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  1. TopTop #1
    Juggledude
    Guest

    WaccoBB.net Needs Your Help!

    Quote Posted in reply to the post by Barry:
    Quote Posted in reply to the post by Barry:
    Quote Posted in reply to the post by Barry:
    WaccoBB.net Needs Your Help!

    Hi Everybody!

    I am quite pleased with how WaccoBB.net is doing lately. There have been some real interesting and well written posts & threads lately and I have been getting some very sweet feedback from members, including several people telling me that they look forward to the Digest every night and that it helps them feel like part of the community (which they are!).

    So I think we are on to something! As host, I can only prepare the space for the party to happen in. I'm thrilled that you guys have decided to drop by and join the party! It's happening! As a matter of fact we recently crossed the line of 3,000 members, which was the member count of the old Yahoogroup before we switched formats.

    So I am going to declare this proof-of-concept system a SUCCESS!

    Now it's time for the real FUN to begin!

    [img]images/Wacco/WaccoWantsYou.jpg[/img]
    I have been working on a major upgrade to this system for all too long. It's been slow going due to the amount of time it takes each day to just keep the site running smoothly and giving everybody the support they need, which I have been doing largely on my own (thanks again to Deb and Shelby and anybody else I may be forgetting for pitching in at times). Now it's your humble moderator who needs support!

    Over the summer, with help of some hired folks, I got some good work done and now the upgrade is nearly ready to go! In order to make the final push, I need your help! I can't do it alone anymore; there just simply isn't enough time. What's more, I think its most appropriate that WaccoBB.net is a community supported enterprise! If everybody chips in just a little bit (OK, I need a few people to chip in more than a little bit) this can really be quite something!

    Some of the features that are either included in the upgrade or will follow soon after it is installed are:
    * Better support for pasting in formatted text
    * Required Prefixes for thread titles (that include the location, etc.)
    * Better support for attaching images which are then sent out in the digest
    * Easier to pick your subscription level for each category
    * Spelling Checker
    * And many more!
    I am planning on doing the PHP programming that is needed, along with online moderation and over-seeing the site.

    I've outlined the key tasks I need help with below. If you are interested in helping out please email me at [email protected]!

    Volunteers

    "Contact Us" Tech Support

    I get lots of "Contact Us" messages each day. Most of them are pretty simple: trouble with registering, logging in or posting, passwords, username changes, guideline questions, welcoming new members, etc. They are generally pretty easy to handle, but it does take a little extra time to be kind and friendly with everybody, which I find very enjoyable, but time consuming.

    I would really love to form a team that can handle these requests. Ideally there would be a leader who would take responsibility for everybody getting helped and who would pull me in when needed.

    This is a great job for someone who enjoys people and is online frequently. You get the satisfaction of helping someone with a problem, and most Waccos are very appreciative of the assistance.

    I would be happy to train you. Anybody who has good communication skills and is very comfortable with using any software package, should be able to pick it up pretty easily.

    Because there is some training involved, I ask that you make a commitment to stick with it for at least 2 months. If there are 5 people handling it, it should be less than a half an hour a day, which can easily spread out to 5 minutes here and 10 minutes there.


    Reviewing Posts

    I like to review all posts to check for dupes, appropriate category, formatting issues, etc. Posts appear immediately on the website, so its best that they get reviewed in a timely manner, especially before the Digest goes out. It would be great to have some people that either take on this task over all, or that I can call on when I am offline, or deep into a programming push for a few days. Again, some training is involved so I need a limited commitment.

    Be a Host!

    This can be mixed in with the above tasks or separated out. As I hold WaccoBB.net as a community, I think it is important that new members are personally greeted and welcomed. Again, this can be quite fun! Less training and commitment is needed, but you need to do what you say you will do.

    Develop Online Tutorials

    An important part of lightening the load is to make the system even easier to use (which is something I am working on) and to provide online video (flash) tutorials. This will be even more important when we move to the new system where some things are a bit different, and there are a lot of new features.

    I have software (Macromedia Captivate - formerly RoboDemo) I can give you to that allows a screen session to be captured along with a voice over narration. I'm looking for someone who already knows this software or is willing to learn it so that you can create the demos for the new system, or help me create them, as I am not familiar with the software.

