Downloads was a feature of the web site from 2006-2009. It allowed members of the CES forum to obtain personal copies of various studio media by downloading files directly from the web site.
History
In May 2006, the studio began investigating a way for users to download files from the web site, so it could distribute Ni-Ki-Oh! episodes and other media. At the time, the forum was using Simple Machine Forum software. On May 31, 2006, test Downloads areas were built multiple times using the SimpleDownload modification by Nesian Styles and an updated port by Herman Huinink (aka The Burglar!) of the same modification, called just "Download." Ultimately, neither solution was satisfactory, so the studio began searching for another forum software that would have a satisfactory download system.
By June 6, 2006, the forum migrated from Simple Machines Forum software to vBulletin. Test Downloads areas were built using the ecDownloads add-on by Ron1n, as well as Links and Downloads Manager by Andrew Dearing. Ultimately, the studio chose Links and Downloads Manager because it was more up-to-date (ecDownloads successor DownloadsII was not released until a month later) and integrated better with the forum ecosystem. At this time, the forum category Downloads (#22) was created.
At launch, Downloads required users to spend Points, a forum currency, in order to download its content. This helped to throttle the system's bandwidth usage and to discourage pirates and bots.
Still, by July 11, 2006, the offering of relatively large files, such as complete Ni-Ki-Oh! episodes, for download had made clear various technical deficiencies in the recently updated forum. While the software could be patched easily, server inadequacies still prevented the service from running smoothly.
On August 3, 2006, content was transitioned to use BitTorrent for data transfer, enabling more consistent downloads of large files. However, the torrent server used a separate administrator interface and data management system from the rest of the web site.
On or about November 10, 2006, the web site went down due to unannounced server maintenance by the hosting company, one of several service outages around that time period. The web site came back online on November 24, but the existing torrent files no longer worked due to the host's changes to the server configuration. By December 1, new torrent files were issued, restoring access to existing downloadable content.
Due to the service outages, the studio opted to change hosting companies, but their old host Global Internet Solutions refused to transfer the domain crackedeggstudios.com to the new host Host Monster. As a result, on December 29, 2006, the web site lost its domain and was forced to use an alternative address for a time. As a result, the download system was offline, since the torrent server could not be located by clients.
On January 31, 2007, the studio announced that it was developing its own vBulletin add-on called "CES Download Forums," which was intended to make several improvements over Links and Downloads Manager and bundle a torrent tracker managed through the vBulletin ecosystem. The studio had been investigating the add-on vBulletin Torrent Tracker by toolmanwill, but ultimately opted to develop its own solution CES Tracker.
The web site began using its crackedeggstudios.net address on February 16, 2007, allowing work towards setting up the new torrent server to begin. That month, a security vulnerability was discovered in the vBulletin add-on vBPlaza, which the web site had used for its Store and Points currency, but which had not received any new updates in several months. The forum disabled vBPlaza, so in order for Downloads to continue requiring Points moving forward, a new method of distributing Points was made, which required Points to be manually updated by administrators.
On March 7, 2007, the web site launched CES Tracker. By March 10, all previous downloads were now available again and using the updated tracker.
On April 15, 2008, the Downloads section was closed for upgrades. On April 27, the web site launched its proprietary EggPlayer, allowing it to stream content to visitors without having to grant them personal copies. Thus, it became the preferred distribution method. On top of that, it was often difficult for users to download anything, because administrators did not maintain a regular schedule of distributing the required Points. In a forum post dated November 13, 2008, Ted Phillips suggested that Downloads may be "eliminated" in favor of EggPlayer.
Between the launches of EggPlayer and VaultWiki in June 2008, web site staff lost track of the status of the Downloads, and it never reopened. Thus, April 15, 2008, was the last day that the section and its files were accessible.
On or about May 11, 2009, the web site's Downloads section was removed and development of related vBulletin add-ons like CES Download Forums and CES Tracker was cancelled.
By June 6, 2006, the forum migrated from Simple Machines Forum software to vBulletin. Test Downloads areas were built using the ecDownloads add-on by Ron1n, as well as Links and Downloads Manager by Andrew Dearing. Ultimately, the studio chose Links and Downloads Manager because it was more up-to-date (ecDownloads successor DownloadsII was not released until a month later) and integrated better with the forum ecosystem. At this time, the forum category Downloads (#22) was created.
At launch, Downloads required users to spend Points, a forum currency, in order to download its content. This helped to throttle the system's bandwidth usage and to discourage pirates and bots.
Still, by July 11, 2006, the offering of relatively large files, such as complete Ni-Ki-Oh! episodes, for download had made clear various technical deficiencies in the recently updated forum. While the software could be patched easily, server inadequacies still prevented the service from running smoothly.
On August 3, 2006, content was transitioned to use BitTorrent for data transfer, enabling more consistent downloads of large files. However, the torrent server used a separate administrator interface and data management system from the rest of the web site.
On or about November 10, 2006, the web site went down due to unannounced server maintenance by the hosting company, one of several service outages around that time period. The web site came back online on November 24, but the existing torrent files no longer worked due to the host's changes to the server configuration. By December 1, new torrent files were issued, restoring access to existing downloadable content.
Due to the service outages, the studio opted to change hosting companies, but their old host Global Internet Solutions refused to transfer the domain crackedeggstudios.com to the new host Host Monster. As a result, on December 29, 2006, the web site lost its domain and was forced to use an alternative address for a time. As a result, the download system was offline, since the torrent server could not be located by clients.
On January 31, 2007, the studio announced that it was developing its own vBulletin add-on called "CES Download Forums," which was intended to make several improvements over Links and Downloads Manager and bundle a torrent tracker managed through the vBulletin ecosystem. The studio had been investigating the add-on vBulletin Torrent Tracker by toolmanwill, but ultimately opted to develop its own solution CES Tracker.
The web site began using its crackedeggstudios.net address on February 16, 2007, allowing work towards setting up the new torrent server to begin. That month, a security vulnerability was discovered in the vBulletin add-on vBPlaza, which the web site had used for its Store and Points currency, but which had not received any new updates in several months. The forum disabled vBPlaza, so in order for Downloads to continue requiring Points moving forward, a new method of distributing Points was made, which required Points to be manually updated by administrators.
On March 7, 2007, the web site launched CES Tracker. By March 10, all previous downloads were now available again and using the updated tracker.
On April 15, 2008, the Downloads section was closed for upgrades. On April 27, the web site launched its proprietary EggPlayer, allowing it to stream content to visitors without having to grant them personal copies. Thus, it became the preferred distribution method. On top of that, it was often difficult for users to download anything, because administrators did not maintain a regular schedule of distributing the required Points. In a forum post dated November 13, 2008, Ted Phillips suggested that Downloads may be "eliminated" in favor of EggPlayer.
Between the launches of EggPlayer and VaultWiki in June 2008, web site staff lost track of the status of the Downloads, and it never reopened. Thus, April 15, 2008, was the last day that the section and its files were accessible.
On or about May 11, 2009, the web site's Downloads section was removed and development of related vBulletin add-ons like CES Download Forums and CES Tracker was cancelled.
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