Originally Posted By FerretAfros There doesn't seem to be much information about it right now, but apparently there's a rather large power outage in WDW at the moment, covering all 4 parks. At the moment, none of the attractions are running
Originally Posted By FerretAfros Apparently the power was only out for about 10 seconds, but it was long enough to shut down pretty much everything (attractions, traffic lights, etc). I'm not jealous of the guests or CMs who have to deal with this! And this is yet another thing that really makes you wonder about the real-world use of the all-electronic NextGen system. Yet another variable that's destined to fail eventually, leaving guests without an essential part of their reservation
Originally Posted By sjhym333 It happens and since everything works on computers when it does it shuts things down. Safety first. No big deal
Originally Posted By FerretAfros Resort-wide power failures don't happen daily, but adding another system into the mix adds another opportunity for a system to fail. And when you need all of your systems running at 100% all the time, it's wise to reduce the risk of any one of them failing; adding a new one seems like an odd choice. With the old systems, if one thing went down, life would go on. Maybe you can't get FP for a specific attraction, but the other ones are still up and running. Maybe you have a tough time getting your dining reservation to show up, but there are other options. If the hotel check-in system is down, at least you can go to to the parks for a while and hope it comes back online By consolidating them all, there is an enormous possibility for a systemwide failure. Until this point, electricity and water were the only systems that infiltrated every aspect of WDW; this will add another one, from a company that is notorious for being terrible at that kind of system in the past With the new system, you won't be able to check in to your hotel, enter any park, use any FP, or confirm any dining reservation. Heck, you won't even be able to buy a snack, since they encourage you to use RFID to pay for things (this has already become an issue on a day when the payment system went down, with hungry cashless guests scattered around property). The reliance on the system is just concerning to me. It's not a "what if" the system fails, it's a "when" the system fails; and when it fails, I would prefer to have more options for what I can do that doesn't involve the system at all I know that I'm averse to using technology for every need. I hate keeping reservations and tickets in a digital-only format. There are simply too many variables beyond my control. Yes, it's great when it works, but if I've learned anything about technology, it's that it doesn't always work. And tying it all into one system just seems to be a huge risk with relatively little benefit
Originally Posted By FerretAfros >>It happens and since everything works on computers when it does it shuts things down. Safety first. No big deal<< I know that the attractions shut down safely, and have means for evacuating guests as needed. It's inconvenient, but acceptable considering that there's really nothing they can do about it. I'm glad that I wasn't in the parks to deal with all the associated headaches, while everything had to be reset and brought back into service It's more of the NextGen stuff that worries me with a potential system-wide outage, since it is just as pervasive as electricity, but will likely be much more finicky
Originally Posted By Dr Hans Reinhardt "I know that I'm averse to using technology for every need. I hate keeping reservations and tickets in a digital-only format. There are simply too many variables beyond my control. Yes, it's great when it works, but if I've learned anything about technology, it's that it doesn't always work. And tying it all into one system just seems to be a huge risk with relatively little benefit." I'm struggling to understand how the outcome would be any different if there was a widespread power outage at some other popular travel destination, you know, like New York or Paris. What about a major earthquake and subsequent loss of power as guests are checking into hotel rooms at DLR? What if a hurricane knocked out power across Central Florida? These things happen, and when they do operations teams do their best and guests are forced to cope.
Originally Posted By FerretAfros I wasn't thinking about a power outage, I was tihnking of the system going down independently. With any of those other destinations (or WDW circa 6 months ago), there are other things to do. Yes, certain things like hotel reservations are going to be tough without the system, but you'll be able to find something to occupy yourself. If the MyMagic+ system goes down, there aren't going too be many options in WDW, even if there is electricity.
Originally Posted By CuriousConstance The mymagic stuff will kinda be working on the same type of system as the scanner that reads your tickets going through the gates or the current fastpass system, right? And how often does that have issues save for a power outage? You're over thinking all of this, I think, Ferret.
