[Lnc-business] Request for Update on LP.org
Caryn Ann Harlos
carynannharlos at gmail.com
Thu Nov 3 23:59:04 EDT 2016
I think the LNC would have to examine in executive session and make that
determination. I cannot know if I agree without seeing it. You may be
correct. I do believe there are legitimate "trade secrets" - I also
believe we have too much secrecy on other things. I have seen too much of
that not to have a very healthy skepticism. But I am not a transparency
absolutist. But secret things should be legitimate security items.
--
*In Liberty,*
*Caryn Ann Harlos*
Region 1 Representative, Libertarian National Committee (Alaska, Arizona,
Colorado, Hawaii, Kansas, Montana, Utah, Wyoming, Washington) - Caryn.Ann.
Harlos at LP.org <Caryn.Ann.Harlos at LP.org>
Communications Director, Libertarian Party of Colorado
<http://www.lpcolorado.org/>
Colorado State Coordinator, Libertarian Party Radical Caucus
<http://www.lpradicalcaucus.org/>
On Thursday, November 3, 2016, Kevin Ludlow <ludlow at gmail.com> wrote:
> >I also will ask that the "secret" portions be separate as I do not agree
> to keep an entire report secret. That is not in the best interest of our
> members.
>
> I've already spent days compiling it. I can't (or I guess, just won't)
> re-write it at this point. There are charts, graphs, costs, etc.
>
> Again, I will just ask people to comply first and email it individually to
> anyone who can honor that.
>
> It does not contain information that is at all meant to be public. I
> intended to share it with the LNC so they understood the complexities of
> what our infrastructure requires. It is of no value to external parties
> (except to potentially help them hack at our system).
>
> ~k
>
>
> On Thu, Nov 3, 2016 at 10:49 PM, Caryn Ann Harlos <
> carynannharlos at gmail.com> wrote:
>
>> I also will ask that the "secret" portions be separate as I do not agree
>> to keep an entire report secret. That is not in the best interest of our
>> members.
>>
>> --
>> *In Liberty,*
>> *Caryn Ann Harlos*
>> Region 1 Representative, Libertarian National Committee (Alaska,
>> Arizona, Colorado, Hawaii, Kansas, Montana, Utah, Wyoming, Washington) - Caryn.Ann.
>> Harlos at LP.org
>> Communications Director, Libertarian Party of Colorado
>> <http://www.lpcolorado.org/>
>> Colorado State Coordinator, Libertarian Party Radical Caucus
>> <http://www.lpradicalcaucus.org/>
>>
>> On Thu, Nov 3, 2016 at 9:46 PM, Starchild <sfdreamer at earthlink.net>
>> wrote:
>>
>>> Kevin,
>>>
>>> Thank you for your explanation of your revised savings estimate.
>>> Although the technical details on that don't mean much to me, the
>>> information may be useful to some reading this.
>>>
>>> After some searching, I found where to clear the cache on my phone and
>>> did that, as well as deleting the browser history (the browser I'm using is
>>> MetroWEB, if that matters), but upon loading the LP.org page afterward
>>> it did not seem to make any difference – the text boxes under the "Latest
>>> News" and "Libertarians in the News" headings still appear as very narrow
>>> columns displayed side by side so that only a couple letters of text appear
>>> on each line, rendering them effectively illegible. Please let me know if
>>> you have any other ideas about tests or adjustments you'd like me to try.
>>>
>>> Regarding your promised report, I urge you to list separately any issues
>>> you really think must be kept secret, so that we can confidently share the
>>> bulk of the information where I'm sure that is not a concern with our
>>> membership (in another message you wrote, "Once I finish the report I will
>>> gladly share it provided that the LNC DOES agree to keep it confidential").
>>> We need to minimize the amount of secrecy in our operations, and if the LNC
>>> does opt to maintain secrecy on something in a particular case, that should
>>> be as a result of a vote of the body, not a decision that is imposed on us
>>> by volunteers or contractors.
>>>
>>> Love & Liberty,
>>> ((( starchild )))
>>> At-Large Representative, Libertarian National Committee
>>> (415) 625-FREE
>>> @StarchildSF
>>>
>>>
>>>
>>> On Nov 3, 2016, at 6:20 PM, Kevin Ludlow wrote:
>>>
>>> Starchild,
>>>
>>> Thanks for your response.
>>>
>>>
>>>> Black humor aside, I regret to say that even the problem with the home
>>>> page that I identified as a high priority issue with the new website in the
>>>> list of problems I was able to find immediately after the rollout appears
>>>> to remain uncorrected. I just pulled up LP.org on my phone again
>>>> (Android, version 4.3 if it matters) and am still seeing the same issue
>>>> (see boldfaced item in recopied Oct. 25 message at bottom of this email).