    Beta Testing

    I would like to have a 100+ people to register on the test version of our new site. Its not quite ready for prime-time but there's alot there. By registering there I'll be able to contact you for your feedback about certain things and let you know what to look for. Please check out the test site at https://scott.asmallorange.com/~waccobb/


    Paid Help

    HTML programming

    I plan to do the PHP programming that is needed for the site, however I need help with the HTML part. So if you are good with HTML or know someone who is, I could really use the help! Since there is a fair bit of training involved to understand how to work with this data-driven system, I need somebody who can stick around. There is a fair bit of work to do, both before and after the upgrade, so I am prepared to pay for someone's time (20-40 hrs/week).

    College students are welcome on a volunteer basis and if they provide a net benefit to the project and I think they would learn alot!

    Financial Support

    Be a Founding Member for $250

    I have already put out thousands of dollars for programming and software. I now need to reach out to the community to provide some investment capital to get the programming done. While I welcome all contributions, and I will be asking people to be voluntary supporting members (who will receive certain perks) once we upgrade, I am now asking 40 people or businesses to be Founding Members by contributing at least $250 each.

    In addition to the satisfaction of knowing that you helped create WaccoBB.net through your generous support, you will also receive:
    * Lifetime Supporting Member status
    * 4 weeks of banner publishing in the Digest (transferable)
    * Acknowledged on our Founding Members page
    * Option to have Founding Member as your title on the website.
    While WaccoBB.net is not an official non-profit (hell, we're nearly a non-revenue!) we can probably arrange for you to get a valid tax write-off.

    Please send your contributions to:

    WaccoBB.net
    P.O. Box 1112
    Sebastopol, CA 95473


    Or you can use your Credit Card via PayPal (its easy!) to [email protected]

    Thank You!!!


    Volunteer Potluck Party

    If you are interested in joining the team of volunteers to help support WaccoBB.net please email me at [email protected]. If possible, please also come the the Volunteer Potluck Party in Sebastopol so we can all meet and celebrate the elections!!

    Volunteer Potluck Party!
    Wednesday, November 8th
    6:30 -10pm in Sebastopol



    I would love to have the new system in place by my 50th birthday on Dec 21st.
    With your help, it just might be possible and would make a great birthday present!

    I believe this upgrade will provide the essential infrastructure for our community to continue to grow, be yet easier to use, while giving even more ways to access the information. With your help we can move WaccoBB.net into yet a better space to hold this party!
    Reply below:
    Last edited by Barry; 10-27-2006 at 11:00 AM.
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  2. TopTop #2
    Juggledude
    Guest

    Re: Wacco BB Needs your Help!

    I've been a member of this community board since about 2 months after I picked up a flyer from a stack conveniently stashed over the urinals at the Harmony festival (A marketing genius, Barry is not, but this was an effective, if slightly strange move). I've enjoyed tremendously the experience, benefiting not only from the sense of community, but finacially (sold some stuff), experientially (met some folks), intellectually (some great discussions) and more!

    I understand that Barry has been creating this space for us largely fostered (and funded!) by his good will and sterling intent, and I hereby proclaim that I'd like to help.

    Count me in on volunteer help for "Contact Us" as well as "Host" positions, if you still need it.

    I'd also like to commit on a financial level, count me in for a $250 founding member investment.

    Thanks again Barry, for helping to steward this great community resource through it's infancy, and let's all step in as a Village to help it through it's adolesence!

    Royce
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  3. TopTop #3
    Mrs. Wacco's Avatar
    Mrs. Wacco
    Behind every great man...

    Re: Wacco BB Needs your Help!

    Quote Posted in reply to the post by Juggledude:
    I

    I'd also like to commit on a financial level, count me in for a $250 founding member investment.

    Thanks again Barry, for helping to steward this great community resource through it's infancy, and let's all step in as a Village to help it through it's adolesence!

    Royce
    I also pledge my support. As witness to the effort and passion Barry brings to making WaCCO the best it can be so it can best serve the community, I also commit $250 as a Founding Member. While I get extra special benefits () from being a Founding Member, I urge all you folks out there in WaCCO land to support the dear boy. He works REALLY hard and REALLY is committed to you, his community.

    Thanks on his behalf

    Linda

    aka Mrs WaCCO
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