[kwlug-disc] I miss KWLUG so badly!

Wed Nov 22 20:18:19 EST 2017

Why not use GitHub Pages or GitLab pages for a static blog style website
rather then host it themselves if they're struggling.  The mind always
boggles when people go above and beyond the basic needs when they're just
starting out.

On Wed, Nov 22, 2017 at 12:11 PM Joel Nahrgang <joelsn at gmail.com> wrote:

> To add, not sure how well versed they are in Wordpress.  Contact form 7 is
> very simple to setup for a contact form. Even using Stripe or Paypal is
> very simple solution to accepting payments online if they really need to.
>
> On Wed, Nov 22, 2017 at 10:16 AM, Khalid Baheyeldin <kb at 2bits.com> wrote:
>
>> I agree with everything Paul says.
>>
>> Regarding the web site, it is built with WordPress, so there are plenty
>> of resources that describe how that works, and it is fairly easy to get
>> that going. One important thing is to keep it up to date and not indulge on
>> every extension that is available. These tend to be not maintained over
>> time, and with security holes that are exploited by future automated
>> hacking scripts. Stay with the minimum functionality needed.
>>
>> One issue is that they want to cram functionality into the web site
>> (membership info, payments, ...etc.) which prevents the web site from even
>> being an accurate announcement/general info site.
>>
>> As Paul said, let the membership be a manual thing: a person collects
>> cash from attendees and issues receipts and then uses pen and paper with
>> spreadsheet. That way the web site is freed from these complexities and can
>> be effective for other things.
>>
>> On Wed, Nov 22, 2017 at 10:03 AM, Paul Nijjar via kwlug-disc <
>> kwlug-disc at kwlug.org> wrote:
>>
>>>
>>> We miss you too! I do, anyways.
>>>
>>> It sounds to me as if VanLUG is in trouble, but not critically so. Do
>>> you have any inclination/energy to help revive it? You could be the
>>> VanLUG that you want to see in the world.
>>>
>>> KWLUG went through a similar process where things were still happening
>>> but the organizers were losing enthusiasm, and then an energetic young
>>> man by the name of Richard Weait came in and revitalized the place
>>> with his energy. That kept KWLUG going for at least a decade longer
>>> than it would otherwise have, even though Richard has since moved on.
>>>
>>> Here are some easy wins, based upon looking at the website and what
>>> you have told us:
>>>
>>> - You could work with the website maintainer and make some small
>>>   fixes. The front page could show upcoming meetings rather than the
>>>   wall of text that is there now.  You could figure out what the
>>>   proper meeting day is and then make sure the website reflects that
>>>   information. You could set up some contact mechanisms that work,
>>>   even if they are just ineffectively obfuscated email addresses
>>>   ("Contact us at vanlug at gmail dot com") and not real webforms.
>>>
>>> - You have done all kinds of interesting things, and you gave a talk
>>>   with Bob Jonkman on some of them. You could revive that talk or
>>>   offer to give a different one, the same way you were planning on
>>>   speaking with KWLUG.
>>>
>>> - There is a watcamp-style listing of tech events for Vancouver at
>>>   http://startupnorth.ca/events/vancouver-events/ . I see that the
>>>   last VanLUG meeting was not on that. It might be possible to get
>>>   future VanLUG meetings there (or maybe you can use that calendar to
>>>   find a less dysfunctional community).
>>>
>>> - After putting your money where your mouth is by giving a talk, you
>>>   could get some of the members to commit to giving talks in future
>>>   months, thus ensuring that there are regular meetings happening. One
>>>   of the reasons KWLUG still exists is because we do not take months
>>>   off. As soon as you start skipping meetings you are in trouble.
>>>
>>> There are some things that are less easy wins. Losing a mailing list
>>> is traumatic; if we lost kwlug-announce and its subscription base then
>>> KWLUG would likely be hosed. Dealing with membership fees and the