>>>>
>>>
>>> There was a bug whereby the boxes were displaying across the entire
>>> page. This resulted in someone internally attempting to tweak the CSS. We
>>> code was updated sometime last week and distributed across our servers in
>>> the server pool. I don't know if perhaps your phone is caching the old
>>> version, though it shouldn't be. I will say that it fixed it on my iPhone
>>> and we've indeed tested it with other Androids without seeing that. I
>>> don't know how to clear your cache on the phone, but would you mind trying
>>> that if you know how?
>>>
>>> I'd also note that there is a difference between bugs and things that
>>> people want. For example, it may be desired to write "Party of Principle"
>>> (or whatnot) on the website, but its exclusion is certainly not a bug. I
>>> just want to be clear about that as it does make it difficult to
>>> communicate when people are telling me there are bugs and then it's a
>>> preference. The visual aspect from your phone IS a bug, though as noted,
>>> it should be resolved. Incidentally, and somewhat to my surprise, the
>>> Android Browser has accounted for a mere 0.29% of ALL of our traffic since
>>> we launched. Not that it doesn't count, but in terms of prioritization, if
>>> it turns out to be a bug and not a caching issue, I hope you can
>>> immediately understand why it would have less priority. This is simply the
>>> nature of organizing development cycles. It's very utilitarian, I suppose.
>>>
>>>
>>>> If the revised time estimate below from Wes is correct, and getting
>>>> most of the bugs out is going to be a matter of weeks
>>>>
>>>
>>> Again, this is where the language comes in. The wide boxes you
>>> mentioned was the only bug we were aware of and fixed it. 95% of the work
>>> I've been doing on the site has to do with fixing the infrastructure. All
>>> of this is entirely invisible to you and is for disaster-recovery, basic
>>> backups, availability of servers, and etc. The fact that content may not
>>> have been copied over yet is not a bug. I mention it only because THAT is
>>> what is taking time for staff to catch up on and I know they've been
>>> working very hard on it among other things.
>>>
>>>
>>>> and that his advice ought to have been heeded. Surely we could have
>>>> upped the promotion of our presidential candidate by adding some additional
>>>> images and stories to the home page before the election without overhauling
>>>> the entire site?
>>>>
>>>
>>> Again, I respectfully disagree with the sentiment. It's a matter of
>>> opinion no doubt, but we differ here.
>>>
>>>
>>>> On a more positive note (I think), I see that Kevin writes, "Our
>>>> infrastructure has been spread over 6 different services (we require just
>>>> 1) and on my current estimate has been costing us over $10,000 / year in
>>>> unnecessary expenses." That's up from his Oct. 25 estimate of around $6000
>>>>
>>>
>>> Yes. Again, this is still an estimate, but there are reasons for the
>>> adjustment. For one, there were a few other services we are running that I
>>> was not aware of that can all be condensed into our new AWS
>>> infrastructure. None of these are huge MRCs, but they do add up over 12
>>> months. The bigger thing, and something you'll have detailed in my report,
>>> has to do with AWS billing servers hourly instead of daily or monthly.
>>>
>>> We are currently running 5 servers in AWS. The DEV server will be
>>> shutdown automatically unless it needs to be used. The EXT server (for
>>> lpedia and such) must remain up 100% of the time. There are three PROD
>>> servers running in a pool that serve lp.org. Two of these three will
>>> be shutdown each night from around 12am EST until about 7am EST. We can
>>> get more specific in time, but that's my estimate for now. Instead of
>>> being billed 72 hours per day for our PROD machines, we will be billed 58
>>> hours per day. This is something we cannot do on Rackspace.
>>>
>>> Cutting out Rackspace, Softlayer, GoDaddy, and Network Solutions paired
>>> with shutting down our servers during low-traffic hours of operation is
>>> where the new estimate comes from. Admittedly it will take some time to
>>> get all of that accomplished. I have noted that as I am not being paid, I
>>> will not be keeping up the hours that I have been. It's entirely
>>> unreasonable. Still, in time we will have all of these services condensed
>>> and should save roughly what I am estimating. It will be significant
>>> either way.
>>>
>>> ~k
>>>
>>>
>>>>
>>>>
>>>>
>>>> On Nov 3, 2016, at 3:15 PM, Wes Benedict wrote:
>>>>
>>>> The website has come a long way, but we have a lot of work yet to do on
>>>> it. I have personally instructed various staff members to focus on certain
>>>> things in front of others. While getting bylaws up and new LNC photos is a
>>>> priority, it may still be a while before we get those up. Again, I have
>>>> told staff there are higher priorities in the short run.
>>>>
>>>> things that have displayed poorly on the home page are a higher
>>>> priority for now. For example, below is taken from an email I sent to staff
>>>> on some things we had to do for the home page.
