Online File Will Not Download

joshuaaaaaa · 12-12-2006, 06:45 PM

Okay, a bunch of us over in the MBBA are having a problem downloading new game files. We click the "Load Online League File." The download bar rapidly gets to 60% and then hangs. After 2-3 minutes, and error pops up saying "Error: Could not download file." This gets tried repeatedly (up to 5 times) and the error occurs every time. Here's the real head-scratching part. This doesn't happen for every owner. For some, the bar hangs at 60% and then 10-20 minutes later, the download completes. For others, there is no hanging.

But wait...there's more. For several owners, myself included, the downloads used to work fine. Its only over the last month or two where they haven't worked. And this happens to people whether 2006 is the only program running or whether there are several programs running. It happens whether the user stays on the 2006 window throughout the process or whether they switch windows. There is no rhyme or reason to this and its very frustrating.

Any help on resolving this issue would be appreciated.

And the machine specs are kind of irrelevant because this is happening across the league. However in my specific instance, I have a Pentium 4, 3.2GHz, 512 MB or RAM running XP Version 2002, SP2.

RchW · 12-12-2006, 10:17 PM

Does the league file you are downloading match the league you have open exactly?

Have you changed the zip file folder arrangement or root folder name?

Just some thoughts.

joshuaaaaaa · 12-12-2006, 10:21 PM

I believe the game says "MBBA" and the file says "mbba", so there's a case difference. However that wouldn't explain why it works for some, not all.

No changes to the other data. Again, that wouldn't explain why it works for some but not all.

And that last part is the mystery. What's different in our installation/configuration/luck/whatever that causes the inconsistency?

f.montoya · 12-13-2006, 07:28 AM

Try and isolate this to see if it's OOTP that is causing the issue. Manually download the file and unzip it to your saved games folder. Check the date. If it changes, maybe OOTP is having problems locating the link. If it doesn't change, that may be the cause as there is no updated file on that link.

Other possible causes would be heavy internet traffic at specific times of day or the server that hosts the file is having it's bandwidth stretched by traffic to and from the server.

One issue that OOTP has is there's no download manager, meaning if the connection gets severed (using FTP as well) or interupted, the whole thing crashes. Unlike manual downloading with a download manager that will resume after the interuption.

Fearbobafett · 12-13-2006, 09:39 AM

one other thing to add is that those having issues with the MBBA file are not having the same issues over in the ACB and can download in game without a problem.

joshuaaaaaa · 12-13-2006, 09:40 AM

This happens at any hour of the day. Morning, noon and night. I've tried them all. I have noticed that it is downloading some of the files. For instance, I'll do the download through the game, it gets to 60% and stops, and after 5 tries I get frustrated and just download the file manually. When I do that via WinZip, it will say "Do you want to replace the file coaches.dat with a time-stamp that is at 2 hours later than it is now with the file coaches.dat with a time-stamp that is current. Now, our simmer is on CST, so this makes sense. The file I'm downloading through the game gets the current time-stamp, the one in the zip file has the original time-stamp which is 2 hours ahead of me (I'm PST).

So, maybe your theory about "OOTP having troubles finding the link" is valid....that doesn't change the fact that the game won't download the file correctly. It also doesn't change the fact that the bar just stopping at 60% makes it next to impossible to tell where exactly this is happening.

Fearbobafett · 12-13-2006, 09:40 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by f.montoya

Try and isolate this to see if it's OOTP that is causing the issue. Manually download the file and unzip it to your saved games folder. Check the date. If it changes, maybe OOTP is having problems locating the link. If it doesn't change, that may be the cause as there is no updated file on that link.

This is the method that we have been using to get the file. I have also tried at various different times of the day and night up to 1am cst time and get the same error messages mentioned above.

Recte44 · 12-13-2006, 10:20 AM

They are able to download "mbba.lg.tar.gz" directly from the server. That's the exact file OOTP is supposed to be doing within the game when you use the "Load Online League File" option.

This leads me to believe that it's a OOTP vs. our server vs. your server issue. F. Montoya hit it on the head in the forums, OOTP 2006 doesn't have a "Download Manager". I believe OOTP is dropping contact with the server and not able to reestablish contact.

Basically they are downloading and extracting a file same as we used to, just don't have the convenient option of doing it in-game (plus the file is a LOT bigger).

Am I correct on all these points? How do we proceed from here? Is there a solution that isn't OOTP:2007?

mikev · 12-13-2006, 10:29 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Recte44

Is there a solution that isn't OOTP:2007?

