Images stuck "Processing" -- again

Ferguson

So this subject comes around every few months. Most times Smugmug denies it is a problem, or ignores it. At one point I Think they said they fixed it (though if I recall it was an awfully tentative fix, more like "we changed something else that might fix it" if I recall).

Well, tonight had to deal with it again, waited 20-30 minutes, 2 out of about 80 shots would not process. Had to manually delete them and reupload, which worked fine and quickly.

But this is REALLY annoying, that this LONG STANDING BUG IS STILL HERE.

I love smugmug, really. But I also hate it for reasons like this, things that are like a splinter in your toe that you can't get out, and only periodically hurts. For years and years.

I just looked and my first posting here was in 2010. I think my contacts with support date to around then also.

Come on guys -- you must have an incredible amount of detail logged about what happens to photos. How can this be hard to fix. It's a BUG. In myriad postings from lots of people there has never been the slightest indication that there are problems with individual photos. It's just some random number comes up and it decides to put THAT photo in limbo for anywhere from minutes to hours, instead of seconds.

The Photo Booth

Images stranded in the forever "processing" loop has been an ongoing problem for me over the years too. Sometimes it's just 1 or 2 images out of a handful, sometimes it's the whole handful.

There are times I really regret that I chose SmugMug as my photo hosting site. 97% of the time I'm glad I did, but that 3% can be really really frustrating.

Come October 15, I fear those percentages are going to flip.

Mark

leftquark

Ferguson wrote: »

So this subject comes around every few months. Most times Smugmug denies it is a problem, or ignores it. At one point I Think they said they fixed it (though if I recall it was an awfully tentative fix, more like "we changed something else that might fix it" if I recall).

Well, tonight had to deal with it again, waited 20-30 minutes, 2 out of about 80 shots would not process. Had to manually delete them and re-upload, which worked fine and quickly.

As you know by now, our Support Heroes always try to be heroic with every issue we get reported to us. The same holds true for our engineers who receive the reports and look into them. Sometimes it's very hard for us to find them if we cannot duplicate the issue. Uploading issues are especially difficult because the internet can have random hiccups: your provider, our servers, something could have an intermittent failure.

I did hear another report of the incomplete uploads earlier this week and had reported it to our engineers. The response I got was "we had fixed that! Let me look into it again." We're still investigating if it's crept back in.

leftquark

The Photo Booth wrote: »

There are times I really regret that I chose SmugMug as my photo hosting site. 97% of the time I'm glad I did, but that 3% can be really really frustrating.

Come October 15, I fear those percentages are going to flip.

I wish I could show you the messages I've received from one of my good friends who is quite respected in the landscape photography world... for the last 2 years he's utterly refused to move to the New SmugMug. Now that October 15th is approaching he's been working on his New SmugMug site. Every 15 minutes I get a message from him: "OH MY GOSH. I LOVE THIS!", "The New lightbox is amazing!!!" "I love my new mobile view!" "This is so much easier than I thought! Wow. Why did I wait so long?!" "I can actually update my menu without code?! Love this!"

I understand things are different and it takes time to figure out where things are and how they work. I certainly know this ... it took me a few months before I had my site ready to publish, but I fell in love very quickly (and this was before I started working at SmugMug).

Ferguson

leftquark wrote: »

As you know by now, our Support Heroes always try to be heroic with every issue we get reported to us. The same holds true for our engineers who receive the reports and look into them. Sometimes it's very hard for us to find them if we cannot duplicate the issue. Uploading issues are especially difficult because the internet can have random hiccups: your provider, our servers, something could have an intermittent failure.

I did hear another report of the incomplete uploads earlier this week and had reported it to our engineers. The response I got was "we had fixed that! Let me look into it again." We're still investigating if it's crept back in.

I agree, the support group answers quickly, and when it is within their areas they are very good and solve problems FAR faster (and friendlier) than almost any vendor I can think of.

However, I suspect this is a programming issue, and when there are bugs in your system they may have little more control over solutions that users.

But with this particular problem, this is where things often seem to go -- it devolves into a discussion of internet and uploads and each person's connection is different, yadadada.... BUT THIS IS NOT ABOUT UPLOADS. The files are neither incomplete nor corrupted -- I say that supported by very consistent user experience that they eventually finish processing on their own. If incomplete or corrupted that would not happen. Perhaps others will correct me, but I think these ALWAYS eventually finish (if one is patient enough).

