CNVC IT Committee

Document collaboration "article" area for CNVC Information Technology (IT) Committee.
NOTE: A spammer has been attacking this wiki, so I have temporarily "Protected" this page. That means only users with sysop access can make changes here right now. Hopefully the Talk page will survive this attack, because I've left it open so you can write there.--John 02:39, 10 May 2006 (CEST)

Draft Mission
To research technical solutions to problems identified by members of the IT committee, staff, contributors to the Board/GCC and members in the NVC network; and to formulate strategies in support of the acquisition, implementation and distribution of these technical solutions to those who require them.

ITC Questions & Discussion

Click on the title of this ITC Q&D section to visit the "Talk" page CNVC Information Technology (IT) page on NVCwiki. Clicking on this section's link takes you to the same page as clicking on the "discussion" link at the very top of the page. In that Talk area is where we can discuss and ask questions, while this "article" area you are viewing right now is best suited to building documents and lists.

NOTE: A spammer has been attacking this wiki, so I have temporarily "Protected" this page. That means only users with sysop access can make changes here right now. Hopefully the Talk page will survive this attack, because I've left it open so you can write there.--John 02:39, 10 May 2006 (CEST)

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IT Priorities

Fundraising

IT Needs specific to fundraising for CNVC:

• Database with most or all of the features found in Blackbaud.
• Reporting mechanism so donors can track their money.
• Means of tracking who's giving.
• Communication w/donors via newsletter.
• Ticklers for donor contact reminders (on screen at morning boot, not via email).
• Online signup for IITs, including even room assignments.

See also Talk:CNVC_IT_Committee#Donor_contact_info.

Other IT Priorities

1. Database combining online and CNVC office information.
   1. Variable levels of strong security.
   2. Trainer contact info.
   3. Donor contact info.
   4. Local and Regional NVC group contact info.
2. Online tools integrating various CNVC and other online resources.
   1. The cnvc.org website.
   2. The NVCwiki website.
   3. The Yahoo Groups and other email lists.
   4. Blogs
      1. Email interface to blogs for those who prefer that medium.
      2. Email digest daily, by discussion volume or weekly.
      3. Auto-trim of "quoted" prior messages in emails.
      4. Archive option for email interface?
      5. Live "push" technologies like RSS.
   5. File sharing capability.
   6. Audio and Video streaming and file download capability; free, restricted and paid.
      1. Photos of IITs and other events.
      2. Handouts and other documents from IITs and other events.
      3. Maps and directions for IITs and other events.
      4. FTP and/or Bitorrent/peer network capability for sharing other files.
3. Free IT package on CD or DVD data set, for distribution to NVC groups.
   1. Client applications.
      1. Pre-configured Linux installation for low-end computer and net access for low-income use.
      2. Firefox browser and Thuderbird email application for security and compatibility.
      3. OpenOffice for complete MS Office compatible application suite.
   2. Server applications.
      1. CivicSpace or equivalent integrated suite.
      2. Apache server for those wanting to set up and run their own server.
4. Free computers with pre-installed IT package, for distribution to NVC groups.
   1. Donated computers could be pre-configured by volunteers for shipment to NVC groups.
   2. Using the IT package CD/DVD, local and regional volunteers could do the work.
   3. Locations with access to suitable donated computers could do the work for shipment to groups nearest their location (e.g. North America for shipment to S. America, Europe for Africa).

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Database Selection Criteria

The following database qualities are offered for consideration by the IT Committee:

1. Open source preferred (see description of [Open Source]) because of:
   1. Low cost. Funds invested in the database reduce funds for CNVC training and scholarships.
   2. No extra cost for distribution to NVC individuals and groups. Most commercial software charges more for each user, computer, or site using the package. GCC individuals and groups around the world could benefit from tools used by CNVC, and content generated would more likely be compatible between GCCs and CNVC.
   3. Well documented open document formats ensure the ability to extract data if another system is chosen in the future, few commercial packages use open standards.
   4. Robust multicultural, multinational and multilingual support.
   5. Extremely reliable and robust with rapid bug fixes, updates and security patches.
   6. Additional modules (e.g. Payroll, Donors, online features) at little or no cost.
   7. Skills learned by IT staff and volunteers on one project would be applicable to other projects, rather than needing to learn different commercial packages.
   8. Easy modification of features, functions, reports and screens. Commercial packages often lack the ability to modify some aspects of features, functions, reports and screens.
   9. Easy creation of new features, functions, reports and screens. Commercial packages generally limit the ability to create new features and functions.
   10. Free online support, with fee-based telephone support often available.
   11. Inexpensive and volunteer IT support is sometimes available for open source applications, because many of these applications are developed by altruists and college students actively seeking projects.
2. Payroll, Contact Management, and online integration capabilities.
3. Maximum compatibility with CNVC needs in an integrated package.
4. User friendly.
5. Secure, to prevent hackers from unauthorized access or damage to the system.
6. Reliable and fast long-term support.
7. Simple to maintain data.
8. Solid long-term prognosis for commercial developer or open source project. In addition to content, many hours of labor typically go into learning and customizing a system and all that could be lost if the developer or open source project were to be shut down. Note that even very strong corporations are sometimes bought and shut down by larger companies who view them as competition, and open source projects sometimes lose the support and interest of their contributors.
9. Robust email and web interactivity (mailing lists, etc.).
10. Many levels of security, ranging from top system administrator through project manager and down to anonymous user. This enables a diverse community of people to create and access content with the level of security chosen for each type of user and content.

