[AUUG-Talk]: Re: AUUGN Format

[Sam Stainsby]

Hi all,

Sounds great. Any info on the details of the portal that they are 
designing? Any business requirements specs. would be good. I'm currently 
doing CMS and portal-related contract work for both the Queensland 
Greens and The Wilderness Society. At the risk of pre-empting the 
technology before knowing the requirements fully, my examination of a 
large number of OSS CMSs and portals have lead me inevitably to 
Zope/Plone as a solution. I hope this is being considered for your project.

As a member of the Queensland Greens as well, I get to "eat my own dog 
food", and I have to say that the introduction of a members-only 
website, with forums, chats, file areas, calendar, etc. has been a 
wonderful development (though I say it myself!). We have about 240 
members registered on the site (a bit less than half of the QLD 
membership). I used PostNuke for that system, but we are thinking of 
moving to Plone for some new projects.

I am happy to share my experiences about developing and administering 
such system from an insider's point of view. An not just technical 
opinions --> one suggestion: get your "Terms of Use" agreement hammered 
out *before* allowing people onto the system!!

Cheers,
Sam.

Greg Black wrote:

>On 2004-12-08, David Purdue wrote:
>
>  
>
>>We are also looking at ways to make it easier for more people to 
>>contribute content. The events help here - events tend to generate 
>>papers that can be published. We are also looking at changes to our web 
>>site to make it easier for all members to contribute. In this regard, 
>>Michael Paddon has forshadowed some of our plans - we have commissioned 
>>a design of an online portal that would provide timely content to 
>>members and provide online discussion forums that could then lead to 
>>content for online and mailed out publications. This design is showing 
>>promise, and we a now working on plans for implementation of this portal.
>>    
>>
>
>This is excellent news.  In the past, it has been difficult to
>contribute.  I don't want to point fingers here or to beat on
>dead horses, so the details don't matter.  However, if there
>were easier mechanisms for contributions to be seen, then I'm
>sure people would take advantage of those opportunities.  So
>take this as one strong vote in favour of the above.
>
>  
>
>>I have always said that the most valuable benefit of AUUG members is 
>>other AUUG members. With AUUG going through some changes and 
>>reinvigoration, now is a good time to think about what you can do to 
>>contribute to the organisation: Organise an event? Recruit a member? 
>>Write a paper? Make a presentation at your local chapter meeting? The 
>>board is committed to fostering community, but the results depend on the 
>>response of you - the community. It sounds cliched but the small efforts 
>>of each of you can dwarf those of the board many times over. We believe 
>>the changes underway will provide a more dynamic and vibrant environment 
>>in which each AUUG member can contribute, benefit and prosper.
>>    
>>
>
>I thought this whole message was good, but it's this final
>paragraph that puts it all into perspective for me.  I like the
>idea of developing our community and I'm keen to contribute in
>my own small way to that.  I hope others will feel similarly
>motivated and that we can see AUUG evolve into something that we
>can all continue to want to be part of.
>
>Greg
>_______________________________________________
>Talk - The AUUG discussion list.
>Talk at auug.org.au
>http://www.auug.org.au/mailman/listinfo/talk
>  
>
-- 
Sam Stainsby
E-mail .. sam at stainsby.id.au
WWW:   sustainablesoftware.com.au
Tel    .. +61 3 6223 7455
Fax    .. +61 3 6223 7455
Mob    .. 0405 380 844