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View Full Version : Where did the-underdogs.org go?


heyricochet
03-25-2006, 01:50 AM
It gone! Replaced by some crappy generic site takerupper thingy.
InsaneDavid
03-25-2006, 01:55 AM
Sure that's just not one of their huge glitchy banner ads?
VACRMH
03-25-2006, 02:13 AM
Clicky (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Home_of_the_Underdogs)

"As of March 21, 2006, the Home of the Underdogs website is broken due to the domain name registration having expired. Sarinee Achavanuntakul, during a rare public appearance on the site's IRC channel, related that this was due to credit card difficulties and that the domain would be working again soon."
scorch56
03-25-2006, 09:34 AM
Quick somebody grab that domain!

Seriously though.. as I recall this is the second time the domain expired.

The first time.. someone did just that (about 4 years ago) and she DID have to take up a new domain spelled like it has been for the last few.
Mr.FoodMonster
03-25-2006, 10:12 AM
Man, they need to stay on top of that, that is one awesome site.
Jorpho
03-25-2006, 11:44 PM
Verily, Wikipedia tells all. Check the Discussion page there for info on changing your Hosts file to avoid the IP address woes.
Jorpho
03-27-2006, 07:30 PM
Murmurs are now arising that, due to some idiocy on part of the domain name registrar, the site shall resurface at http://www.the-underdogs.info .
InsaneDavid
03-27-2006, 07:43 PM
Murmurs are now arising that, due to some idiocy on part of the domain name registrar, the site shall resurface at http://www.the-underdogs.info .

Those .info URL's usually cost more than .com .net .org etc. If they had problems keeping their other URL's active I can only imagine what's to come.
Candycab
03-29-2006, 06:10 AM
Sadly it looks like http://www.classic-trash.com/ is gone aswell.

Both were great sites.

Im sure you could find the pages cached here

http://www.archive.org/web/web.php
mezrabad
03-29-2006, 09:51 AM
Y'know, I always fear the death of sites like classic-trash, underdogs and their brethren, mostly because there's a tension between writing about games, actually playing the games and running a whole site involving doing both. Since I've never done such a thing, (well, I'm working on it, see www.chronogamer.com) I can't imagine why, if they can't find someone to take the site over, they can't just leave the site stagnant. For instance, videogames.org was sold, but the previous owner's work for the domain was left intact (indeed, his contribution still, and will probably always, outshines the current owner's) and the information found there is still useful.

It's a true flaw in the whole web-medium. Forgive my being redundant, (I think I've brought this up before) but you know how some sites like to feature old commercials for videogames and systems? 20 years from now, there might be people like that interested in showing what the websites for old games used to look like. Try finding the official website for a game released in 1996, only 10 years ago. You might find the official site, but it doesn't look like what it did in 1996. Something cool about looking at old ads is how dated they are. The web is constantly updated and that cheesiness is lost, forever, like tears in the rain . . .

Anyway, I hope the underdogs sorts their stuff out, that site is a true gem.
Jorpho
03-29-2006, 09:59 AM
It's a true flaw in the whole web-medium. Forgive my being redundant, (I think I've brought this up before) but you know how some sites like to feature old commercials for videogames and systems? 20 years from now, there might be people like that interested in showing what the websites for old games used to look like. Try finding the official website for a game released in 1996, only 10 years ago. You might find the official site, but it doesn't look like what it did in 1996. Something cool about looking at old ads is how dated they are. The web is constantly updated and that cheesiness is lost, forever, like tears in the rain . . .

Yes, that's why we have http://www.archive.org .
mezrabad
03-29-2006, 10:18 AM
It's a true flaw in the whole web-medium. Forgive my being redundant, (I think I've brought this up before) but you know how some sites like to feature old commercials for videogames and systems? 20 years from now, there might be people like that interested in showing what the websites for old games used to look like. Try finding the official website for a game released in 1996, only 10 years ago. You might find the official site, but it doesn't look like what it did in 1996. Something cool about looking at old ads is how dated they are. The web is constantly updated and that cheesiness is lost, forever, like tears in the rain . . .

Yes, that's why we have http://www.archive.org .

BUT WHO ARCHIVES THE ARCHIVERS!!! @_@

(deep breath)

Okay, you're right, someone's doing it. I just have to trust them. Although, I just looked for the original Baldur's Gate site and it's not there!!! The original official website (which kinda would look like crap today) for the RPG that revived the whole PC RPG scene is gone! Like, um, a name written in the sand! Maybe I've got the url wrong . . .

