USGENWEB-ALL-L Archives

Archiver > USGENWEB-ALL > 2008-09 > 1221656594


From: "Tina S. Vickery" <>
Subject: Re: [ABChat] Website maintenance / website host issues
Date: Wed, 17 Sep 2008 09:03:14 -0400
References: <B70C9036F75B4CFFA76F041AC0AE18A3@TinaSVickeryPC><48C99D7C.8060409@saintclair.org><45AA21E190DA4CF28D2952FA57958841@CyndieDell><01d001c91695$7c4c8ea0$7301a8c0@scott><15E1473EF414423B8CD2E587A9613F43@CyndieDell><96A004BE87FA4AC89729EA2DE54A26EA@TinaSVickeryPC><2F9B71414E5547DFAA940497A2E393E0@CyndieDell>
In-Reply-To: <2F9B71414E5547DFAA940497A2E393E0@CyndieDell>


Let me look back at my notes and find Phyllis's work and post it here. I
hadn't recalled that her work had to do with a call for a web master, but I
may be wrong :-)

Tina
----- Original Message -----
From: "Cyndie" <>
To: <>
Sent: Wednesday, September 17, 2008 2:51 AM
Subject: Re: [ABChat] Website maintenance / website host issues


> Tina,
>
> What happened to the draft that Phyllis started?
>
> Cyndie
> SP Rep.
>
> -----Original Message-----
> From:
> [mailto:] On Behalf Of Tina S. Vickery
> Sent: Wednesday, September 17, 2008 1:00 AM
> To:
> Subject: Re: [ABChat] Website maintenance / website host issues
>
> Cyndie, if I understand you correctly, (please correct me if I haven't),
> you
> are suggesting a Standard Procedure for the USGenWeb Project to have both
> a
> web master and an assistant web master? If so, do you have a draft
> procedure to share with the Board for discussion?
>
> The web master call that I posted here a few days ago has received no
> comment. Are there comments from either you or other Board members on the
> content of that call?
>
> http://archiver.rootsweb.ancestry.com/th/read/USGENWEB-ALL/2008-09/122140607
> 1
>
> Tina
>
> ----- Original Message -----
> From: "Cyndie" <>
> To: <>
> Sent: Monday, September 15, 2008 1:01 PM
> Subject: Re: [ABChat] Website maintenance / website host issues
>
>
>> We have had an assistant some years and not had one others, so future
>> AB's
>> may opt not to have one based on past precedent. I think it is a good
>> idea
>> to have an assistant and having a Standard Procedure that specifies it
>> will
>> help encourage future AB's to have one (unless, of course, they change
>> the
>> procedure or there are no volunteers).
>>
>> I think we need to be consistent in putting out calls for volunteers. We
>> reappointed the secretary and discuss list folks by asking if they wanted
>> to
>> continue to serve and since they did, we did not put out a call.
>>
>> Thanks,
>> Cyndie
>>
>>
>>
>> -----Original Message-----
>> From:
>> [mailto:] On Behalf Of Scott Burow
>> Sent: Sunday, September 14, 2008 2:13 PM
>> To:
>> Subject: Re: [ABChat] Website maintenance / website host issues
>>
>> Perhaps the wisest thing to do at this juncture would be to place a call
>> to
>> the membership for interested parties who would like to volunteer for the
>> webmaster and assistant webmaster positions.
>>
>> There is precedent for having an assistant webmaster, so no additional
>> special rules or standing rules would need to be adjusted or amended to
>> provide for such a position.
>>
>> In that way, we're fair to all members who may wish to volunteer for the
>> positions, as well as have the greatest pool of interested members to
>> draw
>> from.
>>
>> Then once selecting those to fill the positions, we would benefit from
>> their
>> input relating to a job description (rather than a procedure) for the
>> positions.
>>
>> Scott
>>
>>
>> ----- Original Message -----
>> From: "Cyndie" <>
>> To: <>
>> Sent: Sunday, September 14, 2008 6:43 AM
>> Subject: Re: [ABChat] Website maintenance / website host issues
>>
>>
>>> I'm mostly in agreement with Mike.
>>>
>>> I think developing a Standard Procedure related to the Webmaster's
>>> responsibilities and evaluating our goals for the long term regarding
>>> webhosting could be done by a few of the AB members while we move on to
>>> other items. #1 could possibly be taken care of by monitoring the
>>> logs,
>>> tracking any reports of trouble and performing routine maintenance (such
>>> as
>>> link checks) as part of a Standard Procedure.
>>>
>>> Cyndie
>>> SP Rep.
>>>
>>> -----Original Message-----
>>> From:
>>> [mailto:] On Behalf Of Mike St.
>>> Clair/ST
>>> Sent: Thursday, September 11, 2008 6:37 PM
>>> To:
>>> Subject: Re: [ABChat] Website maintenance / website host issues
>>>
>>> I think there are really four discrete but closely related issues that
>>> we
>>> should talk about, which I have listed below in the order I think they
>>> would
>>> best be discussed. Then we should take action on any of these where the
>>> majority of the board feel action is called for. I acknowledge that this
>>> is
>>> just one way this subject could be divided; a division that makes sense
>>> to
>>> me. I will certainly listen to any other suggested ways to divide this
>>> set
>>> of issues.
>>>
>>> I think that subissue #1 can be quickly decided by the entire board and
>>> that
>>> subissue #2 should be discussed by the entire board. I suggest that a
>>> small
>>> subset of volunteers from within the AB (perhaps 3) should discuss and
>>> investigate subissues #3 and #4 (in that order), presenting the results
>>> to
>>> the AB for discussion and confirmation. As part of the work on both, I
>>> suggest that small surveys be done to gather information on what other
>>> similar organizations are doing. In the case of #4, I suggest that we
>>> survey
>>> the states and USGENWEB members about the web hosting providers they are
>>> using and their satisfaction with those providers. This would provide a
>>> starting point for the subset of the many such available providers that
