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Grex > Oldcoop > #387: Cyberspace Communications finances for 2006 | |
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| Author |
Message |
| 25 new of 47 responses total. |
maus
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response 10 of 47:
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Jan 17 17:06 UTC 2007 |
Very important technical purchase: send chocolate to all of the active
participants in the technical conferences
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cmcgee
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response 11 of 47:
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Jan 17 17:09 UTC 2007 |
Yes!! Feed them chocolate. Improve their sense of well being!
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mcnally
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response 12 of 47:
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Jan 17 17:47 UTC 2007 |
re #9:
> Are there any system upgrades which require money but not significant
> time, and after which the users will see an immediate improvement?
/var/mail needs more disk space -- needs it badly.
setting everything up on a high-performance RAID array would be nice
but I guarantee we'll find uses for a spare disk if we wanted to buy
one now and start using it for /var/mail until a more permanent solution
comes along.
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cross
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response 13 of 47:
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Jan 17 18:13 UTC 2007 |
Regarding #9; McNally points out the need for additional mail spool space.
Actually, I'd say that the spool space isn't the problem so much as spam is;
if the spam problem could be brought under control, then space probably
wouldn't be such an issue. To reiterate my ideas for controlling spam:
1) Make SpamAssassin (and the rest of the `standard' spam scanning tools)
default for all users. Users who wish to turn off spam scanning may do
so by editing SpamAssassin configuration files.
2) Make *incoming* email `opt-in' for new users, with the *default* to be
forwarding off-site.
3) Make outgoing email require some sort of automated verification process,
or `sponsorship' by an existing member.
My suspicion is that the vast majority of legitimate users don't care about
email, and would not notice if their incoming email were simply turned off.
For those that do care, this would give sufficient coverage that they'd
still be able to do whatever they needed to do with a minimum of hassle and
user intervention. I suspect that this scheme would more or less eliminate
the majority of the spam problem.
As for the RAID controller, I think I should clarify. The incremental cost
of installing such a thing would Not add significantly to the overall cost
of doing a standard system upgrade.
I do, however, find it a bit disturbing that the major consideration for not
going with this improvement seems to be staff availability. It speaks to
our lack of staff resources and our need to address that issue. Of course,
the benefit to the users would be elimination of sources of downtime and
increased space/performance.
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keesan
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response 14 of 47:
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Jan 17 21:13 UTC 2007 |
At a recent board meeting it was suggested that everyone have incoming mail
for mail sent from grex, but not from the rest of the world, by default.
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nharmon
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response 15 of 47:
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Jan 17 21:24 UTC 2007 |
Yes, definetely keep local mail on by default. How else would new
members request mail access? :)
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cross
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response 16 of 47:
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Jan 17 22:40 UTC 2007 |
Right, that goes unsaid.
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jep
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response 17 of 47:
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Jan 18 13:27 UTC 2007 |
I got my annual notice from aruba that it's time to renew my membership.
Well, I'm not sending in any money at this time. When there's a need,
I'll send a contribution, but Grex has enough now to meet it's expenses
for years.
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scholar
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response 18 of 47:
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Jan 18 13:33 UTC 2007 |
Low-life.
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mary
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response 19 of 47:
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Jan 18 14:55 UTC 2007 |
And you know what? If Grex was in need Jep would be there, as he said.
That sounds like a nice deal, to me. Thanks, John.
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tod
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response 20 of 47:
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Jan 18 15:21 UTC 2007 |
re #17
DITTO
re #19
Do I get a pat on the back, too? ;)
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keesan
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response 21 of 47:
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Jan 18 15:46 UTC 2007 |
If grex ever stops existing, would the savings account be donated some place
or split among current members?
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nharmon
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response 22 of 47:
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Jan 18 16:00 UTC 2007 |
http://cyberspace.org/local/grex/bylaws.html
ARTICLE 8: DISSOLVEMENT
In the event the membership is unable to support Cyberspace
Communications, all property belonging to the club shall be
sold. The remaining cash assets, after paying final bills, shall
be donated to a charitable organization, as determined by the
BOD. All elected officers shall then be released from their
obligations and the corporation dissolved.
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easlern
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response 23 of 47:
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Jan 18 18:40 UTC 2007 |
There's still hope, Sindi- maybe Grex can take out a very big life insurance
policy and something unfortunate could happen to him. . .
(I know a guy.)
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mary
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response 24 of 47:
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Jan 18 19:10 UTC 2007 |
What I will miss is John's being able to participate in our voting
process. That's one good reason for being a member and paying dues.
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slynne
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response 25 of 47:
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Jan 18 20:15 UTC 2007 |
Maybe the board could consider lowering the dues for a while? It might
encourage more people to become voting members. The more people involved
in the process, the better, imho.
And, fwiw, I would also John being a participant in the voting process.
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tod
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response 26 of 47:
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Jan 18 23:03 UTC 2007 |
How can we find out how long we've been paying members? Is that online?
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scholar
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response 27 of 47:
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Jan 19 01:40 UTC 2007 |
Since when have we been paying members?!
I haven't gotten one red cent. :(
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denise
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response 28 of 47:
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Jan 19 03:36 UTC 2007 |
If the dues were lowered, I bet more people *would* become members. I know
I would if I could. :-)
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jep
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response 29 of 47:
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Jan 19 14:27 UTC 2007 |
I'd pay a nominal fee such as $5/year to be able to vote. I guess I can
become a member for a month if I want to vote oni anything, though, right?
I don't get anything from my membership; I pay it to support Grex. But
Grex doesn't need any support. It's piling up money. I just don't find
it support-worthy to help Grex have a bigger pile. I'll re-join when
Grex has used some of it's money for something and has any use at all
for more money.
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mary
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response 30 of 47:
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Jan 19 14:53 UTC 2007 |
The bylaws state:
ARTICLE 2: MEMBERSHIP
b. To be eligible to vote, an individual must be a current member and
have paid a minimum of three months dues.
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cross
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response 31 of 47:
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Jan 19 15:14 UTC 2007 |
Hmm, I say we quarter the membership cost, to $15 per year.
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jep
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response 32 of 47:
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Jan 19 15:34 UTC 2007 |
I say Grex should find something worthwhile to do with it's money. If
it cannot do that, it should lower the amount it is taking in. There's
no need for Grex to be stockpiling money.
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cross
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response 33 of 47:
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Jan 19 15:39 UTC 2007 |
Yes, I agree with you.
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slynne
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response 34 of 47:
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Jan 19 15:42 UTC 2007 |
Well. It is nice to have a financial cushion.
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