[Tech] Tech Meeting: Last Month Feb 3 2007 (from Melissa)

[Daniel Melnechuk]

Hi,

Here's out meeting notes from our last meeting.  Thanks to Eli for  
adding his notes.  Please review and send me any corrections so I can  
post this to the list.  Thanks!

~Melissa

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February 3, 2007

25 Moore Street, Somerville MA

Attending: Dan M., Eli Beckerman, Jamie O'Keefe, Melissa Harrell,  
Devon M. (via speakerphone)

New Server Hardware
-------------------------------
Server hardware, mirrored disks and a 24-hour delay mirror (3 hard  
disks)
Snapshots where you can freeze the content of the file system - can  
revert
to the exact state of the file system. (feature of FreeBSD)

Currently it's the old disk (from 2000).

->>What operating system to use - stay with FreeBSD
->>Document Moving to new system?
->>Dual Ethernet
->>Rack IU  (they run hot?)  Less expensive.  We're current housing  
our server with Alex Amanoff ( basespace.net) 2 high-speed lines from  
different vendors
into their basement.
->>Remote Serial VGA RS232
-->>X86-class box. Dual-core (as hepped up as possible).
->>Wish List - Fail Over for Worst Case Scenario

Documenting Admin Tasks and Documenting Dan M's knowledge
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-->>Mailman -->> Eli will find current documentation and Dan M. will  
update.Will include setting up new email list, resetting passwords,  
plus going into postfix config if it's not on green-rainbow.org
-->>Postfix -->>  No longer maintaining local mailboxes, all mail  
forwarded. Dan will document specifics to our system. -Sendmail/ 
Postfix (configured it to work automatically with Mailman, added  
blackhole list (which was the cause of problems with verizon, spam  
assasin ain't working, Devon's reluctant to get into the business of  
running SpamAssasin systemwide if we're not gonna have mailboxes)  
(Could back-adapt lists to throwing stuff away from people not on the  
lists  *EDIT*: This is will take *not* care of spam being sent to  
aliases like Committee.Director at green-rainbow.org.  This poses a  
hardship for Committee Directors who are not tech savvy. blackhole  
list reduced a large portion, but we're still getting spam from a  
green-rainbow.org address we cannot block because it sends us other  
notices tha we do need.
-->>Send Mail-->> configured to work with Mailman automatically
-->>Webalizer-->>Not working, Devon will look at it.(See current  
thread titled "Webalizer" on the tech list for updates on this issue)
-->>Zope/Plone/KMF-->>Dan
-->>Apache-->>Dan
-->>Database-->>Jamie (see later notes on the database)
-->>Domains-->>Dan - New Domain and where to put it
-->>Python-->>Dan Where is python stored, where is zope database
-->>Spam Assassin-->>Dan will delegate getting this working

All notations will be a text file to facilitate use in other systems  
(wiki and downloadable).  Dan and Devon will document move to the new  
server. Dan K. & Devon used to notate what they were  doing via a  
file, from 2000 to 2001. Dan M. dropped files in places where he was  
doing reorganization (like reorganizing Zope).Should set up  
documentation on a per-task basis, in /usr/local/docs. Everyone in  
tech should keep a copy of these files locally (off the server). For  
docs, automated PDF generated from /usr/local/docs (Devon wants to  
use rsync, check in,check out) some plone or python script to search  
through and mail out a PDF when needed.

Database
-----------------
Data connection problem seems to have disappeared. DB used to run out
of connections, but it stopped. A newer BSD should fix that problem.
The less we change the better, just want a later FreeBSD. Latest
doesn't support old python (1.xxx).

There are 2 (or 3) databases -- the one Dan maintains, the one Jamie  
maintains.
(supporter list, contributor list)

Need to take any changes in the contributor list and stick it into  
supporter database. Jamie will put his in, Jill's and Grace's  
campaign will give whatever info they have, Somerville (and other  
locals) stuff to merge in. Jamie will collect it all and send it
off to be cleaned. 3rd database is the voter database. New system  
should have the entire voter database. Voters table same format as  
the state one.  Remove people if they've moved.

Accessing it - webpage to search it by different criteria. Once you  
have the record
you need to be able to update it. These 2 need to be linked together.  
Searching for
new volunteers, etc.

Recruitment for New Tech committee members
----------------------------------------------------------------------
Getting more people onto the Tech Committee. Helfrick (Nashua River
area).  Mason Bliss (offered to volunteer through Grace's campaign).  
John Saylor said he'd help with blog & website
stuff. Ed Mackenty (Mac) -- monitoring the root email. Tech move to
get a new website up in Plone, before or after new server?

Website Overhaul
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----------------------
Document what websites we have. What version of Zope, etc. Figure out
upgrade path, plonifying? Figure out what we can migrate and what we
can't. Archive the old site.

Contest for website design. Submissions by this date, etc.  
Groundrules - what disability support
levels (should be functional with basic screen reading), strict/loose  
xhtml, language support. Create custom skins -- vote on the 5 skins.  
Free IRV webvotes.
Getting people involved (Designing; Implementing into style sheets).
Using Style Sheet Edits from within Plone. Encourage collaboration.  
Mock it up with Illustrator if you're a
designer and find someone who can do it in CSS. Get a blog up and  
post the status of website redesign contest.
Also post contest in appropriate design related forums/websites.

Plonify MRG website. Look into porting it into later Zope or Plone.

Plone -- different styles for different sections
Youth.Green-Rainbow.Org

Setting up Plone sites, want to set them up in different data fs files
instead of at the root