SCN: Re: discus in action

[patrick]

Steve,

I disagree with much of what you say. 

But you win.

You can find another webmaster. 

I resign.

Patrick

--- Steve Guest <steve at groupworks.org> wrote:
> Well people have been busy today.
> 
> I have some views on the comments that have been fired around. 
> These are my
> initial thoughts and I will address others further.
> 
> Point-person
> At this moment I am the point person within the day to day running
> on SCN.
> There is no one else currently who should be taking that role.  I
> am
> currently spending about 60 hours a week on this but many do not
> see this,
> because there is way more to SCN then the Web, SysOps, Education or
> Registration.  This is why we have Excomm,  where decisions are
> discussed
> and the implications of one person great idea can be seen in the
> light of
> another's challenges.
> 
> Minutes from all SCN meetings are, as with Excomm, a challenge, but
> we pay
> Julia to attend and take them.  So I have them and when Julia gets
> back I
> will ask her for them.
> 
> Road-Blocks
> Patrick, I would like you to step back a moment and consider what I
> said.  I
> did not want to put up any road blocks, what I was requesting was a
> well
> thought out proposal which showed consideration for others within
> the
> operation of SCN.  This I have still not seen.  This is not a road
> block -
> it is a request to make a more formal and professional request.  If
> it is
> acceptable, then we can place this into the priority list.
> 
> Unlike the SCN of old, it is now unacceptable to expect a request
> on other
> volunteer's time and effort to be accepted without allowing them
> the
> opportunity of thinking about things and giving their input.  In
> the case of
> the BB I still have no answers to the following questions:
> 1) what will it take to install it
> 2) what are the resources require to run it
> 3) is there a proposal to manage the associated storage (as a BB
> this will
> store data - how much, how long, how managed)?
> 
> These all have a price tag - in system resources and volunteer
> hours.  So
> often in the past, one team in SCN has been only too willing to
> propose work
> for others without seeking their input.  This is now unacceptable.
> 
> I too do not want SCN to stagnate, and it is not.  Currently, as we
> have
> been discussing in ExComm there are many tasks being undertaken. 
> All have
> been prioritized and their impacts and benefits considered.  Many
> of these
> in the area of supporting the Web.
> 
> Information Flow
> As for the dissemination of information - I do not want, at this
> time, a
> free flow of information.  Not that this is undesired, but at this
> time it
> sets expectations and desires which we may not be able to fulfill. 
> I
> already spend way too much time putting out fires around SCN as one
> person
> tells another person only half a story and they extrapolate away
> until the
> story is out of control.  This actually costs us volunteers, so
> currently I
> would prefer confirmed details and not group hearsay be put on the
> web pages
> for our users.
> 
> Randy, I spent a lot of time putting all the SCNII data and other
> stuff up
> on line.  It is there on the web now, but I lost heart because it
> was never
> linked to.  So why should I waste my time putting up information
> people will
> not release.
> 
> I was also accused of using the web as a soapbox for my own ends. 
> I have no
> idea what or why this was the case.  All I did was explain the
> current
> situation to the users and show some change on our dead front page.
> 
> There was an implication that SCN is static.  That is a current
> view of the
> surface of SCN, but if publicized does a great disservice to those
> currently
> working hard within SCN to improve things.  Currently I would love
> to tell
> people about all the new plans and things that are coming.
> 
> Finally
> I repeat my request, and will remind all who get this email, that
> we have a
> protocol now within the whole operation of SCN.  If any team wants
> something, they should propose it, via the coordinator, to ExComm
> and me.
> In some cases this might be a simple great - go do it.  Yet it
> might also
> have impacts that you are unaware of.  Thus others should and will
> get a say
> in the impact of the request.
> 
> So we now have asked that all teams propose a function and a
> rational.  It
> is clear that existing software might be suitable, on the face of
> it, but
> there might be other options.  So it is no longer acceptable to
> simply
> request that a software package be installed.  We need to be more
> open
> minded, welcome discussion and even accept that your choice might
> not be the
> ideal.
> 
> Thanks you all for all your hard work.  Please remember, that SCN
> is a
> volunteer run organization.  This means that I cannot make any
> volunteer do
> anything.  I have a make a request and hope they see the value of
> what they
> do and will do it with good grace and timeliness.  If you simply
> see the
> surface as being static that does not mean that below volunteers
> are not
> working their butts off to improve something.
> 
> Thanks
> Steve
>    -=-  -=-=-  -=-  -=-=-  -=-  -=-=-  -=-  -=-=-  -=-  -=-=-  -=-
> Steve Guest                                            (425) 653
> 7353
> Vice-President & ED of Seattle Community Network  
> http://www.scn.org
>    "Supporting People and Communities with Free Internet Services"
> 


=====
Patrick Fisher
Webmaster at scn.org
Seattle Community Network
http://www.scn.org
"Powering our communities with technology"

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