v0.52
þ Synchronet þ Freeway BBS, Bendigo Australia. freeway.apana.org.au

On 03-31-22 15:53, Martin Rayburn wrote to Digital Man <=-

@VIA: VERT/ANSUN
Re: Message Timezones
By: Digital Man to Dream Master on Thu Mar 31 2022 12:48:52

I've considered it. Users do move around however, sometimes between time zones. The BBS usually stays in one time zone.

Just a thought...

What if the time zone was derived from the location of the user's IP address?

What time zone is 10.43.21.14 in? ;) For technical reasons, I access my BBS over a ZeroTier virtual LAN when I'm away from home. That is my actual IP that the BBS sees. ;) And I can be anywhere in the world with that IP. Currently 1300km away from home and an hour behind in Brisbane.


... Old archers never die, they just bow and quiver.
--- MultiMail/Win v0.52
þ Synchronet þ Freeway BBS, Bendigo Australia. freeway.apana.org.au

On 03-31-22 17:46, Nelgin wrote to All <=-

Unreliable, especially if the user is using the web based telnet
interface or using dialup via a modem.

Or a VPN like I do. :)


... A sharp tongue and a dull mind are usually found in the same head!
--- MultiMail/Win v0.52
þ Synchronet þ Freeway BBS, Bendigo Australia. freeway.apana.org.au

Re: Re: Message Timezones
By: Dream Master to Digital Man on Thu Mar 31 2022 09:29 pm

I've considered it. Users do move around however, sometimes between
time zones. The BBS usually stays in one time zone.

Really? Why would users move around? If our users are connecting into our

People move for the usual reasons, like maybe they got a job somewhere else, or maybe they want to move somewhere with a lower cost of living, or to be closer to family, etc., etc...

Nightfox

---
þ Synchronet þ Digital Distortion: digitaldistortionbbs.com

Re: Re: Message Timezones
By: Vk3jed to Martin Rayburn on Fri Apr 01 2022 21:03:00

What if the time zone was derived from the location of the user's IP address?

What time zone is 10.43.21.14 in? ;) For technical reasons, I access my BBS over a ZeroTier virtual LAN when I'm away from home. That is my actual IP that the BBS sees. ;) And I can be anywhere in the world with that IP. Currently 1300km away from home and an hour behind in Brisbane.

Good point, but I would wager that the average user doesn't use anything of that sort.

---
þ Synchronet þ ANSUN - ansun.synchro.net

interface or using dialup via a modem.

hahah!

how about if monkeys flew out my ass.

Using dialup is for those rare eccentric (re: crazy) people that are WAY TOO nostalgic. The days of dial-up sucked, but for a long time it was the only thing going.

think I'm trying to compare BBSes and our users to that of business
e-mail and messaging systems (Teams, Slack, Exchange, etc.) where each
is configured to the user's timezone and the BBS is configured to
whatever timezone it is sourced at. Even if we configure everything to UTC, user offsets could still be a "thing".

Excellent point concerning this already being done by business email servers.

Re: Re: Message Timezones
By: Nightfox to Dream Master on Fri Apr 01 2022 09:44:35

Really? Why would users move around? If our users are connecting
into our

People move for the usual reasons, like maybe they got a job somewhere else, or maybe they want to move somewhere with a lower cost of living, or to be closer to family, etc., etc...

Sometimes I move around just to prevent blood clots, bed sores, and muscle atrophy. None of this movement has brought me to a different time zone recently, but I did leave my neighbourhood for about an hour a few months ago.

---
echicken
electronic chicken bbs - bbs.electronicchicken.com
---
þ Synchronet þ electronic chicken bbs - bbs.electronicchicken.com

Re: Re: Message Timezones
By: SYS64738 to MRO on Fri Apr 01 2022 12:52 pm

interface or using dialup via a modem.

hahah!

how about if monkeys flew out my ass.

Using dialup is for those rare eccentric (re: crazy) people that are WAY TOO nostalgic. The days of dial-up sucked, but for a long time it was the only thing going.

a guy was nice enough to provide me with a dialup gateway for several years.

