UPDATE 12/10/2016, 10 PM ET: It is done. There are still glitches, such as some images missing. Let us know in the comments if there are any problems or issues with the blog or the new template.
As regular readers all know, this blog has been having a lot of problems with the server and the current WordPress installation, with lots of crashes and down time. It’s been very frustrating, and I’m probably more frustrated about it than anyone other than our intrepid proofreader because I spend more time on the SBM than anyone other than our intrepid proofreader. So when SBM is down a lot, it affects me a lot.
I realize that it looks as though nothing much has been happening to address this, but our trusty crack tech team has been working on the issue behind the scenes. This weekend their efforts will come to fruition as we migrate SBM over to a new server. We hope to be able to make the switch to the new site later this afternoon and to forward all visitors to the new server seamlessly. Be aware, however, that it could take up to 2 days for the DNS change to fully propagate, which is why we’re doing it on a weekend.
At the same time, we’ve also decided to update the WordPress template for SBM. Truth be told, the current template is getting a bit long in the tooth, looking so…2011. Sad to say, looks matter when it comes to websites and blogs, and the woo-friendly blogs and websites whose misinformation we combat as part of our mission haven’t stood still. Many of them sport slick, appealing, modern interfaces.
The new template will significantly different from the old one. Personally, I think it’s a major improvement. It’s more modern. It’s cleaner. It’s also mobile-friendly, which is essential, as more than 50% of SBM traffic now comes from mobile platforms. The social media sharing buttons will (finally) be back, and the RSS feed will work again! (At least, so I am promised.) Hopefully, the Disqus comments that were missing will all come back.
Finally, we’ve contracted someone for a new logo, but we aren’t going to wait for that to pull the switch to complete the server migration and template change, because these things are needed now and are, admittedly, overdue. Stay tuned. If there are problems with the new template you can use the comments of this post to let us know.