September Cai-Vic Minutes 2004

ough transcript of meeting 1st September 2004 ex tapes.

Time started 7.30pm

Present: Tony Calenti (AJC), Kylie Davies (KD), Con Validas (CV), Rob Britain (RB), Simeon Scot (SS), Jan Smith (JS), Owen Courtis (OC), Greg ?, Julien Goodwin (JG), Vic Koci (VK), Ed Chan (EC). Chair: Kylie Davies Minutes: Tony Calenti

1. Introductions:

2. Confirmation of previous minutes: The minutes of the previous meeting were approved without dissent (cwd).

3.Matters arising: 3.1 Incorporation: 1.Con discussed Incorporation matters with solicitors. Statement of purpose(SOP) needs to be specific and related to CBV training role (Education Category) in order to meet the tax exempt criteria we wish to incorporate under. Statement of purpose prepared by Con has been sent to solicitors for comments and after a reply is received it will then be posted to the list. 2.Statement of purpose (SOP): KD inquired as to other CBV members thoughts about the statement of purpose, but no input from other members was forthcoming. Discussion continued re: SOP. Con stated we won't get in under environmental Category (very strict criteria) according to solicitors advice as other factors need to be satisfied before ATO is even considered. Rob asked if minimum number of incorporation members had to be fifty financial members. Con replied this was not mentioned in his discussions and may only apply if seeking incorporation under environmental category. Kylie confirmed this requirement is only for the environmental category.

3.2. PHP Users group No report from Adam on this matter. KD has discussed matter with Adam and he has not received a reply from his posting. PHP users group is so big it has sought other premises for its meetings and this is no longer a current issue for CBV but it would be nice to have a policy in place for future inquiries about using the CBV premises for meetings by other groups. KD proposed as this is now a non issue it could be removed from future minutes and future requests could be decided on a case by case basis. No one dissented.

3.3.Electrical testing/training funding. Rob was busy and has not been able to track down info. He will investigate this further and post info to the list. Discussion ensued (Gregg, Rob, Con) re the equipment needed to carry out electrical testing. KD recommends Greg and Rob to liaise re equipment required. Labeling will be used in the meantime and Con mentioned exact wording needs to be clarified. Labels will need to be bought and prepared this week. KD states that WFD participants can be involved in setting this up. Rob suggests we add electrical labelling/testing to the computer quality assurance check list.

3.4.Deductible Gift Recipient status. KD says this matter is not finalised. Con says this ties in with statement of purpose. Gregg?or ?Owen asks what is this about? Tax break on donations. Companies donating computers can claim a tax deduction for the value of their donation. ??is this correct?? To clarify Rob adds “if we sell copies of Knoppix they can be claimed as a tax deduction”. KD we are listed as a tax exempt organisation and we want to retain this status (!!or is it that we are not listed as such and we want to be).

4.Agenda Items

4.1 Rosters KD says this can be discussed under another item on the agenda regarding overwork and burnout of volunteers that regularly contribute. However, discussion continued on this topic and donation collections was also discussed. We need more volunteer input to cover volunteer and donation management. It is patently clear that KD and CV are currently overworked and they cannot delegate jobs that other volunteers could be doing because volunteers are not making themselves available on a regular basis. Opening the CBV building on a Wednesday means Con and Kylie are spending unproductive managerial time at CBV on this day, because they are required to supervise volunteers who are at a loss as to what to do and need more skills and training to make them useful volunteers.

Con brought up the problem of coordination of tasks by volunteers on Wednesdays and Saturdays. For example, Mbox, the email list could be managed by a volunteer even from home. Whereas this task is currently being done by KD. However, as Rob pointed out a confidentiality issue arises when information about WFD is emailed. We need a responsible person to carry out this task.

Another problem is user support and we need more people to help in this area as well as a user support coordinator. We need a receptionist to vet calls and to organise donation pickups. We also need a donations coordinator. A finance person is also required as our previous finance coordinator has resigned and finances need to be brought up to date.

Group training delivery is good on Saturday but we also need helpers front of house, that is, manning the office front area. Delivery of one on one training for special cases is a problem because we need more people involved in this area. Rob says we also need machine support if it is required. Simeon states clarification of what machine support means. One on one home training and delivery of recipient PCs has been canceled for the time being (is this correct hard to hear what was said??? or have we put charges on these services to reduce their use.) DO we need more people to do one on one training?