1 or 2 people used it. and it was only used a few times.
---
þ Synchronet þ ::: BBSES.info - free BBS services :::

Re: Re: Message Timezones
By: echicken to Nightfox on Fri Apr 01 2022 06:29 pm

Sometimes I move around just to prevent blood clots, bed sores, and muscle atrophy. None of this movement has brought me to a different time zone recently, but I did leave my neighbourhood for about an hour a few months ago.

let me know when your 600lb life episode airs.
---
þ Synchronet þ ::: BBSES.info - free BBS services :::

El 1/4/22 a las 09:52, SYS64738 escribi¢:

MR> > interface or using dialup via a modem.
MR>
MR> hahah!
MR>
MR> how about if monkeys flew out my ass.

Using dialup is for those rare eccentric (re: crazy) people that are WAY TOO nostalgic. The days of dial-up sucked, but for a long time it was the only thing going.

dialup age was amazing...

---
þ Synchronet þ Dock Sud BBS TLD 24 HS - bbs.docksud.com.ar

Re: Re: Message Timezones
By: Dream Master to Digital Man on Thu Mar 31 2022 09:29 pm

Digital Man wrote to Dream Master <=-

Re: Message Timezones
By: Dream Master to Digital Man on Thu Mar 31 2022 10:47 am

Whenever I read through QWK and FTN-based messages, I see each message tagged with a timezone or offset.

Unfortunately, not all messages are.

Standards, it seems that we lack standards. :)

Well there are standard methods of representing the timezone information, but not requirement that it's actually included. Backwards-compatiblity, lowest-common-denominator, etc.

This is great, yet I also feel it isn't
necessary. Instead, why can't we inquire with the user during sign-up and within the Default User Config.

I've considered it. Users do move around however, sometimes between time zones. The BBS usually stays in one time zone.

Really? Why would users move around?

Uh, "calling" into a BBS while traveling. I do it myself when traveling.

If our users are connecting into our
systems, they still have a "home" location, such as PST8PDT or MST7MDT (old school, but America/Los Angeles or America/Denver). I think I'm trying to compare BBSes and our users to that of business e-mail and messaging systems (Teams, Slack, Exchange, etc.) where each is configured to the user's timezone and the BBS is configured to whatever timezone it is sourced at. Even if we configure everything to UTC, user offsets could still be a "thing".

Yup, they could. For convert-on-display purposes or for timestamping the data (messges) sent by the user.

If the standard was to timestamp messagse in UTC, then at least for message creation, it would be a moot point (what zone the BBS or the author was in), but unfortunately, that's not how existing BBS message networks work. The date/time stamps of messages are generally expected to be in the local time of the BBS.

Very valid point. Just one of those "nice to have" things.

A message reader could already do that in theory: just display a message's timestamp in UTC or convert to the user's preferred zone on the fly.

I kind of like seeing the originating timezone and the local time myself however. <shrug> --

I'd love to see a message reader do that. Now, if I can only find the time in my overly hectic life to add something to our message readers. And your shrug, I support it. I do like seeing where people are at, generally speaking.

Yeah, it should be possible for a message reader to display both/either at the user's preference too.
--
digital man (rob)

Rush quote #3:
The men who hold high places must be the ones who start... Closer to the Heart Norco, CA WX: 67.7øF, 61.0% humidity, 6 mph ESE wind, 0.00 inches rain/24hrs ---
þ Synchronet þ Vertrauen þ Home of Synchronet þ [vert/cvs/bbs].synchro.net

Re: Re: Message Timezones
By: Ragnarok to SYS64738 on Fri Apr 01 2022 08:28 pm

Using dialup is for those rare eccentric (re: crazy) people that are WAY TOO nostalgic. The days of dial-up sucked, but for a long time it was the only thing going.

dialup age was amazing...

At the time, it was amazing. In hindsight or comparison to today's broadband Internet? Yeah, not so much... :-)
--
digital man (rob)

Sling Blade quote #9:
Doyle Hargraves: Morris here is a modern-day poet, kinda like in olden times. Norco, CA WX: 67.7øF, 61.0% humidity, 6 mph ESE wind, 0.00 inches rain/24hrs ---
þ Synchronet þ Vertrauen þ Home of Synchronet þ [vert/cvs/bbs].synchro.net

Re: Re: Message Timezones
By: Digital Man to Ragnarok on Fri Apr 01 2022 05:56 pm

dialup age was amazing...

