[dundee] Installing a Free WIFI Hotspot at the DCA

R J Ladyman it at file-away.co.uk
Fri May 2 13:10:31 BST 2008


I was not really emphasising the money, just the expectations of the user 
<scratches previous bite-marks and old scars>. If it stops working, who do 
they call, that sort of thing.

RJL

On Friday 02 May 2008 12:43:16 Rick Moynihan wrote:
> 2008/5/2 R J Ladyman <it at file-away.co.uk>:
> > I would make a suggestion here - if you are going to contract to look 
after
> >  it, an annual fee paid to the LUG (or the charity, or whatever) is a 
better
> >  idea: you might find that the system requires maintenance in future, and 
that
> >  the original installers have perhaps moved on. If the 'contract' is with 
the
> >  LUG then there is continuation for the customer: plus, new members get to 
be
> >  trained on an existing system. You might also want to state what the LUG 
is
> >  and is not prepared or capable of doing.
> >
> >
> >  RJL
> 
> Agreed.  I don't know anything about how the LUG/DCA are setup to
> handle such things though.  After my brief discussions with Clive it
> seemed that he was primarily just concerned with setting the thing up,
> we never spoke about support.
> 
> I have a feeling that a recurring contract may be more than the DCA
> are willing to commit to; particularly with an adhoc organisation like
> the LUG.  If they had the budget and were willing to contract for such
> things, wouldn't they just seek a commercial organisation to do this,
> rather than look at free alternatives?
> 
> Anyway, as far as I'm concerned the main point isn't the money.  The
> point is to build a mutually-beneficial relationship between the LUG
> and the DCA.  The DCA could conceivably do a lot for the LUG,
> providing more exposure, etc...  By helping them use free software we
> further the agendas of both the LUG and the DCA.
> 
> So it might be easier to enter into an informal agreement, where
> perhaps the DCA negotiate a small donation each time their is a need
> for another body of work.
> 
> Anyway, this is all just speculation.  If we can discuss each of these
> possibilities openly here, then I can refer Clive to the thread and
> see what sort of arrangement (if any) he thinks would best suit them.
> 
> 
> 
> 
> >  On Friday 02 May 2008 11:45:08 Rick Moynihan wrote:
> >  > Hi, everyone
> >  >
> >  > After Magnus and Arron's  presentations at the DCA Upgrade event on
> >  > Wednesday; I spoke briefly to Clive Gillman (Director of the DCA).
> >  >
> >  > It seems that Clive wishes to provide free wireless internet access at
> >  > the DCA as part of their role within the community.
> >  >
> >  > Being an institution in a public space however their is a requirement
> >  > that they ensure (or at the very least strongly encourage) responsible
> >  > usage by their customers.
> >  >
> >  > Hence they want to:
> >  >
> >  > 1) Ensure connecting clients are first directed to a DCA splash page,
> >  > informing them of events at the DCA etc...
> >  > 2) Provide a level of content filtering
> >  > 3) Ensure fair use of a limited resource (by time/download limits)
> >  >
> >  > The main concern here though is to provide open access.
> >  >
> >  > Clive had mentioned taking a look at ZoneCD ( http://www.publicip.net/
> >  > ) which is a Linux LiveCD for doing precisely this.  I'd agree with
> >  > his assessment that it looks like a near ideal solution for this
> >  > problem, being both low cost and easy to deploy.
> >  >
> >  > Clive's a busy guy however and doesn't have time to set this up
> >  > himself, though he has already provisioned the hardware.  Having
> >  > spoken to Clive over the years, he asked me whether I would be willing
> >  > to do this for him.  Though it looks like an easy job and their may be
> >  > a small pot of money involved, I'm conscious that my free time is
> >  > limited and that I'd rather not personally be responsible for
> >  > maintaining and supporting this system.
> >  >
> >  > So it occurred to me, maybe a better solution for the DCA would be to
> >  > have the LUG itself maintain and support this.  That way the DCA get
> >  > some notion of ongoing support and assistance and perhaps some of the
> >  > younger members of the LUG get some valuable (CV worthy) experience.
> >  > Plus I think it's good for the LUG to engage with such things.
> >  >
> >  > I'm thinking maybe a few LUG members could set this up & perhaps
> >  > document it on the website.
> >  >
> >  > I'm not sure how much money Clive had in mind, but after some thought
> >  > it seems there are 2 options:
> >  >
> >  > 1) Pay the individual(s) who do the work
> >  > 2) Donate the money to the LUG or another good cause.
> >  >
> >  > I personally have a preference for (2) but I'd be happy to see what
> >  > other people think of this.  I don't know yet what the implications
> >  > are for the DCA or the LUG, but it seems like it's a discussion worth
> >  > having.
> >  >
> >  > Interested in your thoughts,
> >  >
> >  > --
> >  > Rick Moynihan
> >  > rick.moynihan at gmail.com
> >  > http://sourcesmouth.co.uk/blog/
> >  >
> >  > _______________________________________________
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> >  >
> >  >
> >
> >
> >
> >  --
> >
> >  Robert Ladyman
> >  File-Away Limited, 32 Church Street,Newtyle
> >  Perthshire, PH12 8TZ SCOTLAND
> >  Registered in Scotland, Company Number: SC222086
> >  Tel: +44 (0) 1828 898 158
> >  Mobile: +44 (0) 7732 771 649
> >  VOIP: 7714336 at sipgate.co.uk
> >
> >  http://www.file-away.co.uk
> >
> >
> >  _______________________________________________
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> >
> 
> 
> 
> -- 
> Rick Moynihan
> rick.moynihan at gmail.com
> http://sourcesmouth.co.uk/blog/
> 
> _______________________________________________
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> https://mailman.lug.org.uk/mailman/listinfo/dundee
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> 
> 



-- 

Robert Ladyman
File-Away Limited, 32 Church Street,Newtyle
Perthshire, PH12 8TZ SCOTLAND
Registered in Scotland, Company Number: SC222086
Tel: +44 (0) 1828 898 158
Mobile: +44 (0) 7732 771 649
VOIP: 7714336 at sipgate.co.uk

http://www.file-away.co.uk




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