Volunteer inquiries. we need someone who will be around at least 5 hours a week to handle queries by would be volunteers. Volunteers tend to be interested in learning Linux or in hardware and soon become disillusioned when they are required to carry out other more pressing tasks that involve administration, etc. They tend to come in on demo days or volunteer training sessions and then do not commit to other volunteer activities.

In order to address some of the above problems Ed suggests using retirees as per MelbPC user group. This group of people would be more committed to their volunteer role because they have no pressing outside commitments like finding a job. Rob agrees it would make a difference. Ed suggests that as long as these people are given a clearly defined role they will be happy to make a solid commitment. Rob says they don't even have to use a computer to look up procedures and we can produce a folder with all the information needed. Simeon asks “where do we get these people from?” Kylie mentions that we also need some Gurus around to answer more technical type questions that sometimes arise from recipients. Special needs required by recipients may not be known before training sessions so we need Gurus to answer these questions rather than having trainers do this research. Otherwise users needs are not being met. Examples of extra requirements are languages other than English, digital camera support, speech support, scanners, games, printers, special software, etc. This research problem is not really on agenda for this meeting. Julien mentions that with respect to problems on the above mentioned user support research topics if people working on these problems ring him up he can probably help answer specific questions so that time is not wasted by volunteers on seeking answers.

Julien suggests we use a software program called request tracker to enable staff to place queries there so he or anyone else with the knowledge can provide answer.

SS interrupts stating we are getting off the topic of personnel even though JG suggestion is a good idea.

KD states that these research problems take time to research and experiment on. Speech recognition and speech therapy are two different problems. Meanwhile people are waiting for their computer. SS if we can't sort a problem out in two or three days we let client know we can't help them.

SS we need an R&D coordinator and that person can coordinate this research process. RB suggests sourcing vol from Victorian volunteer centre. KD Before we decide on this we need someone to volunteer to recruit the people we need to carry out the various tasks that need coordinators. SS mentions more stuff about how to go about recruitment

CV states we need a volunteer coordinator. SS volunteers to do job for around six months after October when he will have more free time. RB states SS's first job will be to find a replacement for his job. ??So SS will attend to promotion and recruitment of suitable volunteers and will also act as volunteer coordinator.

ED. makes no difference if he has WFD or WFD + Volunteers he just tells them what he wants done and they get on and do it. No problem integrating WFD and Volunteers.

KD Cool technical stuff is OK but this area is under control its the admin management stuff that we have under representation.

AJC we need a volunteer management system to manage volunteers because at the moment out of our registered volunteers only a handful are actively involved. System whereby Volunteers have to earn the right to come to training sessions apart from the initial induction session and the right to buy equipment at low prices etc. KD But we would need someone to carry out this task and our problem is we are strapped for such people.

ED Need to ensure Vols are informed of what is expected of them before they agree to become volunteers. CV that will be the case in future.

A discussion ensued re the time commitment volunteers put into the system. We need an encouragement system to get volunteers to commit. CV we can't get an external person to carry out coordination task so we need a trained internal volunteer.

Ed is willing to put in the time to train up a volunteer at a time. He does not discriminate between WFD and volunteers. Whoever is present on the day he is in attendance can be asked to carry out whatever tasks need to be done and all present will receive any training needed. RB How do we interface with MelbPC. AJC Could do a presentation at some of their meetings or we can post to their newsgroups.

KD to type up job description for SS. KD notes that job descriptions are available for many of the coordinator roles. SS requests list of who is currently involved in coordinator roles plus projects that require personnel. AJC there is a list on the notice board in the office.

KD We also need a new fund raising coordinator as Trish? is unable to continue with this role due to other commitments. Thanks to Trish for all the work she has done so far. Do we need to talk about donation coordination? Who would take on that role. JG calls for a break at 8.30 re discussion on the topic of coordinator roles. SS consensus JG is happy to discuss things further on the CBV newsgroup. SS to get more info from KD.

4.5 Equipment ED asks question re ?????? has taken information with a view to selling some equipment. ED has sold some PCs and was wondering if one of the WFD people could also be involved in this area. KD & RB reply this is not acceptable as it can result in problems. Only authorised volunteers can be involved in this area.

Jan suggests garage sale. RB says it is a good idea but it was tried once before and was not a success. KD says it is a good idea but someone needs to coordinate this effort. We would only sell stuff we need to clear from the premises. SS as well as EBAY there is Auction houses but we would need to ship equipment out to these places. We really need people to come to our premises. RB suggests we put networks together and sell them. But again personnel and time are not available. KD suggests we put up posters at RMIT to sell 15” and 17” monitors. RB requests a price list so authorised volunteers can sell specified equipment. RB to prepare and post price list on newsgroup and seek consensus on prices established. RB suggests for sale page on our website. ED suggests garage sale day would be good. RB and Gregg do not think this is a good idea. RB suggests we take a trailer load of equipment to MelbPC group meetings and try selling equipment there. Could also use Computer trader to advertise equipment.

So we need a sale coordinator and price list. JG can put info on web page with pictures. Money collection method needs to be sorted out. RB What methods are available such as eftpos, direct debit, paypal (has cost). Discussion decides direct debt method for Australian residents only will be used. Vic mentions money orders but the committee feels this method is open to abuse. RB Do we need to be identified as ComputerBank for selling items. JG says yes as GST is involved. RB then we need an ABN number to be displayed on the 'For sale' web site page on the plone site. Wheels to be put in motion for equipment sale by JG and RB.

4.6Marist Transitional School request for training sessions. KD has received request for training of students on a volunteer basis. These are socially or emotionally challenged teenagers. They want someone to come down once a week for an hour. But KD has offered to have the training done on a fee basis. KD has suggested rates of $35.00 per hour and preferably in 2 hour segments. The school wants training to involve the building of a computer and installation of software for the system built for each student involved in the training. Classes would involve 6 students at a time with supervisory staff also on hand. Students would get to keep their PC. But installation would be a problem as we cannot teach someone to install Linux in 2 hrs. SS suggests trainer could use a Linux OS like Mandrake which should be easy to install. ED Suggest we take prebuilt systems that we know are working and use these for the classes. Another element is that we then inherit 12 people that may require PC support for an OS that we are not currently supporting and do we want to do this. SS volunteers provided some money can be earned. KD Other elements are also involved like preparing a set of notes etc. SS when do they want the training to take place. Problem is that the School has limited funds and may not want to pay a fee. KD request SS run a workshop to illustrate how he would approach such a training course. At this stage nothing has been confirmed and further discussion with the school will be undertaken by KD. RB re suggestion for fee structure would be $10 to CBV and $20 to trainer.

KD to prepare quote for the School and to discuss extending sessions to 2 hours. SS does not mind if it is only 1 hour. But several committee members ED, RB KD Gregg feel that 1 hour will not be an adequate time frame in which to present the training. A test training session will need to be undertaken by SS to see what can be done in 1 hour.

4.7 Request from an individual to receive P166s from us. KD has received a request for PCs for a recycling project over in Laverton. But the person has not replied to an email to discuss the matter. RB suggests requester needs to meet with committee members to discuss his requirements.

5.Reports 5.1State coordinators report. CV questions training numbers for June?? See attached.

5.2 Treasurer's report. Finances are currently in a state of disarray due to the incumbent treasurer having been lax with the position. RB volunteered to do books but we really need a book keeper to do this. KD suggests we pay a qualified person perhaps a retired book keeper or accountant to fix up the current situation while we find a volunteer to do this very vital job. KD suggests there would be about 10hrs of work. Too many people speaking at the same time. RB says he may know someone who may be able to do the job for us. KD wants the person to be able to walk in and do the job without much assistance form anyone else. RB to ask his contact if he is willing to do job for us. Problem also exists for Sth Australia. KD will advertise job if RB's contact is not interested. CV suggests we ask the Price Waterhouse Coopers accountant who has done user support with us, as book keeper is not responsible for his books. Gregg inputs that an accountant may be expensive. CV counters that he may be willing to give us a discount as he charged us for a previous project. We have a 9 months backlog of accounts to be brought up to date.

5.3 Project reports RB Are there any live projects not covered by other coordination areas. ?? how is something going. RB I'll have a copy of it next week?????????

Solomon Islands project needs a Linux install as an image. SS and Dave L are working on this.

5.4 User support covered by State coordinators report. 5.5Donations reports Something about 22 laptops???????

5.6Documentation report Jan See report. Deadline for feedback about the Plone site is Sunday 19th of September. JS If someone comes up with a logo it can be incorporated into site. RB asks about sites. JS. Silva site has all documentation, ie, internal stuff. Plone site has everything form the ComputerBank public web site (Computerbank.org site). CV the Plone site will have the domain name of vic.computerbank.org.au while the Silva site will have the domain name of doc.vic.computerbank.au. ?? RE remote access JG replies !!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! CV note for user support Thank you to Adam.

