www.CostaRicaTicas.com

Can any of the techies help me? For weeks now I have been unable to login to the member area of CRT. I have a lifetime membership. I can login to the forum with no problem. I have been sending private messages to Admin3 about this issue since December 1st but he insists the problem is on my end. He wants me to restore my computer to all of its defaults but I am hesitant to do this because I don’t believe my computer is the problem. I have tried to login using my wife’s computer and the problem is the same. My wife’s computer is newer and has not been changed from its original condition as received from Dell. I also tried starting up Google Chrome and connecting in incognito mode and I get the same results. I also tried connecting with my Kindle and it could not connect. Here is a description of what I am doing:

Since my password doesn’t work on the member page, I click on “Forgot Password”.
A CRT page asks me to enter my username or email address.
I enter my username and click on “Get new password.”
I check my email. An email from CRT gives me a web address to reset my password. It looks like this:
To reset your password, visit the following address: /costaricaticas.com/wp-login.php?action=rp&key=odUnorVQW1ypV6m9sY2y&login=lostinspace>

I copy and paste the web address into my browser.
I get a message that the address is not valid so I delete the “/” at the front and the “>” at the end and it takes me to a CRT page to enter a new password.
I enter a new password and confirm it.
A CRT page says my password has been reset and has a link to “login”.
I click on “log in”
I put in my username and my new password.
It takes me to the “Whoops” page which basically says the content is restricted to VIP members only.

When I use Google Chrome it tries to connect to 127.0.0.1 (which I read on the internet is a “loopback IP address”), but it cannot connect.

When I got the "This page cannot be displayed" message in Internet Explorer, I used the Windows network diagnostics and it said “The device or resource 127.0.0.1 is not set up to accept connections on port “The World Wide Web Service (HTTP)”.

Here is some information about my system.

Windows 7 Home Premium, Service Pack 1
Dell XPS 8300
Intel Core i5-2320 CPU @3.00 GHz
6GB Ram
64 Bit Operating System
Internet Explorer 10, I run in “In Private” mode when accessing this site
I have https://*.costaricaticas.com listed in my trusted sites
My internet settings are on Medium Security
My Pop up Blocker is turned on at a medium level.
I use Microsoft Security Essentials for my antivirus.

I have a wireless home network with a Netgear N600 Wireless Dual Band Router, password protected
My internet service is through Comcast
Neither I nor my wife have had any problems connecting to any sites on the internet over the past few years. She plays a lot of on-line games. I read news, log in to the CRT forum, visit many sites including banking, investing, porn, games, educational, news, email, etc., all with no problems.
Admin3 ignored my last plea for help. I think a site that you pay for should offer some level of support . Can anyone here offer ideas I can try?

Lost

_________________
Run, run Lost Boy, they say to me. Away from all of reality.
San Jose is home to Lost Boys like me and Lost Boys like me are free.
[i]Adapted from Ruth B's Lost Boys[/i]

For what it's worth I had the exact same problem for about 6 weeks. What I did for a temporary fix was download a program that hid my IP address and was able to login this way, can't remember the name but they are free and easy to find. Then as if by magic it went back to normal and I have not had any problems since. Admin 3 did respond to me initially and he explained with the new software it was very touchy on some ip numbers and this was causing a problem for certain ip's.

I had the same problem. I couldn't connect to CRT through my wireless router for about a month. But I was able to connect using a wire connection. A month later, the problem correct itself

cheers,
Attila

when I ha the problem of not being able to log in to the forums, Admin3 told me the two do not use the same password.

Lost,

My VIP Acct and Message Board forum acct require me to use different passwords. I did not set it up this way but that is how my acct works. Don't know why. Hope this info helps.

I also had to set up two accounts, one for the forum and one for the VIP Member area. I set it up using the VIP Member Login in the upper right hand corner and not the boxed one in the middle. Strange but it works, good luck....

