Just a quick note - Linda and I are taking the WebCams off-line right now for the next 30-60 minutes as we rewire things in the server room here at Eden Beach...

Jake

Well, it took more like 2 hours but we're all set. Part of this effort was to install a new test server to replace our aging one, as well as some better capture hardware. Dan now gets to run remote tests on it to see how the new system responds, and hopefully in the coming month or so, we'll switch over to it...

Jake

Thanks Jake,
Mare

thanks Jake and Linda.
Just dropped in, but the cams seems to be online since a few minutes judging from the archives...

Thanks folks.

Aaaargh!!! I just came back to Chile, from my first visit to Bonaire with a group of friends, after a 4 months planning, and one of the must-do things was to pose in front of the underwater webcam with a message to my family written on my slate.... Guess what!! I went on Friday 27th at 2:50pm... That is not tough luck... it's no luck at all.

I will soon post my trip report, as otherwise the week was wonderful!

Peter

Peter, even though the images were not displaying on the cams, they are in the archives. If you have a membership you can access the archives and snag the photos...they are there, I just looked ;-)

Well, Cynde, I followed your advice eagerly hoping to find the missing pics, and thus paid the $5 to register as Bronze member and be able to search the archive. I got quite frustrated to see that in all 4 webcams, there are gaps in the archive between 14:08 and 15:54 on May 27th. I was in front of the reefCam at 14:50 and later on the beach cameras between 15:00 and 15:30... So, if you can tell me where exactly you found the missing images I would certainly appreciate it...

Peter, I'm sorry, there was someone at 9:40AM and 9:52 to 9:58AM and I assumed that was you with your signs...man...what a bummer...were you at the beach cams during this time as well?

Peter, Cynde, I am sorry to report that since the server was offline, I do not think Peter was captured on the webcam during his dive, or on the beachcams, since they are the same server.
If it's any consolation Peter, the cams are almost NEVER taken down for maintenance, and when the internet is lost, the server does keep saving pictures, which are then subsequently uploaded to the archives.
In fact, Jake's posting starting this thread, says as much.
Sorry you found the only two hours in the last year to not get captured Peter; I guess you'll have to go back!

Yes, I am sorry too... not for the $5 which helps the site anyway, but if I knew the cameras were not working I could have come any other time. Just a sign hanging on one of the beach cameras would have done it. Now it is too late...

Sometimes are just not the right times Peter. Maybe fate was protecting you from some foolish gaffe being recorded for posterity on the camera.
Though it is no consolation, the UW cam is very much more accessible than it was at it's previous location.

Chance is a fool's name for fate.

Peter,

My deepest apologies. We had hoped to be off-line for less than an hour, but the rat's nest of cables and rat droppings took far longer than expected to clean-up.

I would happily refund your Bronze Membership or give you a complementary upgrade to a Gold Membership as the best apology I can come up with.

Here are a couple photos of what the WebCam capture room looks like now after our rearranging.





Please let me know which of the two options I offered above you would prefer.

Jake

Looks great Jake, much sportier than the previous rat's nest/rat's net.
I hope you found good use for the WallyWagon.

WHOOW, that is a BIG difference...

Thanks Jake! Of course it would be nice to have the upgraded membership... just in case I manage to go back to Bonaire within a year. The funny thing is that I was probably a few meters from you while working in the servers since I imagine that room is close to the Bongos kitchen. I might have helped arranging cables as that is part of my work here too... Looks pretty neat now, though I can only imagine how it was before. BTW, the reefCam was easy to find thanks to the cable going down the slope... I am grateful that it was not buried.

Well, at least I could find some images after the cameras were back, where my sister and brother in law are enjoying lunch at Bongo's. Probably just after I left to Sand Dollar for another dive.

cheers,
Peter

Yep - that's right where we were. We had the door shut to keep the room cool.

I just upgraded you to a one-year Gold Membership. Again, my apologies!

Jake

Thanks Jake,

I hope the Marine Park Tag also lasts for 12 months as the Gold Membership, though I have the impression that it is valid for a Calendar Year only (i.e. up to 31st Dec. '05).

Well, I guess you can have only one thing or the other, but no both... For instance, in my long planned dive from Sand Dollar to Eden Beach for the webcam encounter, I managed to do it just within the only 2 hours in the year that the cameras were not working. As compensation, my buddy and I had an encounter with a big manta ray, half way of the dive in blue waters, something that may happen once or twice per year too... So, we are even... That day a pair of dolphins were playing around close to the beach, and the visibility was less than 18m/60ft for the high concentration of plankton.

Peter

P.S. trip report still pending...

To give folks an advance heads up - next Tuesday morning, June 7th, we'll be taking the ReefCam off line to move the mooring block the camera is on, starting at around 10am Bonaire time. No idea how many hours this will take as we are also going to install a drill mooring nearby to use as an "anchor" for our block mooring, and for use by Wannadive's boat.

If any BTers or WebCam Fans are around Tuesday morning and want to pitch in, swing on by Eden Beach.

Jake

PS I expect to be in the water around 3:30pm today to take a look at the current position of the ReefCam...

Thanks, Jake! We will look for you! Debbie

Here's what the current mooring position looks like...

OMG - I knew it had a strange tilt based on the new view of the slope!! I am surprised the wires were not yanked out of it!!!

Looks like it could keeping going down that slope!!!

Wow! Jake, can you tell us how was that heavy block moved? Did the Wannadive boat forget to release the mooring line before departing? ;-)

My two cents,


This is how it looked last Friday 27th at around 3pm (while you were working on the servers... ;-)

Peter

My guess is wind and water pushing the boat away from shore...

Here's a similar view orientation to yours:



Jake

Goodness me! I would never have believed that a solid concrete block like that could shift so easily, but then I am only a dumb blonde. What do I know. LOL.

Jeeze! That webcam room looks like my living room with the satellite tv set up to feed all the rooms in the house

One word...Bummer...

To see the moving of the mooring block from small wall to Eden Beach aka front porch Click Here

Jake et.al., may the force be with you

test