True Knowledge - Blog

Evi server update - Jan 26th

Andrew Ruddick — Thu, 26 Jan 2012 20:52:51 +0000

A quicker update for this evening on what has been happening:

More servers were brought online today.
An update has gone out for Android users which will help with some of the connection issues
An update is pending for iOS - There are delays with pushing updates to the App Store as all need to process through the App Store review process which is outside of our control.
We are awaiting delivery of new hardware to bring a bevy of new servers online.

The big difference today is that Evi will be responding faster due to a change in the management of incoming queries. One temporary side effect is that to prevent continuous clogging of the servers, questions which would be stuck waiting for an especially long time will receive a more specifc message citing the server overload and dropped to prevent continued bottlenecking. This will be alleviated once the impending hardware upgrades arrive and are installed. To clarify, this isn't linked to the subject matter of the question.

Once again, I'll update further as and when things update, so our continued thanks for your support and apologies for the problems in the mean time.

Evi Server issues - Update 3

Andrew Ruddick — Wed, 25 Jan 2012 17:56:39 +0000

What a week it's been. And it's only Wednesday!

Since the word of Evi broke on Monday the team have been working around the clock to give Evi more power to handle the massive volume of questions being sent through to her. I posted yesterday giving some details on what was being done to alleviate the load, and so it's time for another quick update.

The good news is that we have more servers online to manage the questions with yet more on the way. There's also been a lot of work to improve the efficiency of of the answering process as a whole and the way Evi handles requests. Many people started seeing improvements last night and the changes that have gone in today should expand this further. There will still be times when responses are slow, but the instances of no response at all will certainly drop.

If you do receive a "I'm having trouble..." message then before retrying, give it time as it is most likely slow rather than failed.

As such, we're still busy working away. We don't want Evi to just work OK. We don't want her to merely "cope". We want her to FLY! As such the team are continuing to scale up the server capacity so there will be continual improvements in the days ahead.

What's more, an update recently went out for Android users who were experiencing a looping connection, so all you Android users out there - get updating.

We have other items which have come up from feedback (thank you everyone who got in touch!) which will also be addressed in further updates in the next few days. So, thank you once again for everyone who downloaded the app. Everyone who has been in touch. Everyone who has shown an interest and... well everyone. Our thanks, our apologies for the inconveniences, and our promise that Evi will repay your interest many times over.

As ever, watch this space for more news.

Evi Server issues - Update 2

Andrew Ruddick — Tue, 24 Jan 2012 22:08:36 +0000

More update time for those following the trials and tribulations of Evi's first few days of public exposure.

Firstly, another big thank you to everyone who has commented, given us feedback and downloaded the app. Your enthusiasm is wonderful and very exciting for us. I'd also like to apologise to those who have experienced the server connection problems resulting in slow answers or a lack of response. It must be even more frustrating when hearing from those who ARE getting responses. It's certainly frustrating for us, as we know how awesome Evi is and we want everyone else to experience it too.

So onto the update.

As you will have noted, the level of response to Evi was exceptional. While Evi was given rugged testing before deployment, even the best stress test is no substitute for being out in the real world, as any online service provider will confirm. The launch of any highly anticipated online service is all to frequently plagued by such problems, as even Siri experienced upon the launch of the iPhone 4s.

Many have been asking what we are doing to fix the problems and so I'm happy to explain some of the details:

- We've already added more capacity and more boxes are being provisioned as we speak, with others on the way

- We've switched out one of our layers for a far more robust alternative;

- We've already improved the efficiency of one of our own modules, and there's an improved release of another on the way

- We've temporarily disabled a couple of the features we launched with which were making demands on the server, and they'll come back after we've got the other problems sorted.

So, its a three pronged approach - adding more hardware, improving the efficiency of what is already in place and disabling secondary features to help free up resource for the core functionality.

Many people have already experienced the gains, but with a second day of new arrivals we're not out of the woods yet until the new hardware is up and running. I'll continue to update further as events develop.

A final thanks for everyone's continued interest and apologies for the inconvenience in the mean time. We look forward to seeing Evi at full strength where she will repay your patience tenfold.

Server Status / Connection Issues

Andrew Ruddick — Tue, 24 Jan 2012 11:36:43 +0000

On Monday 23rd the world learned about Evi and responded in a phenomenal way. To see how many people were excited by Evi and her app was overwhelming and hugely exciting for us. Unfortunately the enormous response was more than our servers were able to handle and so many users experienced connection problems.

We’d like to say a massive thank you to everyone who downloaded the app, and to assure you that the team are working around the clock to get Evi back on her feet and ensure that she is better able to handle the huge number of people who wish to ask her questions.

So many thanks from everyone on the team, and Evi herself, for your patience and understanding. You can follow us on Facebook and Twitter to be notified as soon as she is back up and running.

Evi lives!

Andrew Ruddick — Mon, 23 Jan 2012 17:01:26 +0000

Within the True Knowledge office this week there has been joy, celebration, revelry and other outpourings of happiness. Of course, such ebullience is fuelled by copious amounts of caffeine and exhaustion in equal measure.

Only one thing can inspire such activity within a software developer, and that is the launch of a new product.

That's right, folks. While things on the blog have been very quiet of late, the reason is because we have been frenziedly working away to bring you Evi, a shiny new AI here to revolutionise the way you search for information.

If you're reading this then it's safe to assume you are familiar with True Knowledge, but Evi takes the functionality of trueknowledge.com and makes it bigger, better, broader and any other positive adjectives you care to apply.

She's also has a beautiful face.

Seriously... how could you not love a face like that?

Of course what's really important is what Evi actually is. As mentioned, she is a new AI which you can communicate with via her app, which is available for both iPhone and Android. While I could wax lyrical about her features and abilities I would instead urge you to head over to www.evi.com where you can find out all you need to know about Evi and her app, as well as watching the video to see her in action. Then download the app and say hello to Evi today. •) <------(how many AI have their own smilies)

For more information you can head over to www.evi.com and see Evi's app in action as well as download it for yourselves.