First Come Not Served
Last Saturday morning I woke up at 7:30 to help my colleague make the “Appointment Booking for Giving of Marriage Notice .” It was a terrible experience.
In Hong Kong, many people believe that picking a “good” wedding date is the key to a good marriage for a lifetime. The wedding dates are chosen according to the fortune telling in the Chinese calendar. My colleagues wants to book a “good” date which is very popular.
The appointment booking system starts at 08:00:00 sharp each day, and it supposedly accepts reservation by a “first come first serve” basis. Knowing it would be difficult, I opened 3 web browser windows, keep pressing the “Refresh” button, and try to be one of the firsts to take the reservation. However, just within 3 seconds after 08:00, the web server stopped responding. Too many people were loading the web page, and the web server simply couldn’t handle it.
I had to keep refreshing the browsers to try until the server accepts my request again. Several minutes later, it showed me a page saying the server was too busy to process my request, and it displayed the number of slots left for reservation. I continued refreshing the browser but it was helpless, the number just kept dropping until it reached zero.
This supposedly modern and advanced online booking system simply pissed me off. The system is open for and encourages cheating and abuse (a single couple can find hundreds of “helpers.”) And the server cannot handle the load, turning “first come first serve” into a random pick of successful attackers. It is unfair and a waste of resources and effort.
Why not just make it truly random, like a lucky draw system? Then it would be fair to everyone who wants to book a popular wedding date.
September 28th, 2004 at 1:40 am
公司老闆結婚一定掂! 叫500人早0.5hr返工(計開OT), 每人開10個IE to login, = 5,000 browser!!! 只要有錢, 就搞掂!咁都搞唔掂, 搵長毛燒左立法會!
話時話, 咁窮人(屋企冇電腦)即係唔駛搵好日…
September 28th, 2004 at 12:07 pm
Actually I’m the one who asked Sunny for help to doing this “I.T. task”. People should ask those senior civil servants of the corresponding department on the rationale behind this system.
My only comment is that, it’s already a “better” system than the previous one which many new couples have to “sleep on the street overnight” (sometimes not just one night) to get a time slot to have a wedding registration on a “good day”. Many people who married a few years ago can tell you their unforgettable experiences.
Lastly, I believe that it’s definitely not a truely fair system. It relies on luck but also some IT knowledge to enhance your winning chance. Some people charging HK$500 for helping new couples to get a front tag number (e.g. within the first 20) and I noticed that some new couples really able to get it done successfully and paid for this service.
September 29th, 2004 at 2:43 am
其實訓街都有好處 - 能考驗新婚者對婚姻的熱誠.
不成功, 便成仁!
訓幾日街先得返黎既婚姻, 想離婚都零舍「赤」..
September 30th, 2004 at 5:37 am
Well, firstly, no system is truely “fair”.. even sleeping in the streets, since some people have work or whatever and cannot take the time to sleep on the street and wait for a stupid number. Putting that aside, it IS already a better system, and every server will eventually reach a bandwidth limit no matter how good it is, so I don’t see why the big complaint about server not responding. It is truely first come first serve because SOMEONE got the registration and they were obviously faster than you. Just because you didn’t get what you want doesn’t mean the system is “unfair”, just deal with it. Pick a different “good” date or pick a less popular date. Stop whining.
September 30th, 2004 at 9:52 am
“Forever”, it seems like you don’t really understand how the system works. Just because SOMEONE got the registration does not necessarily mean it is “first come first serve”. When the server is under Denial-of-Service, it no longer serves according to the order of request queue. Most of the “first come” requests are ignored when the server is busy, while accepting subsequent requests randomly. The method of winning a registration is not by “first come”, but to open a massive amount of requests simultaneously. Those people who got the registration were not faster than me, because I started at the exact same time as they did (08:00:00 sharp).
Please get your facts straight before asking me to stop whining.
October 1st, 2004 at 1:23 am
But I think you’ve missed my point Cloudless. What I wanted to say is that no system is as truely “fair” as you want to believe, and that’s part of the game… if you want to think about it that way. You know what the rules were when you participated, and I think you’re just bitter about the results, thus critizing the government. I agree that the system has its flaws, but saying a “waste of resources and effort” is a bit harsh. Do you really want to go back to the days of lining up in front of the registration office overnight? Anyways, like you’ve stated, at the time of a DOS scenario the server accepts all subsequent requests RANDOMLY. It’s not bias towards any particular person or group. Isn’t that like the lottery option you’ve suggested in your original post? Sure, there are people who can get hundreds or thousands of helpers to increase their odds, but that’s “fair game” as far as I’m concerned, seeing as how normal lotteries allow you to purchase more than one ticket, thus increasing your odds also. Anwyays, sorry if I sounded rude, this is your website and you’re certainly entitled to whine as much as you want.
October 1st, 2004 at 1:51 am
What makes you think that I believe there is a system that is truly fair? I never stated that. You thought I was bitter about the results, but you were wrong. I wasn’t the one getting married, and there was no reason for me to get bitter. By the way my friend Winson successfully got the registration, by asking many people to help, one of them got it. And I don’t believe in any fortune telling or “good day” anyway. I was bitter about the unfair system, not about the results. Even if I had won the registration, I would still complain about it.
I was only trying to point out the flaws in the current system, and suggested possible improvements. The current system is “a waste of resources and effort” because it wastes server and bandwidth, and wastes the applicants’ efforts. At the end of my original entry, I suggested one of the possible methods to save resources, efforts, and be MORE fair. I also plan to collect more idea and opinion here, and send some suggestions to the authority later on.
