Problems managing membership data on the Consortium for Language Policy and Planning

[Nancy Hornberger]

Hal -- I couldn't agree more with Christina -- the listserve is an 
invaluable and much appreciated resource and I very much hope you can 
keep it going.  I also agree that we are, thankfully, a very polite and 
civil list.  As for the database you mention, I have never consulted it 
and if it is too troublesome to maintain it, perhaps you needn't. 
all very best,
Nancy

Christina Paulston wrote:
> Dear Harold,
> You perform an invaluable  service to all of us interested in these 
> issues - do please continue.  And my students are all addicts  as of 
> course am I .  Que sigue no mas, as any Peruvian would tell you. 
>  Fortsätt - as a Swede more laconically would say.  Don't you dare 
> quit - with love, Christina
> On Feb 8, 2008, at 2:41 PM, Harold Schiffman wrote:
>
>> Dear Members,
>>  
>> If you have tried in recent weeks to log on to our website, or to 
>> make a request to become a member, or to have your membership 
>> cancelled, you will have noticed some problems.  The reason for these 
>> problems is that the server that we have been using for the last 6 or 
>> 7 years, "ccat" (webadress http://ccat.sas.upenn.edu/plc/clpp) has 
>> been having problems that have led the tech support people here to 
>> make the decision to move as many applications away from it and 
>> eventually replace it with other servers.  Some time ago, because of 
>> the inability of ccat to handle spam, I began sending messages via 
>> gmail, and all messages that come through ccat are forwarded to me at 
>> gmail (hfsclpp at gmail.com <mailto:hfsclpp at gmail.com>) which can manage 
>> spam much more efficiently.  (Otherwise I was getting 250 or more 
>> spam messages per day.)
>>  
>> I met with the tech support person yesterday and we have agreed to 
>> the following:
>>
>>     * From now on, all requests to add or remove memberships should
>>       be directed to me personally at either
>>       haroldfs at ccat.sas.upenn.edu
>>       <mailto:haroldfs at ccat.sas.upenn.edu> or hfsclpp at gmail.com
>>       <mailto:hfsclpp at gmail.com>   You will no longer be able to
>>       access the on-line forms to do this.
>>     * The database we have had on-line, which listed the personal
>>       information people filled out when they became members, and
>>       which was visible to anyone in the world who wanted to see it,
>>       is deemed too vulnerable and too sensitive to leave in that state.
>>     * That membership database, with over 400 entries, will be
>>       disabled, and we will try to find a new "home" for it.  I do
>>       not at this point know where it could be hosted that would
>>       guarantee privacy for the information, so I will have to
>>       continue to explore ways to keep it viable.
>>     * Please let me know if you personally wish this database to be
>>       somehow available, somewhere, i.e. I need to know the following:
>>           o Have you ever consulted it?
>>           o Do you find it useful?
>>           o Do you think it has ever been compromised? 
>>     * Only once in our history has one user become unpleasant and
>>       uncivil in messages to others, and I had to ban him from
>>       membership. Since then, there have been no problems that I know
>>       of.
>>     * The general webpage with information about the Consortium for
>>       Language Policy and Planning, at
>>       http://ccat.sas.upenn.edu/plc/clpp *but not  the membership
>>       page* accessible by clicking on "Members" will continue to be
>>       available.
>>
>> Sincerely,
>>  
>> Hal Schiffman
>> **************************************
>> N.b.: Listing on the lgpolicy-list is merely intended as a service to 
>> its members
>> and implies neither approval, confirmation nor agreement by the owner 
>> or sponsor of
>> the list as to the veracity of a message's contents. Members who 
>> disagree with a
>> message are encouraged to post a rebuttal. (H. Schiffman, Moderator)
>> *******************************************

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