At this point, I doubt it.

I was thinking about this last night. and the reason the ACB works is that it's roughly 10% as large as the MBBA file. There are about 2600 "files updated" when we load the ACB league file, as opposed to over 26 THOUSAND with the MBBA.

My estimation is that the actual download itself is getting broken in OOTP, but unfortunately there are no log files of any type there to look at.

Recte44 · 12-13-2006, 10:37 AM

I'm sure that's the reason ACB has no problems, it's small.

Large files like the MBBA (and I'm not even choosing everything in file creation) seem to cause some issues.

Tarball download it is!

f.montoya · 12-13-2006, 11:14 AM

Try this experiment...

Have the commish of the league delete the league file from the server manually.
Then he should upload a new file via the game but this time include the value of "1" for boxscores, game logs & messages. Also, uncheck Team News, League News and Player History completely.

After he's done that, try the download again.

Also, it sounds to me like the commish isn't using the game to upload the file. This could mean that he has the updated file in a different directory and therefore the game obviously cannot retrieve it.

Recte44 · 12-13-2006, 11:19 AM

I am the Commish (or was). I was using the game to upload the file, yes.

But I will try it the way you said.

Now, why would having "1" in there instead of "0" change anything?

Recte44 · 12-13-2006, 11:19 AM

That also doesn't explain why it works for some, but not others.

f.montoya · 12-13-2006, 11:29 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Recte44

I am the Commish (or was). I was using the game to upload the file, yes.

But I will try it the way you said.

Now, why would having "1" in there instead of "0" change anything?

The value of "0" includes ALL boxscores, game logs, messages. The file is just too massive if you include everything. With huge files, you run the risk of the connection timing out and the game crashing in mid-upload.

By the way, the 60% that you see is where the game has established a connection. It hangs there without progressing because the final 40% is the extraction after download.

f.montoya · 12-13-2006, 11:32 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Recte44

That also doesn't explain why it works for some, but not others.

Internet connections vary, depending on how much you are paying. Some with fiber-optic super fast connections may not have the issue while some with a regular DSL connection may. There are other factors that could affect the download times as well.

joshuaaaaaa · 12-13-2006, 02:27 PM

You keep bringing up the file being uploaded to the wrong directory. That's clearly not the case. We'll say this one more time: IT WORKS FOR SOME BUT NOT OTHERS." I don't know how much more clear we can be. Your other suggestions are fine, except I'd rather download the tarball and get all of the boxscores, etc. than do a half-assed download with ziliions of blank messages and news reports.

Recte44 · 12-13-2006, 02:31 PM

Yeah, I mean I have it set to 0 because I was previously told that was the only solution for the blank messages issue.

So what now?

mad0die · 12-13-2006, 02:42 PM

Do you want all the news or do you want to be able to download in-game? PICK ONE!

railroad_ross · 12-13-2006, 04:30 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Recte44

That also doesn't explain why it works for some, but not others.

To complicate things it isn't that it works for some but not others. I just had failed in game downloads for the first time last night. I eventually had to revert to the manual zip file.

So it works some of the time for some of us as well.

I'm sure that we will continue to try to find ways to deal with this issue in our league. However, hopefully the issue is corrected in OOTP2007.

Braveheart · 12-13-2006, 06:39 PM

Common Issues:

1. It usually errors out at 60%
2. It happens haphazardly to most owners.
3. The same owner that got Tuesday can not get the next file on Thursday, but can get the one after that on Sunday.
4. Owner A can get Tuesday and Thursday, Owner B can get Tuesday but not thursday and owner C cant get Tuesday, but can get Thursday. Owner D can get either...

We really need (AKA: would really appreciate) some resolution.

12-12-2006, 06:45 PM	#1
joshuaaaaaa All Star Reserve Join Date: Mar 2002 Location: Las Vegas, NV Posts: 633	Online File Will Not Download Okay, a bunch of us over in the MBBA are having a problem downloading new game files. We click the "Load Online League File." The download bar rapidly gets to 60% and then hangs. After 2-3 minutes, and error pops up saying "Error: Could not download file." This gets tried repeatedly (up to 5 times) and the error occurs every time. Here's the real head-scratching part. This doesn't happen for every owner. For some, the bar hangs at 60% and then 10-20 minutes later, the download completes. For others, there is no hanging. But wait...there's more. For several owners, myself included, the downloads used to work fine. Its only over the last month or two where they haven't worked. And this happens to people whether 2006 is the only program running or whether there are several programs running. It happens whether the user stays on the 2006 window throughout the process or whether they switch windows. There is no rhyme or reason to this and its very frustrating. Any help on resolving this issue would be appreciated. And the machine specs are kind of irrelevant because this is happening across the league. However in my specific instance, I have a Pentium 4, 3.2GHz, 512 MB or RAM running XP Version 2002, SP2. __________________ Baltimore Monarchs-GUBA Baltimore Orioles-ORB2 "One of the greatest discoveries a man makes, one of his great surprises, is to find he can do what he was afraid he couldn't do." ~Henry Ford ~

