[kwlug-disc] why not pick a kwlug project for the web site?

[Lori Paniak]

++

I believe that the KWLUG website is fine as it is.  If people want to
add features outside of blogs, they should feel free to set up their own
sites (as many of us do) and maintain them as they see fit.  

There has been a lot of discussion recently as to what kwlug.org should
be/do.  Let's try to agree on what it is not.  KWLUG is a "lean"
organization by design and I don't think it should be in the web hosting
business.  The web site should not be a "social site".  I would like to
keep commercial logos/advertising from the site as well.  The
maintainers of kwlug.org (you know who you are) have better things to do
than customize the site to each member's whim.

So long as kwlug.org keeps an efficient record of past and upcoming
FLOSS events in our region, I feel it is doing its job.  The information
currently available there shows the KWLUG to be the pre-eminent Linux
user group in the country. And that is something to be proud of.

Only the "F/LOSS event calendar" needs some fixing up...

On Wed, 2009-12-30 at 18:36 +0000, Richard Weait wrote:
> On Wed, Dec 30, 2009 at 4:06 PM, Joe Wennechuk
> <youcanreachmehere at hotmail.com> wrote:
> > I guess one thing I would like to see on the site is more comprehensive info
> > about my fellow members. I don't know all of the issues about privacy and
> > what info should be posted, but I would like to see more about skills,
> > interests, maybe a picture?
> 
> KWLUGers can add a photo to their profile on kwlug.org.  Things on
> KWLUG.org are much more locked-down that on a social site.
> 
> We don't link to user accounts from blog entires.
> We don't show user photos in blog entries.
> If you do look at a user profile you won't see the optional photo
> unless you are logged in.
> Not many of us have added photos.
> 
> Even if you register, you need to have posting permissions added
> manually by an admin.  Just ask.
> 
> KWLUG ain't a social site.  It's practically an anti-social site.
> Except for the part where we invite everybody with an interest to join
> us at our meetings.
> 
> Any user could add their desired social links to the site .sig file so
> that those links would appear in their blog entries.
> 
> None of this "anti-social" is accidental.  Much of it dates from my
> rebuilding the site a few years back so the blame lies with me.  My
> goals were:
> 
> 1) Make the LUG event calendar work without maintenance.   And so it
> does.  Those who remember the old site remember that somebody had to
> change the "next" meeting announcement after each meeting.  Then that
> didn't happen we ended up looking at stale info until somebody fixed
> it.  I didn't like that.  That was my itch.  I scratched it.
> 2) ...
> 3) Profit.
> 
> And that is it.  I leaned towards privacy and minimum privilege where
> I thought to do so.
> 
> The old site had, IIRC, Linux book reviews.  It was underused.
> 
> We added individual member blogs.  Raul uses that regularly.  We're
> all welcome to do so.  Raul, can you share how you decide what to blog
> at kwlug and what to blog on your personal site?
> 
> I think we have a LUG lending library with some presence on the site.
> Charles might be maintaining that.  We've had physical issues with the
> library since moving from Queen Street Commons.  It's a great
> collection of books.  Should we donate it to a place that can make it
> more-widely available?  High school library?  Public library?
> 
> Does THE KWLUG need to do more as THE KWLUG?  I say that the only
> mission of the lug is to schedule meetings and hold them when we
> schedule them.  In support of that, we have a web site a mailing list
> and mailing list <-> forum syncing(?)  All else is off-topic from my
> limited perspective.  We don't need to do more.  In terms of UNIX
> principles we do one thing and do it well.  We meet.  Eight years and
> running, right?
> 
> Can we do more as individuals and as a group?  Sure.  Some do, some
> don't, no pressure.
> 
> Are deficiencies of the web site preventing KWLUGers from doing good
> things?  I hope not.  If so, I think the web site is a poor scapegoat.
>  We can blog there and link off-site there and schedule events there.
> What prevents us from linking from the site and mailing list to a
> collaboration site to incubate the next big thing?  Should the next
> big thing take off somebody will migrate it to the KWLUG web site if
> that is what is required.  Or vice versa.
> 
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