>>> would be examined in deciding whether we would be best served by moving,
>>> or
>>> staying with our current provider.
>>>
>>> My breakdown of these issues into four separate subissues follows:
>>>
>>> 1 -- Performance and Capabilities of the current web hosting provider,
>>> IX
>>>
>>> I and some others, including our webmaster, encountered serious
>>> performance
>>> problems at times with our current provider from the time our website
>>> moved
>>> until sometime in August. As Cyndie mentioned, there has recently been a
>>> noticeable improvement. Since I noticed the same sorts of problems
>>> during
>>> the same period with the server used by ILGenWeb (also from IX) I was
>>> concerned this was much broader than our server. I took the time to do a
>>> little research and found many other complaints from IX account holders,
>>> most of them appearing during the past year. It may be coincident, but
>>> IX
>>> made a major data center move in 2007, and I noticed many of the
>>> complaints
>>> were concurrent with that move and the following months.
>>>
>>> Based on the significant improvements that started in late August,
>>> however,
>>> I think we could probably take this part of the combined webhosting
>>> issues
>>> and drop it's priority, unless the former problems return. As long as
>>> that
>>> doesn't happen, I suggest we just let item #4 address comparing IX with
>>> other potential web host providers, and helping us decide whether we
>>> should
>>> stay or whether we would be better served by moving to another
>>> alternative
>>> in the long run.
>>>
>>> 2 -- What portion of the web maintenance responsibility belongs to the
>>> NC
>>> and what portion belongs to the Advisory Board.
>>>
>>> The only mentions of website maintenance and webmaster appointment
>>> appearing
>>> in the bylaws refer to the AB, not the NC. But it appears that this has
>>> traditionally left to the NC, perhaps under their operational duties
>>> role.
>>> I'd like us to discuss, decide and document, how this is really to
>>> operate
>>> while remaining in line with what the bylaws call for.
>>> Perhaps deciding this would help in deciding subissue #3. On the other
>>> hand,
>>> discussing and deciding subissue #3 might help with this one. I tend to
>>> think #2 should come before #3, but I will listen to what the rest of
>>> you
>>> have to say about it.
>>>
>>> 3 -- Webmaster responsibilities: What should they be? Who should assist
>>> (e.g. should there be an assistant webmaster)? Who should provide
>>> oversight,
>>> support, and assistance from within the AB?
>>>
>>> I understand that Phyllis Rippee started drafting something, but I
>>> haven't
>>> seen that. Has anyone? If that exists, it might be a starting point for
>>> discussion. In any event, I think discussion and documentation of a
>>> formal
>>> list of responsibilities in the form of a position description would
>>> help
>>> us
>>> resolve the obvious differences that appeared during earlier discussion;
>>> differences between various conceptions held by board and project
>>> members
>>> of
>>> what a webmaster should be doing. Our target should be a documented list
>>> that the majority of the board can sign off on. Then we should give the
>>> webmaster the capability and responsibility to so perform and ask for
>>> regular reports back on problems, accomplishments, suggested
>>> improvements,
>>> etc. I'm suggesting that the same subset of the AB to address subissue
>>> #4
>>> be tasked to address this one also, with the final decision to be made
>>> by
>>> the full board, of course.
>>>
>>> 4 -- Long Term, what should our arrangments be for: web hosting, domain
>>> registration, and DNS.
>>>
>>> After many years at Rootsweb, we made a quick move to another option for
>>> webhosting. I think a more organized evaluation of the options available
>>> would be useful before we decide to confirm that quick decision for the
>>> longer term. The other two items I mention are perhaps less crucial, but
>>> they are related and I think could be readily examined at the same time.
>>> This examination should include comparisons of the best options, ideas
>>> of
>>> how to pay the bills, etc.
>>>
>>> Mike St. Clair
>>>
>>>
>>>
>>> Tina S. Vickery wrote:
>>>> This agenda item is carried over as Old business. As Chair, I re-open
>>>> the
>>> discussion of this item.
>>>>
>>>> Tina Vickery
>>>> National Coordinator
>>>> USGenWeb Project
>>>
>>> -------------------------------
>>> To unsubscribe from the list, please send an email to
>>> with the word 'unsubscribe' without
>>> the
>>> quotes in the subject and the body of the message
>>>
>>>
>>> -------------------------------
>>> To unsubscribe from the list, please send an email to
>>> with the word 'unsubscribe' without
>>> the
>>> quotes in the subject and the body of the message
>>
>>
>> -------------------------------
>> To unsubscribe from the list, please send an email to
>> with the word 'unsubscribe' without the
>> quotes in the subject and the body of the message
>>
>>
>> -------------------------------
>> To unsubscribe from the list, please send an email to
>> with the word 'unsubscribe' without the
>> quotes in the subject and the body of the message
>
>
> -------------------------------
> To unsubscribe from the list, please send an email to
> with the word 'unsubscribe' without the
> quotes in the subject and the body of the message
>
>
> -------------------------------
> To unsubscribe from the list, please send an email to
> with the word 'unsubscribe' without the
> quotes in the subject and the body of the message

This thread: