Networking
The use of networking is what will make this site a community that leverages the member’s talents to "realize the full potential of Internet technology."
Of course it is always risky to attempt to tell organizers that it may be a good idea to revisit fundamentals now and then, but hey, let’s think about this idea "networking".
Doing a Google search of "networking" brought up this hit,
http://www.orgnet.com/BuildingNetworks.pdf
If you take the time to read this PDF file I believe you will find new appreciation for the importance of networking. There is a difference between describing what something does and explaining why it is so, I am told. This short paper attempts to do just that.
I hope I’ve gotten you curious enough to not only check it out but to do some real networking for the goal of getting unions to use more Internet technology
bty, I did not write it and have nothing to do with it.
Cheers,
Tony
I enjoyed reading that
Thanks for that link. It was a good read. So we can consider this site a "weaver". And it's good to know that I'm on the right track, too. I'm playing a leadership role now but will be looking to have other leaders help govern and run the site just like this paper recommends.
And now I'm very glad I chose the word "network" (pats self on the back) in the mission because it really conveys what I'm trying to do.
thanks back to you
You are welcome, of course. And thanks back to you, Steve. I wish us all success in CoD's goals. Cheers, Tony
We're getting there
And thanks again for your help, ideas, and encrouagement.
Things are coming along nicely. Your post about networking got me thinking about bringing up the idea of creating a small, informal organizing committee for the site. We have a few die hards here now that might be interested. But my gut tells me that might still be a little premature. What do you think?
Die Hards where are you?
Well sure, Die Hards where are you?
Nothing ventured nothing gained, so tell us about your committee.
Just what do you mean, "small, informal organizing committee for the site", isn't that what all these forums and Blogs are about?
IMHO, yes it is a bit early, I do believe that we need to shake the bushes and get more members into this site.
However, in doing so I am thinking that just as we recently re-focused who are the people of this process, we can now reach out to them.
Yet, before too many steps in that direction are taken I would like to ask us to think about the people affected by this process that we are advocating. That is the union(s) themselves.
My question is sort of what comes first the chicken or the egg thing. I’m saving that for later as I have some errands to do and will be away from this PC for most of the rest of the day.
Cheers,
Tony
Organizing committee
I don't have any specific proposals for what the organizing committee would do. Perhaps they might help take on small administrative tasks or take the lead on a particular project (like outreach). I would train them on how to use some of the administrative features of Drupal related to their job. This would be the first step toward forming some kind of formal leadership committee elected by the members.
Growing the community
Aside from direct appeals to individuals and organizations, another thing that will grow this community is a diversity of viewpoints and opinions (just like your paper pointed out). We need more posts on the front page besides mine. This is beginning to happen now. But I would like to speed this up a little.
There is tremendous amounts of knowledge out there just in the small number of people we have already. The hard part:
1) Getting them to realize that they have something interesting to say (if they don't already) and then
2) Giving them a compelling reason to take the time to organize their thoughts and say it here on CoD. In other words, how can we explain to them how they will they directly benefit from their efforts? It's not going to be enough to tell them, "post here so we can grow our community and create a great resource for the labor movement."
Thoughts? Ideas?
My kingdom for a network, you say, hmm.
You would think that with all of the diverse labor sites, blogs, RSS feeds, and labor e-mail list serves that a way is possible to network them up. Perhaps I am just a country boy and this tech stuff is over my head, but we, the labor movement need better communication among ourselves. How about a network of networks? A federation of Networks even?
Try this network example, when a labor group wants to say build a site, the site or forum needs certain skills, like health and safety experienced folks or organizers that have been in the trenches and can advise newbies the pitfalls to watch out for. What I am getting it is that some of these skills are not easy to come by, wouldn’t it be great if those with the skills and know-how could connect with those that wish to acquire those skills and know-how.
Oh yes, there are hyperlinks, FTP, web sites, and forums and ever more geek stuff, yet even among those formats the networking is difficult. Just recently I tried to post an announcement on e-mail lists that I’m a member of in order to invite people to this site. Yet someone or a gremlin sent a spam complainant to my ISP, who in turn pulled me aside to give me a polite warning. Something like that e-mail which is perfectly legit should be able to harness computer power and move through the Internet to get the word out and not get pulled over on the information highway.
The methods to distribute information is easier than pen and envelope, but restricted in other ways.
There are limits and cops out here and I wonder if a way is possible to not break the speed limit, but yet and still arrive faster and more effectively. Here is another network example, what if there was a "e-mail list of e-mail lists" that used the e-mail technology, now by that, I don't mean just a vertical thing from top to bottom. No. I am trying to describe an e-mail list that when one sends a message, then that messages goes out to all the other e-mail lists, and those e-mail lists in turn send out the message to all the members of their e-mail list. Hey, lets not stop there, what about building a e-mail list of e-mail Networks?
Or take the earlier health and safety example, is there an organization of labor health and safety activists that would use the Internet to link to those that have a H and S problem or grievance? I really don’t know of one that uses the internet, Yes there are different experts on H and S on different sites, but a network linked together that a message gets passed to all of them. I don’t think so.
So does anybody know of anything like a site or e-mail list that works as a e-mail list of e-mail lists? If not perhaps it needs to be built. Would you start with a web site asking for e-mail list managers to join or start with a e-mail list and somehow get the word out? Whew!
This is the best example, there are about six sites dealing with building websites by labor union webmasters. I either belong to them or have easy access to the skills and folks there. But you know I am farily certain that there is no formal networking among the groups. If these were acting like traditional businesses they would have networked to better understand how to survive in the market place. Hmm, If you are a labor webmaster and reading this, are you and your peers members of CoD?
What about building a network database that the whole labor movement could use. Just think we put the word out that labor movement folks would come to a site and give their general particular identification stats, but in addition, they would offer a service, or skill, or even a product to be listed in the data base. Now when someone wanted to know or find out something they could go to the data base to connect to that person. I think that this is the kind of exchange network that would really help our labor movement.
Of course, I am serious, these ideas are possible on the Internet. Right now someone is making and working toward these goals as I write. ;) Where are these Diehards anyway when we need them?
Well I know that I have rambled on long enough, so.
Any comments please?
Cheers, Tony
That is precisely what this site is about
You are right on. That's the challenge: How do we build a tightly integrated network of all labor people? My own opinion is that it should be built upon sites like these, each its own community, each accessible over the http:// protocol via a browser, and each connected to eachother via RSS.
Right now, it's a balkanized mess of different technologies that are failing. Mailing lists do about as much good as a series of endless tea parties, discussion forums lie mostly unused (look at the ILCA's, for example), and most labor union web site are too terrible to even look at. It's really discouraging. We've got all these resources out there but they are isolated from each other and they help only a small, isolated segment of the labor communication.
I'm not so sure about your idea for a centralized database, however. The Internet is all about decentralization. My take is that we need to educate the labor community about open source software projects like Drupal, technologies like RSS feeds, del.icio.us, wikis, blogs and all the other tools that can help us weave a tightly integrated network of labor organizations and individuals together. And by using these tools, the web will be woven more organically and basically weave itself.
Affect on the unions?
Not sure what you mean here. My hope is that the ultimate result of this community is that they have huge brain trust of ideas that they can tap into 24/7. Also, we are trying to influence their behavior by encouraging them to make a change for the better by embracing Internet technology.
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