5.7 Internal Systems reports JG. Not managing desktops but still managing servers. If people inform him of problems he can fix them rather than have them cogitate until he is around. Network has been behaving except for as few crashes due to too many emails but these are now under control. This was due to certain packages that are not needed but are included in Knoppix. Knoppix needs a lot of package removal. With ?? servers they have been keeping themselves running. With regards to home this is still a problem especially storage of home files. SS how much space does home currently have. JG 20 Gig. We need to buy new HDDs with more capacity. In about 2 weeks Sarge the Debian distribution will be released. This will require updating of servers.

5.8Database report

OC issues 1. To increase sheet access speed. 2.Providing for remote access to the system. This involves TCP application plus port access on the Toast server. However, today application would not work. KD will just have to change the name of the database currently CAI_DB. SS asks “what is database for?”. KD replies it is for maintaining information on computers we provide to recipients plus recipients information. KD thanks Owen for the Db and entering the data and committee cheers and claps. KD reminds everyone and Owen that there is more data to be entered into DB. OC replies that the DB is basically up to date except for the last few weeks. Jan asks is it accessible via the web. OC replies that is not the case at the moment but it will eventually be possible. KD reminds everyone that access to DB will be restricted to authorised volunteers only.

5.9Work for the Dole report Busy busy busy in terms of thinking up things for WFDs to do and working with people of non-English speaking background as well dealing with people with lots of personal issues (such as long term unemployed). We have no option of taking on this group of people because WFD is our bread and butter. A part of this is a resource problem with Admin needing to be done as well as looking after WFD participants. Problem is we need people to be constantly present to supervise WFDs. Constant interruptions are not good when training WFD people from non-English speaking backgrounds. Ed confirms this situation does arise and is not good. RB also confirms that supervision of WFDs is unremitting. Discussion ensued on things that WFDS are being given to do and the fact that some of these jobs are a bit boring and repetitive.

5.10Fund raising report Trish is no longer able to continue in this role due to other pressing commitments. Therefore, this project will be made inactive until someone else can be found to proceed with it.

5.11Technical Coordinators See Eds report.

With respect to the WFD participants RB summarises ED's methods as resulting in clarity of purpose (carrying out a specific well understood task) and ED adds that the WFDs also get immediate feedback if something is wrong and this is also important.. ED also emphasises to the WFDs the need to produce a quality product so people don't have to return it especially if they come from rural areas. RB adds this also reduces the amount of telephone support required thus saving precious time for other pressing tasks.

RB mentions that another efficiency technique being employed is the use of prototyping a particular model PC when it comes in. We are now so efficient that the PC production line has to be halted.

KD mentions the Knoppix clone and the fact that packages need to be removed from the initial Knoppix install. Emails to the list have covered required tasks to be carried out. If people want to work on the Knoppix system they should take a clone home and do this but then ensure the quality process is applied to any modified system they produce.

6. Other Business 6.1Monash University Environment and social justice Week. Gregg commented that overall there was not much interest. Some people seeing the stand made some snide remarks. However, some people did offer to donate PCs and some people took applications to apply for PCs but none of these people have been in contact with us. KD we did give a PC to one person who has offered to help with donations when called.

6.2Setting up a wireless node at CBV premises. RB wants to put up a wireless node and requires a Pentium75 or 90 laptop. He has the wireless card. It will be placed in the roof. SS asks why do this? RB replies volunteers with wireless laptops can use the system. Gregg states is it worth it for just two or three people to benefit. KD queries what CBV business would it be used for. SS queries the fire safety aspects of having this laptop up in the roof. Committee feels that at this time other issues are more pressing and that a requested report re this suggestion has not been produced. JG supports the idea. KD & CV requests that a decision on this be put off until a report outlining the technicalities and benefits to CBV is tabled . CV There has got to be a tangible benefit. If there is no tangible benefit then we are just sidetracking from the main things that really need attention. OC comments “Its the sort of thing thats been the bain of computerbank for a long time its being technical for the sake of being technical.” Report to be prepared and posted to the list for comments by RB. Discussion dragged on with pros and cons for a little while longer. A final decision will be left until another time and especially after other problems have been sorted out.

meeting closed 22.08