>>>>
>>>>
>>>> <jhdombdmkmemceac.png>
>>>>
>>>> If I inaccurately promised some things in a few days, I revise that
>>>> estimate to a few weeks.
>>>>
>>>> We are making progress. But again, especially while we were having some
>>>> issues with files and images appearing and then disappearing, I have told
>>>> staff to focus on certain other things.
>>>>
>>>> Thanks,
>>>>
>>>> Wes Benedict, Executive Director
>>>> Libertarian National Committee, Inc.
>>>> 1444 Duke St., Alexandria, VA 22314(202) 333-0008 ext. 232, wes.benedict at lp.orgfacebook.com/libertarians @LPNational
>>>> Join the Libertarian Party at: http://lp.org/membership
>>>>
>>>> On 11/3/2016 6:05 PM, Caryn Ann Harlos wrote:
>>>>
>>>> Hello, I am following up on the several things I was assured would be
>>>> resolved shortly (likely a few days) that remain unresolved.
>>>>
>>>> First, the minutes archives is not yet restored. These are required by
>>>> the Bylaws, and I must object once again that we have a
>>>> non-Bylaws-complaint page up.
>>>>
>>>> Second, the LNC members photos have partially disappeared. I have been
>>>> getting a ton of publicity for the LPCO in CO and when the news there is
>>>> looking up my credentials, they see an LP.org LNC page that is
>>>> incomplete.l
>>>>
>>>> I waited well past the few days discussed to followup.
>>>>
>>>> Yes the election is coming up but our Bylaws are our Bylaws and having
>>>> an incomplete page looks bad when people are looking us up.
>>>>
>>>>
>>>>
>>>> On Oct 25, 2016, at 9:53 AM, Starchild wrote:
>>>>
>>>> Yesterday, I'm told, the launch of the new and improved LP.org website
>>>> took place. And on the whole, at a quick look, I'd say it *is* an
>>>> improvement. Both appearance-wise and organizationally, I like the new
>>>> site. I wouldn't call the difference earth-shattering, but my initial
>>>> impression is generally positive.
>>>>
>>>> There are however a number of issues that have come to my attention
>>>> which could use fixing, some more serious than others:
>>>>
>>>> *• While the site looks good on the web, it looks terrible on my phone!
>>>> The "Latest News" boxes show up as long, narrow, unreadable columns of type
>>>> with a couple letters on each line. Considering how many people access
>>>> websites on mobile devices, fixing this should be a high priority.*
>>>>
>>>> • I don't see either the "Party of Principle" or "Minimum Government,
>>>> Maximum Freedom" slogans shown anywhere (a search for key terms doesn't
>>>> turn them up). Nor do I see the Nolan Chart except buried in a link. Each
>>>> of these ought to be listed prominently, imho. The brief introduction
>>>> statement when you click on "Libertarian Party" at the top of the main page
>>>> is rather weak ("The Libertarian Party (LP) is your representative in
>>>> American politics. We are the only political organization which respects
>>>> you as a unique and responsible individual.")
>>>>
>>>> • The more detailed description of the party has a conservative
>>>> leaning. Under "The Libertarian Option" (at http://libparty.zocalodesi
>>>> gn.com/about/ , a URL that like that of many pages should also be
>>>> fixed so that it doesn't include the web design company's website), it
>>>> reads:
>>>>
>>>> Consider voting Libertarian or joining the Libertarian Party because…
>>>>
>>>> - We seek to substantially reduce the size and intrusiveness of
>>>> government and cut and eliminate taxes at every opportunity.
>>>> - We believe that peaceful, honest people should be able to offer
>>>> their goods and services to willing consumers without inappropriate
>>>> interference from government.
>>>> - We believe that peaceful, honest people should decide for
>>>> themselves how to live their lives, without fear of criminal or civil
>>>> penalties.
>>>> - We believe that government’s only responsibility, if any, should
>>>> be protecting people from force and fraud.
>>>>
>>>> The first two points above appeal more to conservatives or people on
>>>> the right (economic freedoms), while the second two points are more neutral
>>>> in terms of left/right appeal. There is no balancing appeal to people on
>>>> the left by explicitly mentioning things like a non-interventionist foreign
>>>> policy or civil liberties such as ending Prohibition and reining in police
>>>> abuse.
>>>>
>>>> • The URL for the candidate page has changed (hat tip to Thomas Knapp),
>>>> and entering the former URL (http://www.lp.org/2016-libert
>>>> arian-party-candidates) apparently now results in a page error rather
>>>> than connecting people to the new page (https://www.lp.org/2016-candi
>>>> dates/).
>>>>
>>>> • If the information about how to subscribe to the LNC email list as a
>>>> non-LNC member got ported over, I cannot find it. I would suggest listing
>>>> this both on the LNC leadership page, and on the LNC meeting archives page.