Actually, I think sometimes I just enjoy getting upset over lost opportunities for nostalgia. If I can't be nostalgic I can be nostalgic over what it used to be like to be nostalgic.

EDIT: okay, I found it at www.bioware.com in 1997. Although it doesn't look like I remember it. I like the fact that accessing the archive simulates an 14.4kbps modem speeds. It adds a really authentic touch. heheh. (It's probably slow because something somewhere is digging out these files and unpacking them from super compressed files. I'm not complaining, though.)
calthaer
03-29-2006, 12:22 PM
Honestly, if you're at all attentive, it's fairly difficult to lose a domain name. They should renew this thing every year so that it's renewed for the next 5-10 years, and should make that a top priority for their funding.
Jorpho
03-29-2006, 07:51 PM
Here's an edited version of the story on the site's forum:

<Underdogs> sigh.
<Underdogs> have trouble with Register.com :(((
<Underdogs> they told me they just SUSPENDED the domain but now some guy just seemed to get it :/
<Underdogs> 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 :/
<Underdogs> it shows up in their records.
<Underdogs> that's ONE MORE year from now :(
MichaeltheGreat
03-31-2006, 03:45 PM
the temporary www.the-underdogs.info doesn't work for me but this does:

http://209.120.136.195/

Just thought that some of you would still like access to the site... :)
Jorpho
03-31-2006, 06:57 PM
...Except that alone won't work if you actually want to download anything, due to the nature of the referrer URLs.

Once again, http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Home_of_the_Underdogs has it all.
Candycab
03-31-2006, 10:37 PM
Very nice !

Thanks guys :)
Jorpho
09-17-2008, 12:46 PM
www.the-underdogs.info has been down for the past week. I wonder if it's really gone for good this time?
Haoie
09-18-2008, 02:07 AM
Glad I'm not the only person who noticed!!

I sincere hope it'll return.
NayusDante
09-25-2008, 09:51 PM
The site is back up, and it's kinda fast too! Thad does us no good, however, as all downloads and screenshots/boxshots appear to be broken. Really, it says "Oops, this download appears to be broken."
Jorpho
09-26-2008, 01:51 AM
It is pretty fast, isn't it? Probably because traffic is so low at the moment.
Haoie
09-26-2008, 02:23 AM
Man, I'm glad it is.

It didn't provoke much of an interest in the DP community though, surprisingly, with only like, 2 responses besides mine.
Jorpho
09-26-2008, 02:58 AM
Well, there's no denying that it's been Mostly Dead for years now.
InsaneDavid
09-26-2008, 04:45 AM
The site is back up, and it's kinda fast too! Thad does us no good, however, as all downloads and screenshots/boxshots appear to be broken. Really, it says "Oops, this download appears to be broken."

But the 10 zillion ads and popups all seem to be working fine.
Jorpho
02-08-2009, 01:03 AM
Looks like this might finally be it.
Cryomancer
02-08-2009, 02:06 AM
But the 10 zillion ads and popups all seem to be working fine.

This is why I stopped going there, looking at this thread, several domains ago.
NE146
02-08-2009, 02:08 AM
Man, I'm glad it is.

It didn't provoke much of an interest in the DP community though, surprisingly, with only like, 2 responses besides mine.

Well, if you're looking for old PC games, I dunno but going through ads and clicking around all over the place always struck me as a big pain in the butt. I'd much rather either get them through irc in #oldgames or on usenet whenever they got posted with zero hassle.
A Black Falcon
02-08-2009, 03:45 AM
Looks like this might finally be it.

Gah! Is it really gone? Sure the site hadn't been updated in forever, but it was still a pretty good classic PC gaming forum... :(
Haoie
02-08-2009, 04:33 AM
Uh, they're gone again?
FrakAttack
02-09-2009, 02:19 AM
Aww, poop.

http://i102.photobucket.com/albums/m112/FrakAttack/upoop.jpg
NayusDante
02-10-2009, 08:29 AM
Whoa, you actually got to a download page? I'm used to just seeing "Oops, we can't find this file" on the game description pages. I'm guessing that you had that saved, since I can't even load the site anymore.
FrakAttack
02-10-2009, 11:48 AM
I'm guessing that you had that saved, since I can't even load the site anymore.

Yup. It was a moment of "captcha-nicity."
Haoie
02-11-2009, 01:01 AM
Not sure if anyone cares, but I got most of the gamebooks they had on offer downloaded.