At the time, it was amazing. In hindsight or comparison to today's broadband Internet? Yeah, not so much... :-)

True, not so much now, but I always thought it was pretty cool that the technology was developed to transfer digital computer data over analog phone lines. When the phone systems were first developed, they had no way of knowing that people would use them to transfer computer data over them many years later.

Nightfox

---
þ Synchronet þ Digital Distortion: digitaldistortionbbs.com

dialup age was amazing...

At the time, it was amazing. In hindsight or comparison to today's broadband Internet? Yeah, not so much... :-)

True dat! I wore out dial-up service back in the 80's and loved it...because it was the only way for the average person to get onto the local boards. But these guys that want to put together a dial-up bbs on purpose--that's a special kind of nostalgia that I hope to never experience.

I was one of those obnoxious Commodore 64 kids. A real die hard "C=64-ever" guy. These days, I'm on some of the C=64 Facebook groups, and I just don't
get why these dudes put so much time and effort into restoring old C=64 equipment. I mean we have C=64 emulators that are nearly 99.99999% identical that we can do so much more with and these cats are fiddling with these
relics. What's amazing about that crowd though is that there are still those that are writing new software for it (games mostly) and most it's not half
bad!

Nightfox wrote to Dream Master <=-

Re: Re: Message Timezones
By: Dream Master to Digital Man on Thu Mar 31 2022 09:29 pm

I've considered it. Users do move around however, sometimes between
time zones. The BBS usually stays in one time zone.

Really? Why would users move around? If our users are connecting into our

People move for the usual reasons, like maybe they got a job somewhere else, or maybe they want to move somewhere with a lower cost of living,
or to be closer to family, etc., etc...

Obviously, but my point was that a setting in the user's configuration would then manipulate the output to the user of the message's timestamp. Moot point, but still important.


Brian Klauss <-> Dream Master
Caught in a Dream | caughtinadream.com a Synchronet BBS

... Got my tie caught in the fax... Suddenly I was in L.A.
--- MultiMail/Mac v0.52
þ Synchronet þ Caught in a Dream - caughtinadream.com

SYS64738 wrote to Dream Master <=-

think I'm trying to compare BBSes and our users to that of business
e-mail and messaging systems (Teams, Slack, Exchange, etc.) where each
is configured to the user's timezone and the BBS is configured to
whatever timezone it is sourced at. Even if we configure everything to UTC, user offsets could still be a "thing".

Excellent point concerning this already being done by business email servers.

But, there is a difference, which Rob (DM) is completely accurate about. Messages are tagged in UTC within corporate e-mail servers. I send a message, the offset is computed by my client, the server cares less.


Brian Klauss <-> Dream Master
Caught in a Dream | caughtinadream.com a Synchronet BBS

... DalekDOS v(overflow): (I)Obey (V)ision impaired (E)xterminate
--- MultiMail/Mac v0.52
þ Synchronet þ Caught in a Dream - caughtinadream.com

On 3/31/22 13:53, Martin Rayburn wrote:

Just a thought...

What if the time zone was derived from the location of the user's IP address?

You could do that... however most geoip services aren't the most
accurate, not to mention that many are paid services, or otherwise
commercial. Sometimes having a free tier, but unreliable overall.

Date/Time rules get particularly tricky as the rules often change. Such
as date for daylight savings and zones/locations that don't have
daylight savings. It's a bit of a mess in practice.

It would be nice if most messages were tagged with their originating
offset, then it's easy enough to convert to localized/client time. I've
been pushing for over a decade to have all services and communications
that I touch save/transfer in UTC, where a local origin is stored with locality for any date/time not in UTC (airline flights, etc).
--
Michael J. Ryan - tracker1@roughneckbbs.com
---
þ Synchronet þ Roughneck BBS - roughneckbbs.com

Re: Re: Message Timezones
By: Ragnarok to SYS64738 on Fri Apr 01 2022 08:28 pm

El 1/4/22 a las 09:52, SYS64738 escribi­:

MR> > interface or using dialup via a modem.
MR>
MR> hahah!
MR>
MR> how about if monkeys flew out my ass.