>>>>
>>>> • The LNC page only lists email addresses. Previously at least a couple
>>>> LNC members' listings included phone number and/or other info such as
>>>> Twitter address, but now those listings are gone and only email addresses
>>>> are listed. I would personally like my phone number and Twitter handle
>>>> listed, and encourage my colleagues to request their phone numbers likewise
>>>> be listed, so that our members can readily reach us directly as well as in
>>>> writing.
>>>>
>>>> • Where email addresses are listed on the website (for candidates, LNC
>>>> members, staff, college chapter reps., etc.), they are spelled out. That's
>>>> unfortunately asking to get us spammed by web-crawling bots that harvest
>>>> email addresses. I recommend changing this so that addresses are listed in
>>>> a less literal format such as Nick.Sarwark[at]LP.org
>>>>
>>>> • The page https://www.lp.org/_2016/ mentions Johnson and Weld being
>>>> our presidential and VP candidates, but the photo next to the text is
>>>> *not* a photo of Johnson and Weld, but of Johnson and a woman I'm
>>>> guessing is his girlfriend (which is fine, but should be labeled as such so
>>>> as not to give visitors the impression that the images reflect the text).
>>>>
>>>> • Our bylaws are referred to in the info at the bottom of each page as
>>>> "LNC Bylaws" rather than "Libertarian Party Bylaws"
>>>>
>>>> • A number of people (staff, LNC members) are missing photos. To whom
>>>> can we send photos of these individuals, if we have them, as well as our
>>>> contact info updates for the LNC page?
>>>>
>>>> I realize the site has just been updated; hopefully some of the above
>>>> issues are being addressed even as I type this message. And on the bright
>>>> side, the new "candidate pledges" section listing candidates who've signed
>>>> each pledge is a nice addition, along with the listing by name and state of
>>>> life members, candidates, and elected officials, not to mention the
>>>> attractive photos from the convention scattered throughout the site. I like
>>>> that the membership and donation forms are single-page, and that the FAQ
>>>> page addresses arguments against participating in the system at all. And I
>>>> love the "Help Us Grow" page (http://libparty.zocalodesign.
>>>> com/how-to-help/) and the addition of a "worldwide" link in addition
>>>> to the state affiliates and campus organizations! But I would suggest that
>>>> link directly to a list of the libertarian parties around the world, with
>>>> that page then containing a link to and information about the International
>>>> Alliance of Libertarian Parties. Right now it immediately leads offsite to
>>>> the IALP page, which is a little confusing.
>>>>
>>>> That's my feedback at this time. If staff would acknowledge receipt of
>>>> this message and keep us appraised of the progress in addressing the
>>>> above-mentioned issues, that would be great.
>>>>
>>>> Love & Liberty,
>>>> ((( starchild )))
>>>> At-Large Representative, Libertarian National Committee
>>>> (415) 625-FREE
>>>> @StarchildSF
>>>>
>>>>
>>>>
>>>>
>>>> _______________________________________________
>>>> Lnc-business mailing list
>>>> Lnc-business at hq.lp.org
>>>> http://hq.lp.org/mailman/listinfo/lnc-business_hq.lp.org
>>>>
>>>>
>>>
>>>
>>> --
>>> ========================================================
>>> Kevin Ludlow
>>> 512-773-3968
>>> http://www.kevinludlow.com
>>>
>>> _______________________________________________
>>> Lnc-business mailing list
>>> Lnc-business at hq.lp.org
>>> http://hq.lp.org/mailman/listinfo/lnc-business_hq.lp.org
>>>
>>>
>>>
>>> _______________________________________________
>>> Lnc-business mailing list
>>> Lnc-business at hq.lp.org
>>> http://hq.lp.org/mailman/listinfo/lnc-business_hq.lp.org
>>>
>>>
>>
>>
>> --
>> *In Liberty,*
>> *Caryn Ann Harlos*
>> Region 1 Representative, Libertarian National Committee (Alaska,
>> Arizona, Colorado, Hawaii, Kansas, Montana, Utah, Wyoming, Washington) - Caryn.Ann.
>> Harlos at LP.org
>> Communications Director, Libertarian Party of Colorado
>> <http://www.lpcolorado.org>
>> Colorado State Coordinator, Libertarian Party Radical Caucus
>> <http://www.lpradicalcaucus.org>
>>
>>
>>
>>
>>
>
>
> --
> ========================================================
> Kevin Ludlow
> 512-773-3968
> http://www.kevinludlow.com
>
>
-------------- next part --------------
An HTML attachment was scrubbed...
URL: <http://hq.lp.org/pipermail/lnc-business/attachments/20161103/4bb10d57/attachment-0002.html>
More information about the Lnc-business
mailing list