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Information Technology (IT) Needs

The following overall Needs are offered for consideration in planning an update of CNVC computer systems:

1. Open source preferred (see description of Open Source) because of:
   1. Low cost. Funds invested in the database reduce funds for CNVC training and scholarships.
   2. No extra cost for distribution to NVC individuals and groups. Most commercial software charges more for each user, computer, or site using the package. GCC individuals and groups around the world could benefit from tools used by CNVC, and content generated would more likely be compatible between GCCs and CNVC.
   3. Robust multicultural, multinational and multilingual support.
   4. Extremely reliable and robust with rapid bug fixes, updates and security patches.
   5. Additional modules (e.g. Email Lists similar to Yahoo Groups) at little or no cost.
   6. Skills learned by IT staff and volunteers on one project would be applicable to other projects, rather than needing to learn different commercial packages.
   7. Easy modification of features, functions, reports and screens. Commercial packages generally limit the ability to create new features and functions.
   8. Easy creation of new features, functions, reports and screens.
   9. Free online support, with fee-based telephone support often available.
   10. Inexpensive and volunteer IT support is sometimes available for open source applications, because many of these applications are developed by altruists and college students actively seeking projects.
2. Contact management tools for fundraising and other community interactions.
3. Blog for easy creation and moderation of discussion groups and forums, with email publishing option including Digest function for the convenience of users who prefer that medium.
4. Email lists with automatic trimming of quoted prior messages to a pre-set number of first and last lines.
5. Wiki or similar for collaborative document generation and editing, with some areas having limited read and/or write access (e.g. Board, Certified Trainers, etc.).
6. RSS capability.
7. Online and offline mass mailing tools, with restricted access to prevent spamming our contact lists.
8. Integration of online and offline content with robust security.
9. Widely available free and paid technical support.
10. File sharing with variable access and security levels to enable activities such as publishing IIT photos for participant sharing.
11. Audio and video storage and streaming.
12. Policies to invite, seek and utilize IT volunteers from the NVC community.
13. Cooperation, collaboration and standardization whenever possible on technology efforts and projects within the whole NVC community.
14. Online participation tools like Surveys and Polls to engage the NVC community in dialog.
15. Online contact tools to enable people to share their personal information for networking.
16. Online and offline tools to help in publishing event information.

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Products for Consideration

Blackbaud commercial database package for non-profits

Additional advantages

• Proven favorite of non-profits.
• Possibly easy to install and set up.

Potential drawbacks

• Base system does not include online features.
• Proprietary system might be more vulnerable to hackers, and data might be less portable.
• Can not be shared with other NVC locations or affiliates without significant additional expense.
• Additional features would probably be expensive if provided by the publisher and difficult or impossible to add otherwise.

CivicSpace integrated free Open Source software) package for non-profits

Features

Integrated package includes Drupal web software, MySQL database, CiviCRM Contact Resource Management software, blogs, file sharing, website, photo publishing, audio files, FTP and other features.

Cost

Complete package is downloadable at no charge. Development is supported by open source developer community (especially Drupal) and grants.

Support options

• Free online support
• Paid consultants
• Fee-based support

Additional advantages

• Can be installed and running within a few hours, although configuration and customization can be done over time to provide a wealth of additional features.
• New features can be added relatively easily due to the underlying computer code being written in Open Source.
• Many programmers are available who have the skills to modify open source software.
• Some programmers, consultants and support might be found at no cost or relatively cheaply at technical schools and in the global open source community.
• Any customization work done can be offered free to other non-profits.
• All work done on CNVC implementation can be shared at no cost with other NVC affiliates.

Potential drawbacks

• Concerns about the long-term availability of quality fee-based support from a specific vendor.
• Not yet at 1.0 release