Idaho 2023

[SAJ-99]

Why is a company in Florida being paid to run IDFG sites? And better yet, is this company in Florida actually processing the information or is it being bounced to India,Pakistan, China, etc?

They are paid to run the process not the IDFG site. The process is outsourced to a third party, as per ID website. Someone pointed out that IDFG was obligated to rake the lowest bid, which must have been FL co. Other countries, India, China, etc, have nothing to do with this. Hell, if it was run from one of those countries it probably would have worked better. That’s the sad part.

 

[millerkiller77]

Yeah why not fund an ID tech company (staffed with all those silicon valley transplants?) Amazing how willing states can be to outsource jobs and revenue, while talking out of both sides of their mouth about economic development. And then having this barely-functional boondoggle to show for it!

I'm kinda on board with your post with a few modifications.
-Any silicon valley transplant that relocates to Idaho must forfeit all in state voting rights for two years.
-Cannot purchase any ID real estate within that two year period
-must pass a state sponsored winter road driving test that is realistic and involves ice

 

[Elktrack]

I'm kinda on board with your post with a few modifications.

-must pass a state sponsored winter road driving test that is realistic and involves ice

AMEN!

 

[dan.kirkpatrick]

not gonna play the idaho game,,ever since the major price increases in 2021 idaho has moved way down my "bang for the buck" list close to montana as a non-res,,,could posibly be a last minute try at the l e tags if i have nothing else by june 5th l e deadline.

 

[TheTone]

Why is a company in Florida being paid to run IDFG sites? And better yet, is this company in Florida actually processing the information or is it being bounced to India,Pakistan, China, etc?

Most states don’t run their own licensing systems but hire a firm to do it that includes supplying the vendor terminals. The Florida company idaho uses does the exact same work for other states

 

[daltrix99]

Managed to grab a DAV general deer tag, which I missed on last year. Did not get an elk tag, and was going to pay full non-res prices, but my top seven zone choices were all gone. I am more fortunate than most with the deer tag it sounds like, and very excited about it! But man oh man did I want that elk tag. Really took for granted those years we always got them without worry.

 

[Irrelevant]

Really took for granted those years we always got them without worry.

Ain't that the truth, I can remember buying them on our way out to Idaho in September

 

[Potsie]

Ain't that the truth, I can remember buying them on our way out to Idaho in September

The good old days when, as a resident, you could tag out then swing by the store and pick up a NR tag and head back to the woods.

We were on a gravy train with biscuit wheels, and we threw it all away.

 

[perma]

you guys make me feel bad for getting a tag.

 

[Khunter]

Most states don’t run their own licensing systems but hire a firm to do it that includes supplying the vendor terminals. The Florida company idaho uses does the exact same work for other states

Clearly not the “exact same”

 

[TheTone]

Clearly not the “exact same”

Fair enough; I’d guess some of those states have way less non resident interest and/or much less OTC opportunities

 

[338win]

The response that NRs will get when asking for an improved system.

 

[Z Barebow]

Let me see if I can summarize what happened. Some of these pieces are just speculation, educated guess if you will.
They open the Waiting Room at 9:30 where they will assign random numbers at 10am to make it "Fair". It shouldn't matter when you enter the waiting room, 9:35, 9:59, whatever, because these numbers will be randomly assigned at 10am and determine purchase order. By 9:31 everyone else trying to enter the waiting room is getting DNS (denial of service) error because the server can't handle the web traffic and is overloaded. How many people are in the waiting room is anyones guess. At 10am they assign some random numbers to the lucky individuals who were able to maintain a place in the waiting room. The sale process begins but the server is still overloaded, people still can't get into the waiting room to get a random number (Which you may realize at this point of the story, isn't random anymore because they assigned some already). Consequently, they pause the sale until 10:30 - 12 tags had been sold, if I remember correctly. (Speculation begins here) The tech firm in charge, transfers requests to a more powerful server that can handle more traffic. Between 10 and 10:30 people start to get into the waiting room and get a number, but these numbers range from meh to very bad to abysmal. At 10:30ish they reopen and being the sale process, which apparently doesn't go smoothly either. 1hr 45min later, after about 500 tags are sold, they pause the process again to make sure it is "working properly".
That's about where we stand right now, best I can tell. I still can't get on the Idaho GF website and remain in the queue for kicks and giggles.

I am not an IT expert(I am a technology guy for a living), but I know enough to be dangerous. This is 98% likely how it went down. In a nutshell, this was a legitimate, planned and orchestrated DNS attack by non-residents hunters. (IE Exactly what the Chinese do from that gray building in Beijing you see pictured!) And it was approved by Idaho state policy makers!

I am sure there is software/people smarter than me who know how to manage a rush of network traffic at 0930 MST. There are other things that could be done to prevent the sh!tshow that was. (IMHO)

1. Get everyone into the waiting room (See above)
2. Once 1000 MST arrives, delay the issuing of random numbers for 5 minutes (This would give adequate time for even a Commodore 64 to process/assign numbers) 1005, your number is generated.
3. Split the date/time for deer and elk. NR elk applicants (Like me) are the problem. I feel sorry for the hunters who are trying to put together a meat hunt who have to wait in line for all of the elk hunters
   1. If you want a NR elk and a deer tag (IE Masochist), feel free to subject yourself to this process twice.

Understand, I am not hating Idaho or residents. Idaho has been good to me in the past, and I plan to experience it in the future. (We are all NR's in at least 49 states) But this train wreck was predictable and preventable. In my humble opinion.

My condolences to those who did not get a tag. (I have worn those shoes) Congrats to all those who got the tag they wanted.

 

[THINKIN6X6]

On to plan B...crazy stuff

 

[brymoore]

View attachment 253246
The response that NRs will get when asking for an improved system.

This is probably true. The system sucks but… all the NR tags sold. Thousands of tags. Demand is still strong enough to outweigh the horror. A lot of NRs did get the tags they wanted.

 

[SAJ-99]

Fair enough; I’d guess some of those states have way less non resident interest and/or much less OTC opportunities

I think the problem is the waiting room. Rather than a true draw where people put in 1st choice, 2nd choice, etc. They make you wait in a waiting room. Then you get into the store and THEN tell them what you want and hope it is there.

 

[perma]

View attachment 253246
The response that NRs will get when asking for an improved system.

service with a smile, at least.

 

[7Bartman]

IDFG should at the very least refund all the convenience fees. I mean the vendor was clearly not competent. Why should they get paid?

 

[Archer86]

On a positive note. Next year should be even better with everyone learning they can log in with multiple devices to try and get a better number in line.

 

[44hunter45]

Is ID always this early in their draw? It's not even 2023 yet.

This is not the draw.

These are licenses and OTC tags. License holders may apply for draw hunts( Idaho calls them Controlled hunts) during the 2023 Controlled Hunt application period.
May 1st to June 5th for the first draws, August 5-15 for the second draw for leftover and returned tags.

Many strategy articles from goHunt and the like promote getting your license and OTC tag in the Dec1st tag rush, then applying for a "more desirable" Controlled Hunt tag when the application period opens. Idaho allows you to exchange you tag up until the first day of the season of that tag. There used to be a $3 fee. I don't know what it is now.

Returned capped OTC tags are resold.