Re: Use HTTPS
Posted: 2020-12-11 22:35
I came across this thread out of curiosity regarding the question "why forums.debian.net does not run on HTTPS?" and, in my opinion, this response is solid (even if probably it is not the actual reason behind the choice by the forum admin).GarryRicketson wrote:It is not that big of a deal, and yes the same could apply to saying FDN instead of Forums Debian Net.
These acronyms , chat speak, etc, all make it much harder for those that do not speak / write English, and when they put the text into a translator, it does not translate well.
Back to the https issue, and this is something I said before in the other topics. To start with the only person that can add https, or ssl to the forum / website is the owner/admin of the server, the suggestion or request has been made several times, but for what ever reason they choose not to do that.
One reason I think, and valid, if you give it some thought:
We get many people coming here with "crippled" systems, or in the middle of installing, configuring, etc.
If it was https, they might have a lot of trouble accessing the forum and being able to post details, ask the question. For example, if your clock, time and date is not yet set properly, it can lead to not being able to access a site using https.
Another example, not to long ago someone asked about a problem, apparently the solution was available but at another site, so someone posted a link to that site, and the thread with the solution. I was going to look at it, but couldn't. Why ? It said the "certificate is expired",... So great, the site uses https, but nobody could access because the certificate is expired.
It would not be appropriate, nor is it necessary to be using https here. This is not a "banking" site and
it needs to be easily accessed, for those that need to get help immediately.
It happened to me in the past to log on a computer with the wrong date (run out motherboard battery) and it took me a while to realize why I couldn't surf the web.