Dear USGA. What's up with GHIN Mobile and....

[golfnhack]

... why isn't it fixed yet? Down for 2 weeks already. They won't reply to tweets or Facebook posts about it.

[GolfNuts4]

I know, how can something like this be down for so long and no communication as to what is happening?

[Togatown22]

Very annoying

[pingfool]

http://www.ghin.com/

 

follow instructions to post

[Roody]

It was really bad timing for a friend of mine, as he just joined our club this year, and it's the first time he's ever had an official GHIN handicap. He was asking me a couple weeks ago "how do I post scores?", so I told him to get the app on his phone and I would show him. When we first tried to access it we ran into problems, so of course his first impression of it is it's a piece of crap.

 

It's really just a mild annoyance for now. Hopefully they get it resolved soon.

[JDFish]

Glad to know it's not just me/my phone. Thanks for the link reminder.

[doubleagle2]

I got an email today from the FSGA saying the USGA is still working on it and they think they are close to a solution

 

It is hard to believe in this day and age something like this could be down for as long as it has

[golfnhack]

I got an email today from the FSGA saying the USGA is still working on it and they think they are close to a solution

 

It is hard to believe in this day and age something like this could be down for as long as it has

 

Hmm... wonder why the FSGA did not e-mail all members.

[matchavez]

I wonder how much data loss they are dealing with.

[oregongolf]

I was in a meeting with my state golf association and they said they have to rebuild the app.

[BlackDiamondPar5]

It's been down for going on two weeks because the usga is still trying to figure out how to program their VCR and keep the time from flashing 12:00!

[Roody]

I was in a meeting with my state golf association and they said they have to rebuild the app.

The only valid reason for that would be that the architecture behind the app is so outdated that it needed replacing. Which wouldn't surprise me.

 

I remember a few years back when I first got a GHIN being surprised to find out that it could take a day or two for my score posted through the clubhouse computer to show on the site. Supposedly they had to do a daily data upload to GHIN. The fact that it wasn't instantaneous in this day and age of technology blew my mind.

[Marand]

I was in a meeting with my state golf association and they said they have to rebuild the app.

The only valid reason for that would be that the architecture behind the app is so outdated that it needed replacing. Which wouldn't surprise me.

 

I remember a few years back when I first got a GHIN being surprised to find out that it could take a day or two for my score posted through the clubhouse computer to show on the site. Supposedly they had to do a daily data upload to GHIN. The fact that it wasn't instantaneous in this day and age of technology blew my mind.

 

Perhaps they 'anchored' their App in punch-card technology.

[golfnhack]

I believe the GHIN App is coded in COBOL, and they are having a hard time converting it to Visual Basic 2003.

[QMany]

I can't believe it has been down this long. Figure it out, USGA.

[BlackDiamondPar5]

I believe the GHIN App is code in COBOL, and they are having a hard time converting it to Visual Basic 2003.

 

You could be right, but why wouldn't they just leave the old code in production until the new code was fully tested and certified? This thing wreaks of indefensible incompetence.

 

I now regret my recent decision to renew my GHIN this season. At least I didn't renew my USGA membership.

 

Frankly if they are this incompetent then it makes me question whether I'd ever want to use their USGA website to key in any personal information or credit card numbers for any reason.

[matchavez]

This makes me think their .mdb file got too big. #nerdjoke

[golfnhack]

This makes me think their .mdb file got too big. #nerdjoke

 

Tasks->Shrink->Files

[Roody]

You could be right, but why wouldn't they just leave the old code in production until the new code was fully tested and certified? This thing wreaks of indefensible incompetence.

I work for a software company, and you definitely don't release software this way. They should be staging this new version off to the side until it's ready for cutover, and let us continue to use the existing platform in the meantime. I suspect that the USGA is farming this out to a third party, and they likely are paying said third party as minimal a fee as possible because they don't understand the value of having a good technology company take care of this the right way.

[matchavez]

You could be right, but why wouldn't they just leave the old code in production until the new code was fully tested and certified? This thing wreaks of indefensible incompetence.

I work for a software company, and you definitely don't release software this way. They should be staging this new version off to the side until it's ready for cutover, and let us continue to use the existing platform in the meantime. I suspect that the USGA is farming this out to a third party, and they likely are paying said third party as minimal a fee as possible because they don't understand the value of having a good technology company take care of this the right way.

 

There's so much wrong with this, you know that there has to have been a sequence of bad prior decisions, and that cows came home.

 

[Imp]

I wonder how much data loss they are dealing with.

I would say: ZERO.

 

The PHONE app (which is what hasn't been working) is an interface between the user and the database.

 

One can still post and view rounds/indexes using the web browser on your phone, or desktop computer.

