response 17 of 85:

Dec 3 01:45 UTC 2010

When I took a look at the web newuser it was the usual questions about
all the details and settings, so yes, somewhat complicated.  I realize
it isn't complicated for anyone who has set up a Unix acount before, but
for the uninitiated it can be quite complex and confusing.  And time
consuming. If this extra information is not needed for people who want
to access Grex via the web, I'd question the value of collecting it.

I'd probably strip it back to full name, login id, password, optional
telephone number and optional e-mail address, assuming we can use some
default values for the other information like shell, terminal type,
backspace key, etc.  I'd be interested to hear what others think of this
idea.

I tried to run the web newuser on Nov 22 and it failed.  The command
line newuser was successful.  Has there been a change to the web newuser
so that it actually creates an account?  If so, this should be announced
and it would be good if we said something about it on our web page.

I see it still errors out today: 

Your application for an account on Grex has not been processed due to a
system problem.

    * Could not access directory /usr/noton/nu/ 

Sorry. This system error has been logged and will be addressed by our
staff. Please, try again later.

I'd say we probably want at least the Board to hear about this.  We can
discuss at our next meeting, unless we all think it's a good idea to do
it now.  What do the rest of staff think?