I did a little testing, and came up with some interesting results. I am running Windows XP and Internet Explorer 8 and Google Chrome on a desktop and a notebook without any problems logging in to this site. I have a laptop with Windows 7 Home Premium and Internet Explorer 10. When I tried to log in on the laptop, I received the message "This page cannot be displayed". I tried it two or three times, with the same result. The last time, I ran the diagnostic tool referenced on the error page. It ran to completion and reported that no problem could be found. I then clicked on something, don't remember what, maybe Cancel or Finish, and a different sign in screen appeared. It had a box for username and password in the middle of the screen. That is all that was on the screen, and it had a different background than is normally on the laptop. I noticed the web page address was still for costaricaticas, so I put my username and password in, and everything worked. I then logged out and tried the normal login at https://costaricaticas.com, and it worked. I normally don't log in to the home page, just go to the forums where I stay logged in, so I don't know if the home page login ever worked on my laptop.

I would like Lostinspace to try to go to this address and try to log in: https://costaricaticas.com/wp-login.php?loggedout=true. I think he may have another problem in all his computers. He may have an ad-blocker running that is blocking this site. The 127.0.0.1 address is normally used to block designated sites. I use a custom built host file to block sites. Every site name must be converted to an IP address before you can access it. For example, this site's IP address is 72.52.194.40. Any web browser first checks the host file to try to convert the name to an IP address. Any site I want to block, I assign 127.0.0.1 to it in the host file. I am fairly sure 127.0.0.1 is coming from some kind of ad blocker.

Lostinspace, please respond with any results.

I am truly grateful for all of the comments I am getting. I tried using your link GoodDayJohn but I got a CRT page that says "Whoops" and doesn't recognize me as a member. I get this same "Whoops" page when I use a different browser or a different computer.

I am going to set my IE to its security defaults and see if that helps.

I will keep working on it and meanwhile if others have ideas, please advise.

Lost

_________________
Run, run Lost Boy, they say to me. Away from all of reality.
San Jose is home to Lost Boys like me and Lost Boys like me are free.
[i]Adapted from Ruth B's Lost Boys[/i]

Have you try clearing your browser of the history, cookies, etc...

cheers,
Attila

Yes. I have my computer set up to clear history and cookies every time I log off. I also reset my browser to all of its default settings.

Admin3 says my computers aren't working right and that I will have to try from another computer to verify. I would go to the library but I bet they have some kind of site blockers that would prevent access. I will be at SL in 4 weeks so I will try to log in at the hotel computers.

I find it odd that I can get to thousands of sites with no problem, I have for several years, and Admin3 says my computer and my wife's computer aren't functioning properly. It's also odd that I can get to the forum on my Kindle reader, but not to the member page. I guess my Kindle is set up all wrong too. Oh, well. There really is no urgency to the situation. I mostly use the forum only. I haven't tried using software to hide my IP address because I don't think I should have to do that. I will keep chipping away at the problem over time and maybe someday it can be fixed.

Thanks for everyone's input.

Lost

_________________
Run, run Lost Boy, they say to me. Away from all of reality.
San Jose is home to Lost Boys like me and Lost Boys like me are free.
[i]Adapted from Ruth B's Lost Boys[/i]

Reads as if your ip may be being blocked for security due to the number of times you have accessed the site. It happens when one does not access the site the way the host has it set up. I suspect you're hitting the back button and other such ways? The way the host sees certain actions are "unique hits" to the site and when your IP shows up "X" number of times, it automatically is blocked. You have to either have Admin3 call the host provider with your IP address and request it be unblocked, or perhaps phone yourself.

Here is a copy and paste of past exchanges I have had:

"....when an IP address becomes blocked it has to be manually removed as it happens and there is no way for them to selectively introduce your IP address so it is not blocked.

"They indicated it is from trying to open too many simultaneous connections on the forum as our PHP software when refreshed opens a new connection rather than just "refreshing" the original connection.

