To Forum Or Not To Forum
Posted: Tue Aug 10, 2010 2:41 pm
Well, I've arrived here in tolerably good shape and think that General Walter has done us, the officers of the ACWGC Union Army, a favor! Having our own main board will certainly have its advantages. We'll have a specific and private place where we can directly go to conduct the business of the Union Army side of the club without interference or third party permissions. It's clean, neat and to the point. Moreoever, it has the capability of safe harboring the forums for those armies which have been previously dependent upon those same third parties for operating space.
On the opposite side of the equation is the potential for anything and everything that is brought here to suddenly fall victim to a sudden and complete shutdown, as we all saw happen in part with the "acwgc.org" system. That's not to say that it's possible with General Walter in charge of the operation. Far from it, I don't believe Dierk would ever consciously pull the rug out after having gone to so much trouble in setting this all up. Yet there remain the unexpected issues in life that can completely destroy even the best laid and best intentioned plans.
For some time now I've been considering how to best safeguard the AotT forum and army webpages that I've located against any untoward things that could happen to me! I am the current main account holder with the host service (a very good one!) as well as the principle administrator. Two other officers each have access to the host site account password for immediate backup and security should something happen to me. Each officer has HTML and FTP capabilities and experience. They are a necessity to the site's initial security from any illness or disability that may happen to me. But the host site account is also under my personal name, and should I elect to close the site down for any reason, I could so without interference and that would be that!
Obviously I wouldn't dream of doing that, but my wife might if I suddenly died! So what can be done with these accounts to provide a measure of security beyond that of the good intentions of the individual owner/administrator? I think when you get right down to it, the host site account must be financially shared by all those involved. In the first place, the good, roomy and supportive sites do not come cheap or free. The financial operation of the old MDT was a shared cost by donations, directed and oversaw by one club member. That, I believe, was a good start in the right direction, but I'm not certain if it was the best arrangement. While the site had multiple administrators, there was still only one primary operator and account holder. Shouldn't such an arrangement have had the capability of immediate transition to others had the primary account holder been suddenly removed by some unexpected calamity?
What would be the best way of setting up a host site account to allow uninterupted operation against any unexpected disaster for as long as the site was needed by those who use it? How close to real security can we actually get in a situation like this? Good intentions and reputations aside, how more solidly can these sites be rendered safe from unintentional disruption?
On the opposite side of the equation is the potential for anything and everything that is brought here to suddenly fall victim to a sudden and complete shutdown, as we all saw happen in part with the "acwgc.org" system. That's not to say that it's possible with General Walter in charge of the operation. Far from it, I don't believe Dierk would ever consciously pull the rug out after having gone to so much trouble in setting this all up. Yet there remain the unexpected issues in life that can completely destroy even the best laid and best intentioned plans.
For some time now I've been considering how to best safeguard the AotT forum and army webpages that I've located against any untoward things that could happen to me! I am the current main account holder with the host service (a very good one!) as well as the principle administrator. Two other officers each have access to the host site account password for immediate backup and security should something happen to me. Each officer has HTML and FTP capabilities and experience. They are a necessity to the site's initial security from any illness or disability that may happen to me. But the host site account is also under my personal name, and should I elect to close the site down for any reason, I could so without interference and that would be that!
Obviously I wouldn't dream of doing that, but my wife might if I suddenly died! So what can be done with these accounts to provide a measure of security beyond that of the good intentions of the individual owner/administrator? I think when you get right down to it, the host site account must be financially shared by all those involved. In the first place, the good, roomy and supportive sites do not come cheap or free. The financial operation of the old MDT was a shared cost by donations, directed and oversaw by one club member. That, I believe, was a good start in the right direction, but I'm not certain if it was the best arrangement. While the site had multiple administrators, there was still only one primary operator and account holder. Shouldn't such an arrangement have had the capability of immediate transition to others had the primary account holder been suddenly removed by some unexpected calamity?
What would be the best way of setting up a host site account to allow uninterupted operation against any unexpected disaster for as long as the site was needed by those who use it? How close to real security can we actually get in a situation like this? Good intentions and reputations aside, how more solidly can these sites be rendered safe from unintentional disruption?