12-12-2006, 10:17 PM	#2
RchW Hall Of Famer Join Date: Jul 2004 Location: Toronto ON by way of Glasgow UK Posts: 15,629	Does the league file you are downloading match the league you have open exactly? Have you changed the zip file folder arrangement or root folder name? Just some thoughts. __________________ Cheers RichW If you’re looking for a good cause to donate money to please consider a Donation to Parkinson’s Canada. It may help me have a better future and if not me, someone else. Thanks. “Conservatism consists of exactly one proposition …There must be in-groups whom the law protects but does not bind, alongside out-groups whom the law binds but does not protect.” Frank Wilhoit

12-12-2006, 10:21 PM	#3
joshuaaaaaa All Star Reserve Join Date: Mar 2002 Location: Las Vegas, NV Posts: 633	I believe the game says "MBBA" and the file says "mbba", so there's a case difference. However that wouldn't explain why it works for some, not all. No changes to the other data. Again, that wouldn't explain why it works for some but not all. And that last part is the mystery. What's different in our installation/configuration/luck/whatever that causes the inconsistency? __________________ Baltimore Monarchs-GUBA Baltimore Orioles-ORB2 "One of the greatest discoveries a man makes, one of his great surprises, is to find he can do what he was afraid he couldn't do." ~Henry Ford ~

12-13-2006, 07:28 AM	#4
f.montoya Hall Of Famer Join Date: Nov 2004 Posts: 6,077	Try and isolate this to see if it's OOTP that is causing the issue. Manually download the file and unzip it to your saved games folder. Check the date. If it changes, maybe OOTP is having problems locating the link. If it doesn't change, that may be the cause as there is no updated file on that link. Other possible causes would be heavy internet traffic at specific times of day or the server that hosts the file is having it's bandwidth stretched by traffic to and from the server. One issue that OOTP has is there's no download manager, meaning if the connection gets severed (using FTP as well) or interupted, the whole thing crashes. Unlike manual downloading with a download manager that will resume after the interuption. __________________ Fidel Montoya Asahi2 Baseball League ex-Commissioner(Historical League Since 2004) Ex-Web Host Current Mod Maker??

12-13-2006, 09:39 AM	#5
Fearbobafett Minors (Single A) Join Date: Oct 2002 Location: Lake in the hills Il Posts: 74	one other thing to add is that those having issues with the MBBA file are not having the same issues over in the ACB and can download in game without a problem. __________________ BBTF Home - Philadelphia Phillies 1902-1927 Chicago Cubs 1928-Present

12-13-2006, 09:40 AM	#6
joshuaaaaaa All Star Reserve Join Date: Mar 2002 Location: Las Vegas, NV Posts: 633	This happens at any hour of the day. Morning, noon and night. I've tried them all. I have noticed that it is downloading some of the files. For instance, I'll do the download through the game, it gets to 60% and stops, and after 5 tries I get frustrated and just download the file manually. When I do that via WinZip, it will say "Do you want to replace the file coaches.dat with a time-stamp that is at 2 hours later than it is now with the file coaches.dat with a time-stamp that is current. Now, our simmer is on CST, so this makes sense. The file I'm downloading through the game gets the current time-stamp, the one in the zip file has the original time-stamp which is 2 hours ahead of me (I'm PST). So, maybe your theory about "OOTP having troubles finding the link" is valid....that doesn't change the fact that the game won't download the file correctly. It also doesn't change the fact that the bar just stopping at 60% makes it next to impossible to tell where exactly this is happening. __________________ Baltimore Monarchs-GUBA Baltimore Orioles-ORB2 "One of the greatest discoveries a man makes, one of his great surprises, is to find he can do what he was afraid he couldn't do." ~Henry Ford ~

