Instagram is testing feature that tells panicking users the service is broken again
- Reference: 1634038211
- News link: https://www.theregister.co.uk/2021/10/12/instagram_outage_warning_feature/
- Source link:
The [1]announcement follows a high-profile outage that affected the entirety of Facebook's internet estate for six hours at the beginning of last week.
With 3.5 billion user accounts across Facebook's anti-social network, Instagram, and messaging platform [2]WhatsApp , it's conceivable that such a prolonged absence might have caused some to scream, cry, tear their hair out, or reach for a paper bag to hyperventilate into.
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Then again, it's equally conceivable that the majority saw the spinning circle of doom, shrugged, then buckled in for another marathon of Squid Game , which is pretty good to be fair.
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It hasn't been a great week for the gazillion-dollar company as downtime for its flagship services [6]returned on Friday . Apparently Instagram [7]was being finnicky on Monday as well, but we wouldn't know because we were watching Squid Game have a life.
[8]Australian PM and Deputy threaten Facebook and Twitter with defamation liability for users' posts
[9]Facebook rendered spineless by buggy audit code that missed catastrophic network config error
[10]The planet survived six hours without Facebook. Let's make it longer next time
[11]Facebook, Instagram finally end days of uptime by returning to some downtime
[12]We have some sad news about Facebook. It has returned to the internet after six-hour mega outage
Just think of all those billions Marky Z couldn't cash. It's invigorating.
Instagram said: "We're testing a new feature that will notify you in your Activity Feed when we experience an outage or technical issue, and when it is resolved. We won't send a notification every single time there is an outage, but when we see that people are confused and looking for answers, we'll determine if something like this could help make things clearer.
"This test will run in the US and go on for the next few months. Just like any experiment, this may be something we roll out more widely, but we want to start small and learn. And if it makes sense to, we'll expand to more people."
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Which really does make it sound like people burst out into the streets screaming whenever they can't mindlessly scroll down through their favourite influencers' "content" for hours on end.
Again, we wouldn't know.
It is more likely an attempt to keep users informed, as many, for better or worse, rely on Facebook services to [14]help business tick over or stay in touch with friends and family.
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But if Zuckerberg insists on building his own internet, which will crash to the ground over a [16]BGP misconfiguration – well, you only have yourselves to blame. ®
Get our [17]Tech Resources
[1] https://archive.ph/gMysK
[2] https://www.theregister.com/2014/10/07/facebook_finalizes_whatsapp_gobble/
[3] https://pubads.g.doubleclick.net/gampad/jump?co=1&iu=/6978/reg_offbeat/bootnotes&sz=300x50%7C300x100%7C300x250%7C300x251%7C300x252%7C300x600%7C300x601&tile=2&c=2YWWxNUjoBJr5kK5vAX5@RQAAAEs&t=ct%3Dns%26unitnum%3D2%26raptor%3Dcondor%26pos%3Dtop%26test%3D0
[4] https://pubads.g.doubleclick.net/gampad/jump?co=1&iu=/6978/reg_offbeat/bootnotes&sz=300x50%7C300x100%7C300x250%7C300x251%7C300x252%7C300x600%7C300x601&tile=4&c=44YWWxNUjoBJr5kK5vAX5@RQAAAEs&t=ct%3Dns%26unitnum%3D4%26raptor%3Dfalcon%26pos%3Dmid%26test%3D0
[5] https://pubads.g.doubleclick.net/gampad/jump?co=1&iu=/6978/reg_offbeat/bootnotes&sz=300x50%7C300x100%7C300x250%7C300x251%7C300x252%7C300x600%7C300x601&tile=3&c=33YWWxNUjoBJr5kK5vAX5@RQAAAEs&t=ct%3Dns%26unitnum%3D3%26raptor%3Deagle%26pos%3Dmid%26test%3D0
[6] https://www.theregister.com/2021/10/08/facebook_instagram_outage/
[7] https://www.reuters.com/technology/instagram-testing-feature-notify-users-outage-or-issue-inside-app-2021-10-11/
[8] https://www.theregister.com/2021/10/12/australia_social_media_defamation_push/
[9] https://www.theregister.com/2021/10/06/facebook_outage_explained_in_detail/
[10] https://www.theregister.com/2021/10/11/facebook_opinion_column/
[11] https://www.theregister.com/2021/10/08/facebook_instagram_outage/
[12] https://www.theregister.com/2021/10/04/facebook_outage_fixed/
[13] https://pubads.g.doubleclick.net/gampad/jump?co=1&iu=/6978/reg_offbeat/bootnotes&sz=300x50%7C300x100%7C300x250%7C300x251%7C300x252%7C300x600%7C300x601&tile=4&c=44YWWxNUjoBJr5kK5vAX5@RQAAAEs&t=ct%3Dns%26unitnum%3D4%26raptor%3Dfalcon%26pos%3Dmid%26test%3D0
[14] https://www.bbc.co.uk/newsround/49124484
[15] https://pubads.g.doubleclick.net/gampad/jump?co=1&iu=/6978/reg_offbeat/bootnotes&sz=300x50%7C300x100%7C300x250%7C300x251%7C300x252%7C300x600%7C300x601&tile=3&c=33YWWxNUjoBJr5kK5vAX5@RQAAAEs&t=ct%3Dns%26unitnum%3D3%26raptor%3Deagle%26pos%3Dmid%26test%3D0
[16] https://www.theregister.com/2021/10/06/facebook_outage_explained_in_detail/
[17] https://whitepapers.theregister.com/
Re: What is wrong with a 404?