Using dialup is for those rare eccentric (re: crazy) people that are WAY TOO nostalgic. The days of dial-up sucked, but for a long time it was the only thing going.

dialup age was amazing...

it was active so it was fun that way. but the technology sucked.
---
þ Synchronet þ ::: BBSES.info - free BBS services :::

Re: Re: Message Timezones
By: Digital Man to Ragnarok on Fri Apr 01 2022 05:56 pm

Using dialup is for those rare eccentric (re: crazy) people that are WAY TOO nostalgic. The days of dial-up sucked, but for a long time it was the only thing going.

dialup age was amazing...

At the time, it was amazing. In hindsight or comparison to today's

broadband
Internet? Yeah, not so much... :-)

i can't believe i'm downloading 50mb in seconds on my phone.
and it could be half an hour or longer for 1mb on dialup.

and that's why we're all getting cancer or modified dna.

---
þ Synchronet þ ::: BBSES.info - free BBS services :::

Re: Message Timezones
By: Digital Man to Martin Rayburn on Thu Mar 31 2022 15:34:48

What if the time zone was derived from the location of the user's IP address?

It's a possibility.

This just so happens to coincide with a project I have been working on. I came across this HTML code that is supposed to display the visitors approximate location based on their IP address. However, whenever I use it, the result is always Roswell, NM (weird on many different levels...lol).

Does anyone have any idea where I may be going wrong or what I can do to fix it? Below is the HTML code:

<!DOCTYPE html>
<html>
<head>
<meta name="viewport" content="initial-scale=1.0, user-scalable=no"/>
<meta http-equiv="content-type" content="text/html; charset=UTF-8"/>
<title>Geo Locate By IP</title>
<script src="https://ajax.googleapis.com/ajax/libs/jquery/2.1.4/jquery.min.js"></script>
</head>
<body>
<div>Country: <span id="country"></span></div>
<div>State: <span id="state"></span></div>
<div>City: <span id="city"></span></div>
<div>Latitude: <span id="latitude"></span></div>
<div>Longitude: <span id="longitude"></span></div>
<div>IP: <span id="ip"></span></div>
<script>
$.getJSON('https://geolocation-db.com/json/')
.done (function(location) {
$('#country').html(location.country_name);
$('#state').html(location.state);
$('#city').html(location.city);
$('#latitude').html(location.latitude);
$('#longitude').html(location.longitude);
$('#ip').html(location.IPv4);
});
</script>
</body>
</html>

---
þ Synchronet þ ANSUN - ansun.synchro.net

Re: Message Timezones
By: douray to Digital Man on Wed Apr 06 2022 02:33:11

approximate location based on their IP address. However, whenever I use it, the result is always Roswell, NM (weird on many different

Does anyone have any idea where I may be going wrong or what I can do to fix it? Below is the HTML code:

The code you shared is fine, nothing to fix. They really just think that you're in Roswell. They think I'm in Smiths Falls, Ontario, which is a lot closer to Ottawa than it is to Toronto, where I really am.

These services are rarely very accurate. You can try some others, but you'll get similar results, or it'll be accurate for you but not somebody else.

---
echicken
electronic chicken bbs - bbs.electronicchicken.com
---
þ Synchronet þ electronic chicken bbs - bbs.electronicchicken.com

Re: Message Timezones
By: douray to Digital Man on Wed Apr 06 2022 02:33 am

Re: Message Timezones
By: Digital Man to Martin Rayburn on Thu Mar 31 2022 15:34:48

What if the time zone was derived from the location of the user's IP address?

It's a possibility.

This just so happens to coincide with a project I have been working on. I came across this HTML code that is supposed to display the visitors

can you please post on the bottom
---
þ Synchronet þ ::: BBSES.info - free BBS services :::

Re: Message Timezones
By: echicken to douray on Wed Apr 06 2022 12:42:46

The code you shared is fine, nothing to fix. They really just think that you're in Roswell. They think I'm in Smiths Falls, Ontario, which is a lot closer to Ottawa than it is to Toronto, where I really am.

These services are rarely very accurate. You can try some others, but you'll get similar results, or it'll be accurate for you but not somebody else.

Wow. I wonder why they even bother if it can't at least get you within a few miles of the actual location. I live nowhere near Roswell, NM, but that's where the geo-locate ip service thinks I am.

---
þ Synchronet þ ANSUN - ansun.synchro.net

Re: Message Timezones
By: MRO to douray on Wed Apr 06 2022 18:57:22

What if the time zone was derived from the location of the user's IP address?

It's a possibility.

