The AREforum is down again. Looks like it might be a maintenance issue. I’m only guessing. In the mean time check out these AREforum Alternatives.
I only hope whoever maintains the forum is installing options to make it more secure. Or backing up information. Or possibly took the bulletin board down to address some legal issues before continuing. Perhaps someone’s posting behavior is jeopardizing the forum, from a malicious hacker or a poster of exam questions. I can only guess. I have come to realize there are some not-so-obvious concerns to address when you’re participating socially online. For example, how do you mention copyrighted material?
Let’s not forget whoever is maintaining/operating the ARE forum is putting out their own money. vBulletin 3.8 currently costs $195. The last time the forum was hacked, it was upgraded to the latest version. It is not free software. Put into context, it’s at least the cost of an exam. That’s only a starting point for the total costs. That doesn’t address hosting fees, paying for any tech support, time spent (meaning labor) and I don’t know what else. Even the url www.areforum.org costs something.
So let’s be patient for the ARE forum bulletin board to come back online. For now, check out some AREforum Alternatives while waiting.
PPI