WDWFanDave
Well-Known Member
Such applications typically use web connections to talk to the provider - but its done differently than a user-facing webpage. A user webpage carries html markup text and images to render what you see. Apps like this typically have local content, and exchange data in markup languages like XML over http to exchange data and images. So similar transport - but different data and handling once it gets there. Its very common to feed machine to machine data over HTTPS (secure web) connections so the data goes through a web server, but would be handled by different code once it got there compared to user facing pages.
I haven't heard of crossing user profiles on the mobile app - only people's early problems with keeping the app logged in, or logging in at all.
I think problems with missing ADRs, reservations, etc are a different problem (which I think we've heard from both the web and mobile app). I think these problems are more like data consistency/handling problems.. where the crossing user issues are likely application (web app) problems. Just speculating based on what limited info we do know.. but the irony is, if my theories are right, solving the crossing user issue should be much more a direct fix, than the missing data problems are.
It's likely... in my experience these types of failures are common when people who aren't familiar with the existing tools are tasked with replacing them. If the previous stuff isn't documented perfectly, or is full of hacks, its very difficult for the 'new guys' to get it right. You try to mitigate that by testing as much as possible. But there are ways you can screw this up. Like.. testing with only simulated data vs using real world data. The simulated data will conform to the rules you expect the target system to have.. but if your expectations were wrong from the start.. when you goto the real world system.. you'll find scenarios you did not expect. Or if you simply didn't test with 'enough' data.. you may not have encountered those oddball cases.
But this user crossing problem sounds much more like application issues.. but it could be anything. The webserver side.. the production deployment setup.. etc. There are lots of ways things find a way to failWithout real specifics its all just kind of 'where are the common failures' kind of discussion at this point.
Different companies have different ways they mitigate these risks.. some companies just roll out.. some test in a staged environment.. some mimic their entire production environment and test.. even when you do the latter, there can be gotchas. But mimicking the entire production environment gets extremely expensive and difficult as you grow. Companies that are extremely paranoid about changes (like Telephone companies, utilities, etc) go to GREAT lengths to handle even the most minor changes in hardware or software.
No worries at all. I wish we knew more.. but these kinds of things typically only those directly involved in know the true details... the story that gets distributed outside the actual implementation groups are usually much more high level.. but if we are lucky, someone will leak/share what failure lead to the problem. AKA, bad design, bad implementation, unexpected combinations, etc.
I'm bothered if the problem hasn't been resolved yet and if we get reports still of new issues with the user logins.
Wow, and thanks! I actually understand 99% of that
The thing is, for me, I would really love for this to work, but to make my Disney, and my family's Disney experience better. I actually love some of the conveniences they are trying to bring to us, along with the stuff that some don't like...for instance, I think it'd be pretty neat to be able to go in to meet Mickey with my family and have the new Mickey, the one that talks, be able to carry on a conversation with us, and a mildly informative one at that. Also, I don't mind the 'tracking' component of my activities...I'd only have issue with it if it were trying to be done without my knowledge. If they can tell that I'm getting stuff for my daughter on her birthday, and they know that from our past trips she has a favorite character, and oh-by the way, we have something new and spectacular at the gift shop in Belle's village that you daughter would love and you can't get it anywhere else...by all means, send me an alert.
My concern is the problems they seem to be having now. And whether or not they'll get it right. I fear that they've built too many systems over the years, systems that don't easily talk to each other, systems that can't play nice with each other, and now they have a new headmaster called MM+, and no amount of screaming or hand slapping from the headmaster is going to get them to get along nicely. I hope I'm proven wrong, and that it doesn't 'break the bank' from them proving me wrong. I don't want to ever go back to a WDW where I have to ride the Carousel of Progress and feel like I need a shower after I leave the theater...because there are such gaps in the walls that the smoking area has completely permeated the theater, and I also don't want to need medical attention because the seat that I sat in initially is in such disrepair that I almost fell on the floor. My concern is that things like that will just get set aside, the attraction will be shuttered, and a piece of WDW will sit vacant and unused for time unknown, because the checkbook simply isn't a bottomless pit.
So, again, thank you. I do think that they'll be able to pull it all together, but it sure seems like they've got quite a bit of work ahead of them.