"Their suggestion is don't "REFRESH" but simply if you are staying logged in clock the top of the forum where it says "FORUM INDEX" which keeps the same connection open rather than create a new connection. Its a security feature of the server that prohibits bots."

More than likely, the website host shall have to be contacted by Admin3. *shrug*

Domain Name: COSTARICATICAS.COM
Creation Date: 2003-08-17 08:33:00Z
Registrar Registration Expiration Date: 2015-08-17 08:33:00Z
Registrar: ENOM, INC.
Registrant Name: MARKETING TEAM
Registrant Organization: 2BY2HOST.COM
Registrant Street: 1097 STATE ROAD
Registrant City: NOR
Registrant State/Province: AL
Registrant Postal Code: 01247
Registrant Country: US
Admin Name: MARKETING TEAM
Admin Organization: 2BY2HOST.COM
Admin Street: 1097 STATE ROAD
Admin City: NOR
Admin State/Province: AL
Admin Postal Code: 01247
Admin Country: US
Admin Phone: +1.9175588139
Admin Phone Ext:
Admin Fax:
Admin Fax Ext:
Admin Email: MARKETING-TEAM@2BY2HOST.COM
Tech Name: MARKETING TEAM
Tech Organization: 2BY2HOST.COM
Tech Street: 1097 STATE ROAD
Tech City: NOR
Tech State/Province: AL
Tech Postal Code: 01247
Tech Country: US
Tech Phone: +1.9175588139
Tech Phone Ext:
Tech Fax:
Tech Fax Ext:
Tech Email: MARKETING-TEAM@2BY2HOST.COM
Name Server: NS.LIQUIDWEB.COM
Name Server: NS1.LIQUIDWEB.COM

_________________
"Actual happiness always looks pretty squalid in comparison with the over-compensations for misery. And, of course, stability isn't nearly so spectacular as instability. And being contented has none of the glamour of a good fight against misfortune, none of the picturesqueness of a struggle with temptation, or a fatal overthrow by passion or doubt. Happiness is never grand."
- Aldous Huxley, Brave New World, Ch. 16

Thank you Steven1. I will ask Admin3 to review this and call the host provider.

Lost

_________________
Run, run Lost Boy, they say to me. Away from all of reality.
San Jose is home to Lost Boys like me and Lost Boys like me are free.
[i]Adapted from Ruth B's Lost Boys[/i]

The current hosting package on CRT does not employ any type of mod or blocking software. We had to remove the mod because it kept interfering with the posts about Viagra and similar.

So, I can confirm there is no blocking on the main site.

I'm sorry you can not access the CRT main site from your home. However, as I explained the system is functioning normally.

I'm sorry too...........and truly disappointed that I am unable to access the member area because either all of my computers are broken or my wireless network is broken. I will keep trying different things to see if I can get it to work. My daughter will be out this evening. She has a wireless laptop that I can use because she gave me her password. I will try to login with that. If I can't, I will drive down to Starbucks and try to login with their wifi. Maybe that will help me to know if my network is the problem. Or maybe not. I just don't have the knowledge to know.

Every other site in the world works for me. I guess CRT found software that exposes a fault in my equipment or setup. It must be fairly unique software or I would have had a problem somewhere else.

Lost

_________________
Run, run Lost Boy, they say to me. Away from all of reality.
San Jose is home to Lost Boys like me and Lost Boys like me are free.
[i]Adapted from Ruth B's Lost Boys[/i]

Well, it must not be my wireless network. I just used my daughter's wireless laptop and I was able to connect. So I went back to my computer and tried the same thing, and it takes me to the CRT "Whoops" page that says this area is for members only. I can't imagine which settings in my computer are preventing me from connecting or are making CRT think I am not a member. Guess I can live without the member area for a while. Meanwhile I'll keep trying to find a solution.

Lost

_________________
Run, run Lost Boy, they say to me. Away from all of reality.
San Jose is home to Lost Boys like me and Lost Boys like me are free.
[i]Adapted from Ruth B's Lost Boys[/i]