I am looking for region 4 members that would like to see our region join the WBCCI Internet community. If you have any web experience, or have historical information covering any unit within region 4 please let me know.
My wife and I are in our forties, and new WBCCI members. Our first outing with the local unit was at a picnic where we were introduced to several other members. After introductions the news letter editor told me how he would like to pass his responsibilities to another but was unable to find anyone. He explained that he no longer owned an Airstream, no longer camped, and was only doing the newsletter until he could pass the responsibility to someone. He also described the difficulties region 4 was having getting a web page up.
Since I am a new member, and a network engineer it seemed like a good place to start volunteering. Securing the “wbcci4.org” domain and enabling a basic construction page took about 10 minuets. Getting someone from the region level to work with us has
so far been unsuccessful.
]My reason for posting the request for help and Information was to see if there are any region 4 folks interested in helping. Sometime a grass roots effort can succeed where other efforts fail!
Terry
__________________
2004 - 25' Safari ss
WBCCI #1941
Last edited by Pahaska; 10-25-2005 at 07:35 AM.
Reason: Changed to standard font size and face
My wife and I are in our forties, and new WBCCI members. Our first outing with the local unit was at a picnic where we were introduced to several other members. After introductions the news letter editor told me how he would like to pass his responsibilities to another but was unable to find anyone. He explained that he no longer owned an Airstream, no longer camped, and was only doing the newsletter until he could pass the responsibility to someone. He also described the difficulties region 4 was having getting a web page up.
Since I am a new member, and a network engineer it seemed like a good place to start volunteering. Securing the “wbcci4.org” domain and enabling a basic construction page took about 10 minuets. Getting someone from the region level to work with us has
so far been unsuccessful.
My reason for posting the request for help and Information was to see if there are any region 4 folks interested in helping. Sometime a grass roots effort can succeed where other efforts fail!
Terry
Terry,
I would suggest posting your request on both the Vintage Airstream List and Hunter Hampton's Yahoo Airstream List. I know that there are people on both those lists in your region and they don't seem to be here.
Bill
__________________
Bill Kerfoot, WBCCI/VAC/CAC/El Camino Real Unit #5223
Just my personal opinion
1973 Dodge W200 PowerWagon, 1977 Lincoln Continental
1979 23' Safari, and 1954 29' Double Door Liner Orange, CA
Terry,
This is eerie. I just sent an email this evening to the Region 4 Membership director (who is a freind on mine) suggesting that the WBCCI web presence needs to be upgraded significantly. I asked him to forward my message as appropriate as I had no idea who to officially send my suggestion to.
Anyway, I provided some suggestions on how to improve WBCCI information on the web in that message, and I closed it by noting that Region 4 does not even have a web site. I volunteered to at least discuss what it would take to create a web site (I have almost no experience in web site creatation and mainenance, but many ideas). I also have very little time to commit to such a venture, but I beleive a Region 4 web site is sorely needed.
By the way I am a member of the WBCCI Michigan Unit in Region 4. I am also in my 40's and have only been a WBCCI member for about 2 years. So far we've been to 4 WBCCI events (all of a regional/national level - haven't been to a local Unit event yet) and had a good time at all the events we've attended. I think we do need to get the information about WBCCI (especially Region 4) and it's events out to others. A good web site would be a good start.
Feel free to email or pm me if you want to discuss this in more detail. Or we can bounce some ideas around in this message string.
__________________ Joe WBCCI/VAC #5533
'94 28' Excella / '05 Hummer H2
(and casually seeking a vintage AS)
We (AirstreamForums.com) hosts 5 EBCCI chapter sites for FREE. I have worked with the various webmasters on getting their domains purchased and software setup to upload their sites. I have often thought this would be a great topic for the international rally. It might even be a nice little sub-forum for us to setup here as many of time are going to have the same questions...
Bill – The tip on posting to the VAC group seems sound. I have noticed that VAC members seem to be an active lot, and that’s what I’m looking for.
Andy – The wbcci4.org domain has been acquired, and parked at dotearth. The are also providing limited email forwarding services as part of the domain. My initial thought was to host the site using a hosting service but your offer to host for free got my attention! Do you also offer DNS, and some sort of POP services?
Joe – Yes! I need help. the hardest part of this project will be lining up information feeds from all of region 4s units. The technical stuff we can handle. It’s the content that’s hard. If you could get your friend at region to see if anyone up there has a game plan it would help a lot.
Thanks everyone.
Terry
__________________
2004 - 25' Safari ss
WBCCI #1941
Joe – Yes! I need help. the hardest part of this project will be lining up information feeds from all of region 4s units. The technical stuff we can handle. It’s the content that’s hard. If you could get your friend at region to see if anyone up there has a game plan it would help a lot.
