[Public-List] Alberg 30 forum

Wed Oct 14 07:08:30 PDT 2015

Ditto
Jim

On Tue, Oct 13, 2015 at 11:11 PM, Jay Davenport via Public-List <
public-list at lists.alberg30.org> wrote:

> George,
> Most Alberg 30 owners have had the benefit of your list and website for
> many years. It has also been recognized by the general sailing community as
> one of the best One-Design sites available.
> The Alberg 30 community, and our boats, are unique in many ways, and do
> not have to follow the vagaries of a constantly changing world. The
> relationships in our family, some of which are decades old, and our boats,
> are a constant which we all can rely on. The A30 website is part of that
> dynamic.
> None of this means that there can't be improvement in how things are done,
> but it does mean that it would be ill-advised to jettison a long-term
> successful website format for a new, untested (and perhaps unwanted)
> replacement. Although some of those who support this change may be willing
> to commit to operating it for the next two decades, I, for one, would
> prefer to see the existing website (which is first rate) and the existing
> Administrator (who is first rate) continue to provide this sailor with the
> advantages for which the site is so well known.
> I know that you will keep an open mind about improvements, but web safety
> and privacy issues should always be in the forefront.
> "If it ain't broke, don't fix it." Jay Davenport
>
>
>       From: George Dinwiddie via Public-List <
> public-list at lists.alberg30.org>
>  To: public-list at lists.alberg30.org
>  Sent: Tuesday, October 13, 2015 9:53 PM
>  Subject: Re: [Public-List] Alberg 30 forum
>
> Michael, et al,
>
> On 10/13/15 5:03 AM, Michael via Public-List wrote:
> > They come and they go. The Alberg 30 list endures. Thanks George.
>
> You're welcome. And thank you for lifting my spirits.
>
> > Knowing at least one thing I am subscribed to can't install binary
> > malware means a lot to me.
> > Keep the subject line relevant to the discussion at hand and i don't see
> > the problem with confusion (in searches or otherwise).
> >
> > MichaelGrosh
> > #220
> > I would like to see the collaborate/wiki doohickey pages used more.
> > that's a tough nut to crack. lots of potential there.
>
> You were, I think, the only one other than me to create pages in the
> "collaborate" section. Unfortunately, it's down for the count at the
> moment. A combination of years-long persistent onslaught of vandals, and
> an upgrade by my hosting provider that left me without a simple
> migration path. Until I figure out a way forward, it's defunct. Leaving
> it up was jeopardizing the rest of the website.
>
> As of this morning, 376340 different IP addresses have tried to create
> logins for it, I presume these are mostly automated bots. I gave up many
> months ago blocking IP addresses after blocking over 100000 of them. The
> CPU usage just to refuse their connection was overwhelming when there
> were several per second. When I was actively fighting this problem, I
> was spending a dozen or so hours a week on it, for months. I had to
> throw in the towel. The spammers are quite persistent. Even though it
> hasn't worked for about a year, there were 883 attempts to create an
> account in 24 hours yesterday. At least it's slowed down a bit.
>
> People complain about not being able to send photos on the mailing list,
> and suggest a web-based solution to that problem. They ignore the fact
> that the alberg30.org website already has the ability to post photos.
> I've mentioned this numerous times on the list. It does require a login,
> which I will gladly create, but that keeps out the spam bots that have
> infested the wiki. Very few people have contributed. You can visit
> http://www.alberg30.org/gallery/ to see what's there.
>
> Yes, I know there are newer things than email lists. Web forums are so
> terribly new, however. Some of us remember Compuserve forums, and find
> web forums to be a pale reflection of them. When I was an assistant
> sysop on Compuserves sailing forum (a.k.a. the Online Yacht Club), it
> was considered poor taste to troll another forum to entice members to
> leave it for some other forum. There are things newer than online
> etiquette, too.
>
> I'm not terribly interested in what's new and what's obsolete. I note
> that sailboats have been an obsolete form of transportation for a very
> long time. Yet they provide me with a certain amount of pleasure, and,
> with care, safety. Pleasure and safety are my goals with the website and
> mailing list.
>
> I've been running the mailing list for over 17 years, now, and the
> website for 20. I've been especially careful about security. I started
> this list on one-list, which was bought by egroups, which was bought by
> yahoo. Yahoo started adding webbugs to the emails so they could track
> who opened emails when. I didn't like that, so I left the free email
> services and ran my own list. This seems so quaint today when large
> corporations lose millions of credit cards at a time, but I still care
> about providing a safe environment for people who want to focus on
> sailing rather than web security. As a sailor, I've seen how a little
> inattention can suddenly become life-threatening.
>
> I'm comfortable with the choices I've made. If others want to make other
> choices, that's up to them. I really do appreciate the kind words of
> support. There have been many days when I've wondered why I'm still
> doing this, and those words remind me of the answer.
>
>   Fair winds,
>     George
>
> --
>   ----------------------------------------------------------------------
>   When I remember bygone days                        George Dinwiddie
>   I think how evening follows morn;            gdinwiddie at alberg30.org
>   So many I loved were not yet dead,          http://www.Alberg30.org
>   So many I love were not yet born.                          also see:
>                 'The Middle' by Ogden Nash    http://idiacomputing.com
>
>
>   ----------------------------------------------------------------------
>
>
>
> _______________________________________________
> These businesses support your Association:
> http://www.alberg30.org/store/A30supporters.html
> Please support them.
> _______________________________________________
> Public-List mailing list
> Public-List at lists.alberg30.org
> http://lists.alberg30.org/listinfo.cgi/public-list-alberg30.org
>
>
>
> _______________________________________________
> These businesses support your Association:
> http://www.alberg30.org/store/A30supporters.html
> Please support them.
> _______________________________________________
> Public-List mailing list
> Public-List at lists.alberg30.org
> http://lists.alberg30.org/listinfo.cgi/public-list-alberg30.org
>