Keef, really? This is your thread. There are no secrets or conspiracies. The other thread will be here forever. I give up.
She is right Keef,,,this is a server problem that a good IT tech could fix in a hot minute. The Administrator for this site probably does not know how to fix his Web Site. It is an easy fix for an IT guy. Hell its easy to google. Nobody is after you Bro, ,,its a programming problem. My concern is it doesn't get fixed and things keep getting worse,,we could loose the forum because of no site Maitenance. Im not in favor of a round two of loosing everything like before.
What can I do with an .htaccess file?
There are several things you can do with an .htaccess file to customize your site. Below are a few examples:
How can I control file extensions with an .htaccess file?
How can I redirect and rewrite my URLs?
How do I deny access to my site?
How do I force my site to load securely?
How do I password protect my site?
How do I prevent image hotlinking?
Setting headers with an .htaccess file
Using SSI on files with an .html extension
How to create a site maintenance message
How can I force a file to be downloaded?
How can I cache my site with an .htaccess file?
How can I control my directory indexes?
Transparently redirect your root directory to a subdirectory
See also
.htaccess overview
This tells you one of the ways it might be fixed,,,,,,
https://www.webhostinghero.com/restore-damaged-htaccess-file-wordpress/