And while it may be hard to recreate, it is not hard to catch. I know I've had cases where files sit for VERY long times, and can be observed in the act. More to the point, I've clearly provided cases where your own logs show the time frame involved -- I would hope that those logs provide enough data (since the image itself is also present) that you can catch it in the act. And honestly -- if your logs do not contain such needed data after this going on for at least 5 years, shame on whoever decides what to log.

The flavor of most responses has generally be "well, it processed". And therein, in my personal opinion, is the issue -- since files eventually process, someone is treating it as a very low priority to solve. What I think is not appreciated is that many people use Smugmug as a delivery vehicle for photos after events -- and often those are being delivered on deadlines. The delays, and the corresponding need to sit by a terminal to delete and re-upload, is certainly a viable workaround, but an annoying one.

Even if one is NOT on a deadline, you notice them, and it preys on you -- should I just leave it and check tomorrow? is it going to work?

Show stopper? Really not. But annoying. Definitely annoying.

leftquark wrote: »

....he's been working on his New SmugMug site....

Yeah, yeah... new is good. Like it. But I think "The Photo Booths" real message was not about that, but that what is really a terrific environment in many ways does get overshadowed by some of the little things long ignored.

The Photo Booth

leftquark wrote: »

I wish I could show you the messages I've received from one of my good friends who is quite respected in the landscape photography world... for the last 2 years he's utterly refused to move to the New SmugMug. Now that October 15th is approaching he's been working on his New SmugMug site. Every 15 minutes I get a message from him: "OH MY GOSH. I LOVE THIS!", "The New lightbox is amazing!!!" "I love my new mobile view!" "This is so much easier than I thought! Wow. Why did I wait so long?!" "I can actually update my menu without code?! Love this!"

I understand things are different and it takes time to figure out where things are and how they work. I certainly know this ... it took me a few months before I had my site ready to publish, but I fell in love very quickly (and this was before I started working at SmugMug).

See my concerns in the other thread. The PROBLEM is SmugMug isn't just changing the "appearance" and ease of customization of the the site. SmugMug is TAKING AWAY FUNCTIONALITY! Not just changing how that functionality works, but REMOVING that functionality. Removing the feature.

Mark

David Evertsen

The Photo Booth wrote: »

See my concerns in the other thread. The PROBLEM is SmugMug isn't just changing the "appearance" and ease of customization of the the site. SmugMug is TAKING AWAY FUNCTIONALITY! Not just changing how that functionality works, but REMOVING that functionality. Removing the feature.

Mark

HAHA Anyone miss .. Sorry wish I had a better answer?? Nope same old story, has anyone seen a feature that the massed voted for get added in large volume?? Animated backgrounds?? When are those lab sales going to take place after the price list fiasco?? BTW speaking of Price lists?? When will be able to print one? EVER?? So many broken promises and the moving away fromt the old SM for newer and better taking away valued features was just wrong.. They should have been incorporated to the new, someones vision didn't include the customer..

leftquark

Visitor Gallery Downloads was one of the most voted features and was recently added.

Ferguson

Please... could we separate the debate over new-old Smugmug into some of the many other threads for that?

I'd really like to see if, in this thread, other people are experiencing this issue.

David Evertsen

Ferguson wrote: »

Please... could we separate the debate over new-old Smugmug into some of the many other threads for that?

I'd really like to see if, in this thread, other people are experiencing this issue.

Sorry for the hijack.. Processing images time ebbs and flows weekly, it is all on the home office end not the customers..

divamum

If it's any help to diagnostics, I'll add I had a few "stuck" images when uploading last week and earlier this week. It has resolved, but it did happen. Just FYI. Also, they did eventually (maybe 15 minutes or so?) self-resolve; they didn't get stuck forever.

leftquark

Ferguson wrote: »

Well, tonight had to deal with it again, waited 20-30 minutes, 2 out of about 80 shots would not process. Had to manually delete them and reupload, which worked fine and quickly.

Just to confirm: we see that you've done some of your uploading from Lightroom. Were the stuck uploads from Lightroom publishes or through the web uploader?

leftquark

For both you, Fergusen, and divamum, we've confirmed the long upload times on those uploads. Just trying to dig down and figure out what's causing the excessive times.

