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Their set top boxes were crashing because they couldn't handle an error code properly, any other position is untenable. These same set top boxes should have al
by lotyrin 11y ago
Their set top boxes were crashing because they couldn't handle an error code properly, any other position is untenable.
These same set top boxes should have also crashed in the case that a connection timed out or the service was temporarily unreachable.
You don't make a call to a service over the internet (whether you're paying for that service or not, whether it's your own service or not) without handling the case where it didn't succeed. There is no such thing as 100% uptime for a service (or a link between you and a service) and not defending against failure here is just tempting the fate that they ultimately suffered. I do not sympathise with them in the least.
And that's disregarding the error of having SLA expectations for a service where you don't have an SLA because you are not a customer.
- stanmancan 11y agoI never disagreed with that. I agree that not only was their implementation of the API unwise, but it was done incorrectly. However, with that being said and done, the author had a choice to either help find a temporary solution, or leave them high and dry. He opted for the later, and that's the part I disagree with. It wasn't his fault, but he had a chance to make a significant impact for fellow developers (who probably did not implement the API), and more importantly a ton of unsuspecting people at home, and chose not to.
- dpark 11y agoI don't know why he didn't offer to host it for the two-week period in exchange for reimbursement for the cost of running the service, or cost+20% if he wasn't feeling charitable. That seems like the obvious mutually-beneficial solution. And if they turned him down, then it's purely on them at that point.
- donatj 11y agoThis. This is what I would have done. I get a lot of emails with special requests along these lines. I used to do the simple ones for free and just ignore the larger ones, but my dear friend told me just tell them your hourly rate. It turns away the non serious and keeps the ones that really need it, and either way benefits you.
- rdancer 11y agoI speculate that after a week-end of nightmare, he was just happy to have implemented a solution that offloaded those trillions of requests onto GitHub, has put it behind him, and was not quite eager to make it his problem again.