This just so happens to coincide with a project I have been working on.
I came across this HTML code that is supposed to display the visitors

can you please post on the bottom

On the bottom of what? My comments were below (at the bottom) under the quotes.

---
þ Synchronet þ ANSUN - ansun.synchro.net

Re: Message Timezones
By: douray to MRO on Wed Apr 06 2022 10:13 pm

can you please post on the bottom

On the bottom of what? My comments were below (at the bottom) under the quotes.

oh sorry about that. my syncterm got borked because i resized it.
i run an old version
---
þ Synchronet þ ::: BBSES.info - free BBS services :::

Re: Message Timezones
By: douray to echicken on Wed Apr 06 2022 22:12:25

Wow. I wonder why they even bother if it can't at least get you within a few miles of the actual location. I live nowhere near Roswell, NM, but that's where the geo-locate ip service thinks I am.

For some purposes they're close enough often enough. You just can't trust them for anything important.

I had a situation at work early in the pandemic where we just needed to know what country users were connecting from, and it didn't matter if we got it wrong once in a while. I used ipstack.com for that, and they seemed decent.

---
echicken
electronic chicken bbs - bbs.electronicchicken.com
---
þ Synchronet þ electronic chicken bbs - bbs.electronicchicken.com

Re: Re: Message Timezones
By: Nightfox to Digital Man on Fri Apr 01 2022 07:45 pm

Re: Re: Message Timezones
By: Digital Man to Ragnarok on Fri Apr 01 2022 05:56 pm

dialup age was amazing...

At the time, it was amazing. In hindsight or comparison to today's broadband Internet? Yeah, not so much... :-)

True, not so much now, but I always thought it was pretty cool that the tech m to transfer computer data over them many years later.

Nightfox

Nto that much different than saving data to cassette tape or sending morse
code

---
þ Synchronet þ The Cave BBS - Since 1992 - cavebbs.homeip.net

On 4/6/22 00:33, douray wrote:

This just so happens to coincide with a project I have been working
on. I came across this HTML code that is supposed to display the
visitors approximate location based on their IP address. However,
whenever I use it, the result is always Roswell, NM (weird on many
different levels...lol).

Does anyone have any idea where I may be going wrong or what I can do
to fix it? Below is the HTML code:

GeoIP services generally suck... You might find better luck/accuracy
with other services.

https://help.openstreetmap.org/questions/16965/ip-geolocation

Maxmind has about the best results from my experience (about 5-6 years
ago at this point), I would take a look at a few services.

Since timezones are pretty big, likely best to use a preset based on
geoip, but allow the user to override... set a cookie in their browser,
and or attached to the user account and use that instead if set.
--
Michael J. Ryan - tracker1@roughneckbbs.com
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þ Synchronet þ Roughneck BBS - roughneckbbs.com

On 4/6/22 20:12, douray wrote:

Wow. I wonder why they even bother if it can't at least get you
within a few miles of the actual location. I live nowhere near
Roswell, NM, but that's where the geo-locate ip service thinks I am.

Mostly kickbacks/money... Paid services (fractions of a cent per lookup)
will often perform much better, they often have data sharing deals with various ISPs as well to get more accurate info.

If the user is mobile, and likely to authorize the use of their position (browsers ask), then you can use the Geolocation API combined with a
mapping system like OpenStreetMap, Google Maps or Azure Maps etc to then translate the location (lat/lon) into a physical location. Down side,
is at that point, the location info from the browser for a desktop
device may then be less accurate.

Why try? Usually for a better user experience, especially if you are
serving a site in multiple languages. Although there's a preferred
language interface in the browser as well (headers sent to server). It
can also be used for marketing, tracking, diagnostics, etc.

Used to work at a SaaS provider that quick verified likely validity from
low information (email, ip(optional)) and had an RTT target in the teens
of ms range. Lots of distributed special sauce on the backend.
--
Michael J. Ryan - tracker1@roughneckbbs.com
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þ Synchronet þ Roughneck BBS - roughneckbbs.com

Re: Re: Message Timezones
By: Moondog to Nightfox on Fri Apr 08 2022 10:34 am

True, not so much now, but I always thought it was pretty cool that
the tech m to transfer computer data over them many years later.

Nto that much different than saving data to cassette tape or sending morse code

Yep, that's true.

Nightfox

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