I'll upload if anyone wants them.
NayusDante
02-11-2009, 07:38 AM
Not sure if anyone cares, but I got most of the gamebooks they had on offer downloaded.

I'll upload if anyone wants them.

I don't believe that I ever saw those on the site. Could you list a few examples?
Jorpho
02-11-2009, 10:26 AM
Goodness, I'd quite forgotten about those. There's probably a torrent for them out there somewhere, but I've never really looked.

Those would be the gamebooks in the style of those at http://www.gamebooks.org/ - I distinctly remember Be an Interplanetary Spy (http://www.gamebooks.org/show_series.php?id=6) was there.
Jorpho
03-02-2009, 09:01 PM
She's dead, Jim.
http://www.fringer.org/?p=416

Gamebooks here:
http://groups.google.com/group/hotu-revival/web/location-of-all-hotu-related-files-content
NayusDante
03-02-2009, 09:27 PM
We can rebuild her... we have the technology...
A Black Falcon
03-03-2009, 09:44 PM
Indeed... really, that's great news. The site isn't gone forever, it just died because the ISP went bankrupt, and people are going to make a new HOTU based around the database of the old one? That's awesome...

Now if only something could be done to bring back that forum... :(
NayusDante
03-03-2009, 09:53 PM
Indeed... really, that's great news. The site isn't gone forever, it just died because the ISP went bankrupt, and people are going to make a new HOTU based around the database of the old one? That's awesome...

Now if only something could be done to bring back that forum... :(

The way I remember it, that forum was THE place to look for troubleshooting old games. That's definitely something I'll miss.

Personally, I'd really like to see the site expand into more of a community. She admits that she really let the site go, since it was mostly her project. If the site became something of a moderated "Wikipedia of abandonware," then it could always grow.

Here's to seeing something along the lines of "underdogs2.org" in the next few months!
Jorpho
03-03-2009, 10:00 PM
The way I remember it, that forum was THE place to look for troubleshooting old games. That's definitely something I'll miss.Heh. Too bad a lot of the problems resulted from the downloads being rips of questionable functionality.

Vogons.zetafleet.com is the best place I know of for that kind of thing these days, though of course it just isn't the same.


Now if only something could be done to bring back that forum... :(I had almost as many posts there as I do here. But that place had its time. It was starting to get downright creepy.
Kitsune Sniper
03-03-2009, 11:58 PM
Dude, the manuals are online, sorta?

*leeches*

Someone should send the former owner some DVD-Rs so the content can be acquired by other people. Hint Hint.
Jorpho
03-04-2009, 12:59 AM
Someone should send the former owner some DVD-Rs so the content can be acquired by other people. Hint Hint.Is there something in particular you're looking for? As has been previously stated, a lot of it is available in much better form elsewhere.
Ed Oscuro
03-04-2009, 04:39 PM
We can rebuild her... we have the technology...
my heart is pounding my blood is boiling my brain I R C / torrentz

HOTU served its purpose once upon a time, but now there's really no more use for it. For generalized game information and box shots, MobyGames has had it beaten for years. For downloads, well, there's no reason to expect somebody can plop down "omg free warez" at a named URL and not catch a ton of trouble for it.
Kitsune Sniper
03-04-2009, 04:46 PM
Is there something in particular you're looking for? As has been previously stated, a lot of it is available in much better form elsewhere.

Not really. :p

The key being "a lot", not all. Some of the files hosted there can't be found anywhere else.
Jorpho
03-29-2009, 02:43 AM
Huh.
http://www.hotud.org/
http://www.metafilter.com/80333/Lord-of-the-Underdogs#2502925
Kitsune Sniper
03-29-2009, 03:56 AM
Yeah, it's been back for several days now. The downloads are still mostly broken, but they're getting there!

But did people really want the old site back to how it was? Shit, it needed a facelift AND it needed a way to receive more updates. Why the hell are they complaining?
NayusDante
03-29-2009, 07:45 AM
Well, it's still purple, and it loads quicker. I'm not complaining.
Jorpho
08-01-2009, 02:07 PM
If you've not been following recent events, someone recently did this extremely lengthy interview with Ms. Underdogs, detailing the past, present, and future in the most detail you are ever likely to see:
http://www.reviewwithextremeprejudice.com/?page_id=49
Enigmus
08-02-2009, 04:21 PM
We can rebuild her... we have the technology...

...but let's hope it doesn't cost $6,000,000. :D