Or the IIRR procedure (Is It Really Raining) it consists of ooening a door or window and sticking a body part outside, if it gets wet rain is a likely cause. The IT equivalent being the turning on or signing into the relavent service, got nothing? The service is probably out, assuming your equipment is functioning.
Re: What is wrong with a 404?
In our case it resulted in lots of people wandering upto my desk and asking if the IT overlords were blocking Whatsapp
Re: What is wrong with a 404?
A 404? You were lucky! In my day we had to wait for a letter to be delivered with the results of each DNS query.
Re: What is wrong with a 404?
DNS queries? You're lucky. In my day one had to take the bus to the local library and beg to be allowed to look up the information on the microfiche machine.
Re: What is wrong with a 404?
Microfiche? You're lucky. In my day we had to join an exodus and wait for a prophet to descend from the mountain with a response carved in to stone tablets.
Re: What is wrong with a 404?
In my day we had to wait for the tectonic plates to shift, to form mountains, before a prophet could descend from one.
Re: What is wrong with a 404?
In my day we got nothing and liked it!
Re: What is wrong with a 404?
In my day, you had to download your /etc/hosts file over ftp ...
Re: What is wrong with a 404?
>DNS queries? You're lucky.
We did actually used to email copies of /etc/hosts to each other.
Back in the 90s (which we all know were only 15 years ago)
Re: In my day we had to wait for a letter to be delivered
ISTR it was 2 1/2d if you didn't lick the envelope.
In those days we were so trusting: No MITM altering the contents of your letters.
Re: What is wrong with a 404?
Despite the entertaining "in my day" responses, specifically for 404 (Resource Not Found) the service must be available in the first place.
Re: Despite the entertaining "in my day" responses
You're no fun.
Re: What is wrong with a 404?
The most recent outage was due to the BGP routes getting withdrawn. There wasn't a way for the server to respond with a 404 ( or 500 ).
Re: What is wrong with a 404?
If Instagram is your job, it's important. You don't just sit in front of a workless laptop screen when you can't connect to your work VPN. At least, if your boss asked if that's what you'd do, you'd lie and say "no". If you're your own boss, it's a bit harder to not deal with that sort of thing.
Re: What is wrong with a 404?
"If Instagram is your job..."
There's your problem right there.
Seems to me that there's an obvious flaw in this plan
If the service is really buggered, how will it be able to notify the users?
Re: Seems to me that there's an obvious flaw in this plan
Twitter is pretty good for notifications! Not sure Z will go for that though.
Re: Seems to me that there's an obvious flaw in this plan
If the notification originates locally on the client device (which will know if there is no connectivity) then it'll work.
Re: Seems to me that there's an obvious flaw in this plan
Presumably the app will check a third party service to check for outages.
Re: Presumably the app will check a third party service to check for outages.
That would no doubt be Twitter.
Re: Seems to me that there's an obvious flaw in this plan
I was thinking the same, if the local device can’t connnect doesn’t it just fail to load (no idea never use it).
All you need is a mobile tower to drop and people will start a mass panic as “the internet is down”
I call BS...
They just want to increase profits by saving on infrastructure, and this is their way to manage the load. The algorithmics of who should be shown the notification is pretty straightforward.
Halloween this month
I'll make a new gravestone for the front yard with their logo and "Facebook died, 404" on it.
Oh FFS
We already know when the parrot is dead. It's obvious, innit?
Re: Oh FFS
It's not dead, it's just pining for the fjords.
I don't have, nor have I ever had, an account with Instagram or any of Zuck's evil empire but I always know when they are broken and usually the cause too.
How? I have this awesome service for such things called... The Register!
What is wrong with a 404?
Perfectly good in my day.
I dunno, the youth of today...