It was criticism with facts and real experiences. Perhaps you should open your mind instead of asking me to shut up.
October 1st, 2004 at 2:35 am
Choosing a “好日” to get marry can give you a better marriage??? LOL
Comming on… guys , is 2004 now
“Wedding date lottery” may solve the current stupid wedding date system. But that’s just one of the idea.
I think gov. should also educate people. Choosing a “好日” does not mean u have a better chance to have a better marriage life.
October 1st, 2004 at 2:42 am
為幫朋友爭取最佳既註冊時間,要係假期一大早淸晨起床.但得來咁既結果,其實真係”使用者有苦自己知”!SUNNY都係用過呢個SYSTEM,覺得應有待改善既地方,發表一下自己既見解姐.當然,而家係屋企上網登記,總比去訓街,掉底工作,日曬雨淋好啊!但SYSTEM既野,係人設計出黎,實無話百份百完美,總有其不周到之處既.而家,只係對政府的服務提些意見罷了!呢個係一個言論自由既地方,各人都可以發表唔同既睇法,但我地應該要廣集,容納意見而唔係叫人收聲嘛.
October 1st, 2004 at 5:18 am
I did apologize for being rude and said that you can whine as much as you want at the end of my last post didn’t i? I also said I didn’t want to argue with you.
just kidding. omit that. hah
I posted my opinion about a “lottery system” being as good as suggesting a “first come first serve” system since people can still register many times to increase their odds. That’s all, there’s no need to be so defensive dude.
One more thing tho… what’s the point of complaining about an unfair system if you don’t believe there is a fair system? isn’t that like… whining for the sake of whining?
October 1st, 2004 at 7:03 pm
Forever, 睇落你係一個幾自信(好聽)/自負(不好聽)的人, 閣下的表達方式, 所用詞語, 確不能令大眾所能笑住咁接受. anyway, 幸好我道行高, 況且你又「聲稱」apologize左, 我唔同你count這些細眉細眼的「態度問題」。
入返正題，我覺得 lottery system 也未必一定如你所說的. 也可改變現行條例, 堵塞一對新人找人/自己多次登記以求換取「中獎」機會高些這個漏洞，是一個未嘗不可考慮的方案。
至於fair唔fair，我覺得這個世界很多事也好難說「絕對公平」。「公平」這字，同「自由」這字一樣，冇絕對界線，只是在一個社會中大多數人都認同底下的一種概念。在每個人心目中，何謂「公平」，條線在那裡，一定不會完全一樣。若要討論大家心目中公平的界線，試圖將自己條線套入別人身上，這是無聊至極。只有理解，互相提出意見，討論意見的可行性，迫切性，需要性，才會比較有意義。
//what’s the point of complaining about an unfair system if you don’t believe there is a fair system? //
真係唔多明，為何你理解不到cloudless意思？
我不相信世上有絕對自由，但我可否complain一個社會冇自由？WHY NOT!?
這只是程度問題，有咩好拗？
以閣下的層次，唔似連咁簡單的問題都要問下話？
至於Hubert所提到的應癈除什麼「好日」「唔好日」的問題，這是傳統問題。相信香港大部份人都深知「好日」唔代表婚姻一定好，只是若有「好日」同「唔好日」揀，我為何不揀「好日」？傳統的問題深遠流長，要作有效的討論先要知道傳統的起源。暫沒興趣找這方面的資料，不談。
忽發奇想：
既然一個女仔的外表並不表示她的內心，不代表一段感情關係能否成功，為何男人去選一個女友又要在某程度上看她的外表？i think gov. should educate people. Choosing a 靚女 does not mean u have chance to have a better relationship.
(我舉腳支持！！）
October 1st, 2004 at 8:43 pm
“幸好我道行高” .. hm.. let’s see who’s more self confident.. someone who post that comment.. or me? Putting that aside, IMO, complaining is USELESS. DO something about it if you believe the system is unfair. If you believe in a democratic society, go participate in politics and make the changes, VOTE. Don’t sit at home whining about it. That’s all I was trying to say. I never told anyone to “shut up”, but rather, “stop whining”. Those are two very different things. But again, I apologize if I sounded rude, and caused so many of you to be on the defensive.
October 5th, 2004 at 8:41 pm
//“幸好我道行高” .. hm.. let’s see who’s more self confident.. //
呢句野唔係我自信/自負，係擺明同你講既。係叫你若想撩交嗌，我一定不受影響，可以死左條心。若唔係，咪當我發up風law。大家文明人，你get到我意思既。
我都好同意你講法，有意見，除了要表達，更要公開表達，甚至應該做些事，不應只是坐在家中。所以，我一直都有做。至於cloudless, 睇返樓上，//I also plan to collect more idea and opinion here, and send some suggestions to the authority later on.//, 似乎，佢都唔係你所講只是坐在家中那種人喎．．．
不過話分兩頭，點解唔可以whining?
我做左野後，可否繼續whining? 但我做左野，又係咪要刻意登大字報公開? 我有冇做野，你又知唔知？
就算我冇做野，又點解要“stop whining”?
若邏輯是：冇做野，便冇資格whining!
真係有ｄ奇怪，我諗我都要消化一下．
咁會唔會好ｄ？「與其坐在家中whining，不如把whining化成行動，還來得實際點吧．」
but anyway, 我其實get到你點諗，亦認同你的大方向．
August 23rd, 2006 at 8:12 pm
would like to ask which next year’s chinese wedding date on the month of june is best for a monkey (girl) tiger (boy). thank you.