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1. Faster image gallery uploads

2. Grid-style gallery organizer

3. Property Information Package Tracker module improvements

4. Removal of Scribd iPaper

Faster image gallery uploads

We received feedback from auctioneers who explained that the image gallery uploads were taking too long. The process was originally set up as follows:

• Upload image 1
• Create thumbnails for image 1
• Store image 1 and its thumbnails
• Upload image 2
• Create thumbnails for image 2
• Store image 2 and its thumbnails
• etc.

Compared with the old AuctionServices.com auction calendar (which only created one thumbnail for each image), this process of resizing and creating multiple thumbnails for each image was more time consuming, especially for large galleries. The workaround was previously to let the upload continue in one browser window (or tab) and continue working in another. While this workaround does still apply, we changed the process to expedite image uploads as follows

• Upload image 1
• Upload image 2 AND start creating the image 1 thumbnails in the background
• Upload image 3 AND continue creating image thumbnails for images 1 and 2
• etc.

This should provide a much quicker upload process for the auctioneer as all images are now thumbnailed and resized in the background.

Grid-style gallery organizer

The existing ability to re-arrange (or re-order) image galleries via drag-and-drop actions on the edit screen still exists; however, there is now an additional choice for “Order Images Only”. This new choice shows the entire image gallery in a thumbnail grid instead of a vertically stacked list. It does not allow image deletion or caption editing; but based on feedback from auctioneers, this style of re-arranging the order of images in galleries will allow for much faster re-sorting of images. This especially applies for batches of images that are uploaded as additions to existing galleries.

Property Information Package Tracker module improvements

The Property Information Package tracking system used by our auctioneers also received some great feedback! In addition to its existing funcationality, it  now includes additional capabilities. Using the new features, you can elect to turn on an approval system for document viewing. This will allow auctioneers to pre-approve who is able to view the documents prior to allowing them access to the documents.

Removal of Scribd iPaper

Due to a policy enforcement change at Scribd, we are discontinuing the inclusion of Scribd’s digital paper service with Ignite.

1. Uploaded documents will continue to be available to your sites’ visitors in the original format they were uploaded in. For example, if you upload a Microsoft Word document, the original Word document will be downloaded.
2. We do encourage all customers to use platform- and software-neutral file formats, such as PDF, for document uploads.
3. We understand that some auctioneers liked the digital paper preview, so we are actively evaluating alternative digital paper solutions as replacements.

More information will be forthcoming as we research various other options as a replacement

Best regards,

– The AuctionServices.com Team

P.S. As a token of our appreciation for taking the time to review this update, please accept our offer of 50% off of your next NAL Newsletter Ad. Click here to place your order and use the following coupon code at checkout: HALFNAL (offer expires 11/3/2009. Limit of ten discounted ads total and one discounted ad per customer). Please bookmark this site to stay current on Ignite updates and other information.

UPDATE: 9:10PM EDT Digital paper service is temporarily disabled until the problem with Scribd can be resolved. Visitors to auctions will still be able to download the original document to access the information.

UPDATE: 11:59PM EDT Due to a policy enforcement change at Scribd, we are discontinuing the inclusion of Scribd’s digital paper service with Ignite. In light of this, we do encourage all customers to use platform- and software-neutral file formats, such as PDF, for document uploads. More information regarding the discontinuation of the Scribd iPaper service in Ignite will be published in a separate post once our team has an opportunity to review the situation in more detail.

UPDATE: 10:56 AM EDT – The Zimbra service is now responding to requests. We are continuing to work on the Zimbra system to restore full functionality and capacity.

UPDATE: 12:30PM EDT – Service is now restored, but there is currently a backlog of email in the Zimbra queue waiting to be delivered. We are flushing the delivery queues as quickly as possible.

UPDATE: 5:00PM EDT – We are continuing to flush the email delivery queue on the Zimbra servers. Due to the exponential rate at which the email deliveries speed up once the queue size becomes more and more manageable, we do not have an estimate at this time as to when all of the emails currently in the queue will be delivered; however, we expect the bulk of the queue to catch up during off-peak hours.

10/21/2009

UPDATE: 9:00AM EDT – As of this morning, the backlog of email in the Zimbra queue was successfully scanned for viruses and delivered to the appropriate inboxes. Thank you for your patience while we worked to resolve this issue. We will continue to monitor the queue throughout the day to ensure it continues to function efficiently.

For select sites with limited horizontal width, there may be slight anomalies in the display on select browsers. Please use the Ignite support ticket system (Ignite login required) to report these incidents on your site as needed.

Grid display on an AuctionServices.com Auction Detail Page

This change was brought about by feedback from auctioneers, so please keep the feedback coming (whether it be positive or negative) and know that we are listening!

As a footnote from the time we started IBEAM system which was many many years ago our pricing has always been way below every other competitive system out there. This pricing change is not an increase in profit for us but a reinvestment to make the system even better for you!

Over the years lists, sends, requirements and support for an effective email management systems has grown tremendously. Better detailed reporting, faster sends, scheduling, templates, auto replies, bandwidth, better more powerful servers etc. etc. etc. IBEAM has been a real value and I promise it will continue to be.

Please bear with us as we work out some details on our end a little more. Nothing will change until you know well in advance and we hear your valuable feedback so please keep it coming. Thank you!

Two areas of concern are marked with red arrows:

Click here to view the IBEAM Pricing Comparison Graph

UPDATE: As of approximately 12:52PM EDT, the Scribd API service is restored.

The new software was so popular, that after a few months we started to notice some issues. Customers were reporting slow sending and delays. After a thorough investigation, we determined the source of the problem. The number of lists and subscribers in the system, coupled with the volume of emails being sent was overwhelming the email queue at peak times. This acted like a logjam.

As we looked further, we found that a third of iBEAM users have small lists under 500 total subscribers. Another third have lists totaling fewer than 10,000 subscribers. The top third are the heaviest users with total subscribers over 10,000 and some over 100,000.

In order to provide the best service for users at all levels, we decided to move users with larger lists to dedicated servers. Because server space and bandwidth come at a premium, I have made the tough decision to create tiered pricing for iBEAM based on usage. Click here to review the new pricing tiers.  We researched the market and feel this new pricing is comparable to, and in some cases better than pricing offered by competitors. We urge you to research this for yourself.

New pricing will go into effect November 1, 2009, based on total subscribers in your list(s) at that time. To determine the package level for your IBEAM account, simply log in at http://ibeam.auctionservices.com/ and look at the “Total active subscribers” number under the Quick Stats section of your main administration dashboard. If you have questions or concerns, please give us a call (540) 206-3311.

Best regards,

Richard Romanus
President & CEO,
AuctionServices.com, Inc.

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