12-13-2006, 10:20 AM	#8
Recte44 Global Moderator Join Date: Dec 2001 Location: Oconomowoc, WI Posts: 2,817	They are able to download "mbba.lg.tar.gz" directly from the server. That's the exact file OOTP is supposed to be doing within the game when you use the "Load Online League File" option. This leads me to believe that it's a OOTP vs. our server vs. your server issue. F. Montoya hit it on the head in the forums, OOTP 2006 doesn't have a "Download Manager". I believe OOTP is dropping contact with the server and not able to reestablish contact. Basically they are downloading and extracting a file same as we used to, just don't have the convenient option of doing it in-game (plus the file is a LOT bigger). Am I correct on all these points? How do we proceed from here? Is there a solution that isn't OOTP:2007? __________________ Matt Rectenwald Commissioner, GM: Las Vegas Hustlers, The Brewster Baseball Association- fictional league (JOIN NOW)

12-13-2006, 10:37 AM	#10
Recte44 Global Moderator Join Date: Dec 2001 Location: Oconomowoc, WI Posts: 2,817	I'm sure that's the reason ACB has no problems, it's small. Large files like the MBBA (and I'm not even choosing everything in file creation) seem to cause some issues. Tarball download it is! __________________ Matt Rectenwald Commissioner, GM: Las Vegas Hustlers, The Brewster Baseball Association- fictional league (JOIN NOW)

12-13-2006, 11:14 AM	#11
f.montoya Hall Of Famer Join Date: Nov 2004 Posts: 6,077	Try this experiment... Have the commish of the league delete the league file from the server manually. Then he should upload a new file via the game but this time include the value of "1" for boxscores, game logs & messages. Also, uncheck Team News, League News and Player History completely. After he's done that, try the download again. Also, it sounds to me like the commish isn't using the game to upload the file. This could mean that he has the updated file in a different directory and therefore the game obviously cannot retrieve it. __________________ Fidel Montoya Asahi2 Baseball League ex-Commissioner(Historical League Since 2004) Ex-Web Host Current Mod Maker??

12-13-2006, 11:19 AM	#12
Recte44 Global Moderator Join Date: Dec 2001 Location: Oconomowoc, WI Posts: 2,817	I am the Commish (or was). I was using the game to upload the file, yes. But I will try it the way you said. Now, why would having "1" in there instead of "0" change anything? __________________ Matt Rectenwald Commissioner, GM: Las Vegas Hustlers, The Brewster Baseball Association- fictional league (JOIN NOW)

12-13-2006, 02:27 PM	#16
joshuaaaaaa All Star Reserve Join Date: Mar 2002 Location: Las Vegas, NV Posts: 633	You keep bringing up the file being uploaded to the wrong directory. That's clearly not the case. We'll say this one more time: IT WORKS FOR SOME BUT NOT OTHERS." I don't know how much more clear we can be. Your other suggestions are fine, except I'd rather download the tarball and get all of the boxscores, etc. than do a half-assed download with ziliions of blank messages and news reports. __________________ Baltimore Monarchs-GUBA Baltimore Orioles-ORB2 "One of the greatest discoveries a man makes, one of his great surprises, is to find he can do what he was afraid he couldn't do." ~Henry Ford ~

12-13-2006, 02:31 PM	#17
Recte44 Global Moderator Join Date: Dec 2001 Location: Oconomowoc, WI Posts: 2,817	Yeah, I mean I have it set to 0 because I was previously told that was the only solution for the blank messages issue. So what now? __________________ Matt Rectenwald Commissioner, GM: Las Vegas Hustlers, The Brewster Baseball Association- fictional league (JOIN NOW)

12-13-2006, 02:42 PM	#18
mad0die All Star Reserve Join Date: Feb 2002 Location: TX Posts: 913	Do you want all the news or do you want to be able to download in-game? PICK ONE! __________________ Commish GUBA

12-13-2006, 06:39 PM	#20
Braveheart Minors (Double A) Join Date: Jul 2002 Posts: 152	Common Issues: 1. It usually errors out at 60% 2. It happens haphazardly to most owners. 3. The same owner that got Tuesday can not get the next file on Thursday, but can get the one after that on Sunday. 4. Owner A can get Tuesday and Thursday, Owner B can get Tuesday but not thursday and owner C cant get Tuesday, but can get Thursday. Owner D can get either... We really need (AKA: would really appreciate) some resolution. __________________ "All men die, not all men really live" --William Wallace "See thats the problem with this guy. You call him a moron, and he just sits there acting moronly" This message brought up to from the same people you brought you "FREE BIBS"