>>> restrictions of a nonprofit structure is a hassle, which is why I have
>>> resisted it (and probably hurt KWLUG in the process).
>>>
>>> The existing website is not fantastic but it is functional enough.
>>> People want to integrate all kinds of functionality into their
>>> websites, but I have come to believe that splitting this
>>> functionality can be a good idea. kwlug.org is now mostly an
>>> announcement site. If we had to deal with memberships and fees and
>>> such, then my preferred solution would be for the treasurer to have a
>>> spreadsheet or a GnuCash setup or something rather than trying to
>>> integrate some e-commerce solution into the main website. But these
>>> things are out of your hands as a newbie.
>>>
>>> What you do have to offer is a set of fresh eyes and (potentially)
>>> some energy. Both of these things are invaluable to keeping user
>>> groups alive.
>>>
>>> You may well get resistance to change from the old guard. That's okay.
>>> Sunny persistence goes a long way. Once people start trusting you and
>>> believing that you are in this for the long haul (or the medium haul)
>>> they will trust you more.
>>>
>>> Of course, if VanLUG is not worth your time or energy then you should
>>> not feel obligated to revive it. But it seems that the opportunity is
>>> there if you want to take it on.
>>>
>>> - Paul
>>>
>>>
>>>
>>> On Tue, Nov 21, 2017 at 07:48:27PM -0800, Ronald Barnes wrote:
>>> >
>>> > Hi everyone,
>>> >
>>> > I just had to say how much I'm missing KWLUG.
>>> >
>>> > The organizational skills by Paul, Andrew, and everyone are sorely
>>> missed in
>>> > Vancouver.
>>> >
>>> >
>>> > /begin rant
>>> >
>>> > Since arriving back in Vancouver in July, there has been *one*
>>> presentation
>>> > at VanLUG - a display of BSD file system hierarchy.
>>> >
>>> > On average, 3-4 regulars attend and a couple stragglers.  There are
>>> *nine*
>>> > Board of Director members though.
>>> >
>>> >
>>> >
>>> > The web site states:
>>> >
>>> > >As a registered non-profit society in British Columbia, VanLUG is
>>> > >governed by a volunteer Board of Directors. Without its executive,
>>> > >the VanLUG community would be quite disfunctional [sic].
>>> >
>>> > Yet the president admitted on the recently restarted mailing list:
>>> >
>>> > >Although we've been working on our website for *years*, we have yet to
>>> > >get the back-end to function properly. We can't input data manually,
>>> > >we can't get proper reports out, we can't transfer funds into our
>>> > >bank account. MySQL currently tells us that VanLUG has three
>>> > >members.
>>> >
>>> > It's unfathomable that a LUG would spend "years" on a simple web site
>>> and
>>> > still be non-functioning.
>>> >
>>> >
>>> > They want $20 per year for membership.
>>> >
>>> >
>>> > * Their web site listed monthly meetings on the 2nd monday of each
>>> month,
>>> > and on another page, on the 3rd monday of each month.
>>> > * The mailing list was out-sourced and they lost all data.
>>> > * Their Twitter account wasn't even registered.
>>> > * The "Contact Us at the form below" ... didn't actually have a form to
>>> > contact them at.
>>> > * etc ad nauseam
>>> >
>>> > /end rant
>>> >
>>> > Gawd, I miss KWLUG!
>>> >
>>> >
>>> > r b
>>> >
>>> > _______________________________________________
>>> > kwlug-disc mailing list
>>> > kwlug-disc at kwlug.org
>>> > http://kwlug.org/mailman/listinfo/kwlug-disc_kwlug.org
>>>
>>> --
>>> http://pnijjar.freeshell.org
>>>
>>> _______________________________________________
>>> kwlug-disc mailing list
>>> kwlug-disc at kwlug.org
>>> http://kwlug.org/mailman/listinfo/kwlug-disc_kwlug.org
>>>
>>
>>
>>
>> --
>> Khalid M. Baheyeldin
>> 2bits.com, Inc.
>> Fast Reliable Drupal
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>> Simplicity is prerequisite for reliability. --  Edsger W.Dijkstra
>> Simplicity is the ultimate sophistication. --   Leonardo da Vinci
>> For every complex problem, there is an answer that is clear, simple, and
>> wrong." -- H.L. Mencken
>>
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>>
>>
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