 

I do agree that the phone app shouldn't have been 'down' this long though. Yes, it was sourced to a development company. Usually when things like this happen, there's a problem in communication (read: contracts) between the developer and the owner. Wouldn't surprise me if someone at USGA went ballistic and the developer 'reminded' them of the contract requirements and they are complying with the terms outlined therein.

 

--kC

[snagy2000]

There was a member at my old club in northern California who in conjunction with the USGA developed the original rules of golf app. He basically did this while sitting on his couch, in between rounds and while at a coffee shop. I think his take was $1 per app purchase. True story! So, I'm betting they didn't go with their "A" team on the app update.

[Llortamaisey]

I'm kind of impressed they have an app, even though it doesn't work. You gotta admit this is way ahead of schedule for them.

[b.helts]

The USGA had a scheduled update to the ghin server(s) on May 11 I think. This is probably an architecture or operating system incompatibility.

 

Love the computer nerd jokes. Thanks!

 

lol tried to post a dr0p table joke and got a security warning.

 

 

 

[matchavez]

The USGA had a scheduled update to the ghin server(s) on May 11 I think. This is probably an architecture or operating system incompatibility.

 

Love the computer nerd jokes. Thanks!

 

lol tried to post a dr0p table joke and got a security warning.

 

Ha! Accidental injection attack... #TWSS

[Imp]

The USGA had a scheduled update to the ghin server(s) on May 11 I think. This is probably an architecture or operating system incompatibility.

 

Love the computer nerd jokes. Thanks!

 

lol tried to post a dr0p table joke and got a security warning.

 

 

--kC

[BlackDiamondPar5]

Just an update if you're curious--- After 2 weeks down I decided to email the USGA this morning about the APP issue. I suggested that it would be appropriate for them to inform their members/patrons of; whats broken, why/how did it happen and when will it be fixed?

 

What I got back from the USGA is their canned response posted on the GHIN website, with NO other explanation.

So I probed them again for more info and they punted, saying to contact my local or regional golf association. WTF!

 

Yeah I know we can post at GHIN.com and m.ghin.com, but the app was so much more useful.

 

I'd be asking for a refund of myGHIN renewal I paid last week if I didn't feel bad asking the owner of my course (nice guy) for a refund.

 

I didn't renew my USGA membership this year and this could be my last year keeping a GHIN and use an alternative next year. :(

[Imp]

m.ghin.com and online does the same thing the App does. They never had to offer the app at all, but they do, and it gets a bug, and people go bezerk!

 

Not sure where the anger is directed at over a loss of slight (completely optional) convenience?

 

If it went away, I don't think anyone would worse for wear to be honest. Every phone that has the app, has a browser, and it does the same stuff. How about creating a link to the m.ghin.com right on your phones home screen? Clicking it, opens a browser right to m.ghin.com.

 

--kC

[BlackDiamondPar5]

m.ghin.com and online does the same thing the App does. They never had to offer the app at all, but they do, and it gets a bug, and people go bezerk!

 

Not sure where the anger is directed at over a loss of slight (completely optional) convenience?

 

If it went away, I don't think anyone would worse for wear to be honest. Every phone that has the app, has a browser, and it does the same stuff. How about creating a link to the m.ghin.com right on your phones home screen? Clicking it, opens a browser right to m.ghin.com.

 

--kC

 

Sorry KC, can't agree. It doesn't do the same thing unless I'm missing something. With m.ghin.com and ghin.com, you have to always to start from the beginning and login, select state, then first letter, then select the course & tee's played from the beginning, there is no stored user session, no favorite courses nor previously played courses. There is no history beyond the last 20 rounds, where as in the app you can see, YTD and last 12 months and any uncombined 9's. There is no trending handicap indicator. There isn't the partner section where one can pull up their partners index, enter the course info and determine how many strokes each guy is getting. Lots of gaps.

 

Pretty poor to give something that offers additional convenience and then take it away, especially without notice. It just is another indicator that the USGA is out of touch and doesn't really care about it's members and as always way behind in response to technology, be it golf equipment or IT.

[Roody]

m.ghin.com and online does the same thing the App does. They never had to offer the app at all, but they do, and it gets a bug, and people go bezerk!

 

Not sure where the anger is directed at over a loss of slight (completely optional) convenience?

 

If it went away, I don't think anyone would worse for wear to be honest. Every phone that has the app, has a browser, and it does the same stuff. How about creating a link to the m.ghin.com right on your phones home screen? Clicking it, opens a browser right to m.ghin.com.

 

--kC

Agreed it is a convenience, and also agreed that there are alternate ways to post your scores. My issue is why can't they perform their upgrades in parallel on a staging system off to the side while we continue to use the current system? Once the new system is ready, send out a message that the app will be down for a few hours while they cutover the new system. Then there's minimal downtime for the end users.

 

Instead it seems as though they've taken down the current system while they're still developing the new one. It's just poor form, IMHO.