Terry,
I don't currently have the knowledge to help much on the technical stuff of web page creation and maintenance, so if that is your background, that is a good start. I agree that getting the web site "content" and keeping it up to date may be the bigger challenge, but I am certainly willing to help. So far since joining WBCCI I have been more of a "participant" than an active member involved in the running of my Unit or even the organizing or running of an event. However, I have enjoyed the events I have attended enough to know that sooner or later I will be involved to a greater extent. I guess now might be the time to get involved. I don't know too many people in either my unit or the region yet, but I'll make some inquiries to see if there is a way get the information we would want to post on a Region 4 web site without stepping on too many toes.
My thought is that it may be more important to get up to date event information (dates, locations, contact info, etc.) to post, rather than other details such as club officer names and the like, but I guess it'd be nice to post all of this information, if available. What do you think would be important information to post on the web site?
Are there any other Region web sites that you think would make a "good" example for Region 4 to emulate? If so, let me know so that I can get an idea what you have in mind? Thanks.
I'll probably contact you off line soon so that we can discuss this in more detail.
__________________ Joe WBCCI/VAC #5533
'94 28' Excella / '05 Hummer H2
(and casually seeking a vintage AS)
Yes, DNS and POP are included. It's somewhat limited because this is intended to be a service to the community and not free email for entire clubs, but I think I have setup all the sites with at least 5 POP accounts for the officers. No support guarantee if offered but I am around via email nearly all the time. I suggest email forwarding for most people as it just passes the email to the person's existing email system which is usually easiest for the person. Gmail also offers POP3, so that would make a great combo with a forward setup...
Quote:
Originally Posted by BowlingAlone
Andy – The wbcci4.org domain has been acquired, and parked at dotearth. The are also providing limited email forwarding services as part of the domain. My initial thought was to host the site using a hosting service but your offer to host for free got my attention! Do you also offer DNS, and some sort of POP services?
The place this should really start is at WBCCI hq.
The technical side of things is often used as an excuse but that is easy and inexpensive. What is hard is the management.
Each region and unit should have its own place and that should include public and private (htaccess) areas. There needs to be policies in place regarding proper use, file formats, content, and so on.
What really got me was finding that wbcci caravans is a separate domain name from wbcci and there is poor linkage between the two.
Region and unit websites could be a subdomain on wbcci.org and, if in a consistent naming scheme, could be easy for people to find.
Hq and region should have access to the protected areas of unit websites where business matters or stored. There should be some basic 'audit' tests that could be used to help anticipate unit health problems for proactive assistance if needed.
Nearly all forms and pubs and corporate documents should be available in open specification formats such as HTML or PDF.
Right now its a mishmash. No plan. No set of standards. No guidelines. Stuff in proprietary formats. Ownership of critical components often vested in non organizational entities. Intellectual property considerations ignored.
The biggest problem I have seen so far is attitude. No interest in ideas. Rejection of the idea that maybe not everyone runs Windows and has a copy of MS Office and Publisher. No willingness to learn about file organization, effective association governance, or basic document management and records retention.
I hear you! I do a lot of work w/non-profits. It's often the case that the needs and abilities of the member/user outstrip the infrastructure of the org. It has been really frustrating trying to locate wbcci chapters in the NW - some have no web presence, some have sites housed on personal isp's with horrid URLs and no updates.
__________________
77 Argosy Minuet, 6 metre
77 Argosy 24, Rear door
AIR 3181, WBCCI/VAC # 5575
Wally knows: AIRForums.com is the best place to camp!
We (AirstreamForums.com) hosts 5 EBCCI chapter sites for FREE. I have worked with the various webmasters on getting their domains purchased and software setup to upload their sites. I have often thought this would be a great topic for the international rally. It might even be a nice little sub-forum for us to setup here as many of time are going to have the same questions...
Let me know if you need some help.
Andy,
I have been informed by Terry (BowlingAlone) that he is not going to continue in WBCCI and thus he won't be putting together a Region 4 Web Site. I may be in the process of volunteering to create the Region 4 web site, if it is not too daunting of a task. Your offer for hosting and oither help might be enough to get me going on this. Feel free to email or PM me with your thoughts if it is too much to post to this thread. Thanks.
__________________ Joe WBCCI/VAC #5533
'94 28' Excella / '05 Hummer H2
(and casually seeking a vintage AS)
That's terrific!! As a member of Unit 4 I am excited over this. Congratulations I look forward to viewing the site as a cool and possibly interactive and wonderful alternative to my Newstream and BB.
__________________ -Carol
Adopt the pace of nature: her secret is patience. ~Ralph Waldo Emerson
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I look forward to viewing the site as a cool and possibly interactive and wonderful alternative to my Newstream and BB.
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