One more question ... do you ever find that re-uploading the photo results in a duplicate image?

leftquark

divamum wrote: »

If it's any help to diagnostics, I'll add I had a few "stuck" images when uploading last week and earlier this week. It has resolved, but it did happen. Just FYI. Also, they did eventually (maybe 15 minutes or so?) self-resolve; they didn't get stuck forever.

Thanks divamum, it actually is helpful for us! Could you confirm: did it appear "stuck" in the uploader window or did it just take forever to process once the upload was complete?

edray999

I'm looking for a photo utility that allows auto-rotate and resizes files for messaging app. Piktures does that except it's stuck processing every one of my directories for 2 days now. Very much want to uninstall it! Grrrr

edray999

I've tried power recycle, unmount SD card, uninstall/reinstall app. No more options that I could think of. Google photo apps is now inundated with full screen pop up ads. Tried Google Photo which won't auto rotate and now Gallery which is FULL of full screen ads. Very aggravating! Seems like all this crap intensified when trump/FCC eliminated net neutrality.

Allen

Photos are uploading and appearing so fast now that if I see one "stuck" I just delete and re-upload.
Almost all of these are from the Smug app from the camera roll.

Allen

My biggest problem is when going to a galley, even one I was just in, the total gallery page draws but photo thumbs/big photo take at least 20-30 seconds to start showing up. Happens randomly every day all day.

edray999

I just noticed that the last posts are from SEPTEMBER... ..... ...... 2015!!!!!!

Pink Floyd comes to mind, "Is anybody in there?"

Why is a stupid photo app so difficult? The old Gallery created one or more blank images between existing ones. Unmount SD card would fix that... like that history matters.

Ferguson

@edray999 said:
I just noticed that the last posts are from SEPTEMBER... ..... ...... 2015!!!!!!

Well, first notice that the original post had nothing to do with cell phones or apps, it was about processing inside of Smugmug after upload. Largely those problems, at least for me (I was the OP) are gone, which is one reason the thread ended.

Secondly, resurrecting a three year old thread and changing the subject to something quite different is not the best way to get attention from Smugmug. You might try sending to their help address (help@smugmug.com), or starting a new thread here with an appropriate title. Anything that is fixed by changes in your SD card or phone is a completely different subject, it is about the Smugmug app (if that indeed is the app in question) not their back end system.

I'm not trying to excuse SM for followup on old bugs; I've had many I complain about with some regularity, so please take this as intended to be constructive -- your complaints will get more traction in their own context, not a misplaced one.

Elf1

I love SmugMug and have often recommended it. I seldom have problems. That said--I just did a search on this issue, and here it is again. I just smallened (smallified?) a batch of photos to 1600 px wide so they'd upload quickly. They appeared to upload quickly. But now here I am about 15 minutes later, still looking at this (screen shot), and page 2 is almost entirely Processing icons. Sigh. To wait? Or to delete all and try again? I think I'll have breakfast and see whether anything changes.

Just checked; it's about 90 minutes later and they did all indeed load finally.

leftquark

We strive to make sure all images process extremely quickly but sometimes other customers queue large batches of photos and photos take a bit longer to process. We have tools in place to ramp up the servers when the queue gets large. I'll talk with our operations team to make sure they're aware and can do better in the future.

Ferguson

@leftquark, the problem with that theory when it has happened to me (and it has not lately) is that deleting and re-submitting them gets them processed quickly. If it was purely a workload issue, one would think the problem would persist on resubmission, or be worse as one lost their place in line. One would also expect that images all submitted about the same time would behave similarly, rather than ranome ones being selected to wait minutes (or many minutes) but most done in seconds.

Maybe this is caused by processing workload, but the real problem, I think, is somewhere in the algorithm of what happens -- some kind of error retry state or queue. It's definitely not as simple as "busy, wait in line".

But... just for clarity -- this used to happen to me a lot, and it has not happened in quite some time for me, and I'm always in a hurry to turn a gallery over, so I would notice.

LCunningham

I"m having the same issue. I uploaded 24 pictures and one of them is stuck. I tried to delete it and reload it and that didn't work. There's nothing wrong with the image and I have someone waiting for them. UGH!