Originally Posted By Dr Hans Reinhardt "If the MyMagic+ system goes down, there aren't going too be many options in WDW, even if there is electricity." If MM+ goes down, but the resort's power is still working, what's stopping a guest from standing in line for rides, grabbing a bite to each, or shopping for souvenirs just like the folks not enrolled in the program?
Originally Posted By FerretAfros >>If MM+ goes down, but the resort's power is still working, what's stopping a guest from standing in line for rides, grabbing a bite to each, or shopping for souvenirs just like the folks not enrolled in the program?<< I guess there are other options, but it still sucks for the folks who planned their trip around having FP+ and other amenities, as Disney is pushing, only to have them taken away; but I guess that's no different than having an attraction temporarily close for whatever reason. They also won't be able to get into their hotel rooms or enter a park, but assuming they're already where they want to be, they should be okay The bigger issue will likely be if the dining plan and/or tap-to-pay system go down, leaving guests without any means of payment. They've already had issues with this when guests relied on the system and didn't bring a secondary form of payment, so they're encouraging everybody to always have a backup plan. Personally, I never go anywhere without my wallet (unless I'm working out or swimming) so this won't be an issue, but I can see people getting caught up in the fun and getting stranded
Originally Posted By FerretAfros I'm sure that the NSA really cares when your rode Space Mountain... ...then again, they might be interested in finding out what you did to get reservations for breakfast at Cinderella's Royal Table or dinner at Le Cellier!
Originally Posted By RoadTrip As a guy with 25+ years experience in enterprise-wide computer systems, I can just about guarantee you that they have backup systems in place if a critical system goes down. It may take 5-10 minutes for the switchover to a new server to occur, but about the only thing that could bring them all down would be a wide-spread power outage. At the Univ of Minn they even a backup computer center at a remote site so that if the entire campus lost power, the remote center could take over. Excuse me, but your paranoia is showing...
Originally Posted By FerretAfros ^^That's fine by me. I would be lying if I said that I thought that the system was a good idea. Part of me wants to see it fail miserably, because of how poorly they've managed the public information related to the system in the lead-up to its release. They designed this sytem for the hyper-planners to plan the entire vacation to the last minute months before they ever leave home, yet can't manage to have a sturdy enough schedule to give the public any idea of when it will actually go into effect. If you want me to plan my vacation months in advance, at least give me enough warning that I'll have a general ballpark idea of when the system will go into place. I'm currently planning a trip in January for the 3rd year in a row; and for the 3rd year in a row, all indications seem like January is going to be right around the time that NextGen is fully unleashed. Yet we've heard nothing from Disney. In the 3+ years since the system was announced, there has been next to zero formal communication between Disney and the consumers regarding it. They gave a few details during the Markey scandal a while back, and have released information to the people testing it out (who have then released it to the online world), but Disney has hardly given any information regarding how the system will be used and what sorts of realistic impacts it will have on our vacations. I appreciate that they're trying to be patient and work the bugs out of it before going live, but at a certain point they need to manage the message that's going to consumers, and they are failing miserably at this point. Long story short, I'm fine with being paranoid. I'm investing too much time, energy, and money into my vacation for Disney to ruin it. I'll be preemptive where ever possible, and make sure my ducks are in a row. And I'm going to have fun whether I like it or not!
Originally Posted By RoadTrip I figure even if the system totally crashed, the worst that could happen is everyone would have to use the Standby line... something many people would like to see anyway.
Originally Posted By Dr Hans Reinhardt "They designed this sytem for the hyper-planners to plan the entire vacation to the last minute months before they ever leave home, yet can't manage to have a sturdy enough schedule to give the public any idea of when it will actually go into effect" And here I thought it was to milk even more money from visitors while offering them the convenience of customizing their experiences and breezing past long lines. As for the timeline of when the system will be fully implemented, I'm going to go on a limb and say that it will be years before we see every aspect of this program fully functioning globally and the various facets will likely be introduced piecemeal. This could explain why there has yet to be a major release with huge fanfare. A formal announcement will come, no doubt, but anyone waiting for details can pretty much stop holding their breath for now.
