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CCN Board Minutes
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August 13, 2009 Board Minutes

Serving Your Community's Online Needs Since 1994.

Board of Directors Meeting Minutes
August 13, 2009

Attending:

  • Marilyn MacDonald
  • Michael Marshall
  • Kent Murray
  • Johnathan Thibodeau
  • Joe Thomas
  • Alan Turner
  • Jeff Warnica
  • Andrew D. Wright

Regrets:

  • Richard Connolly
  • Bernie Hart
  • Mary Rigby

Minutes of last meeting

Meeting called to order, 6:30 pm, Marilyn MacDonald as Chair.

Minutes of July 2009 meeting circulated by Mary (online) were approved, moved by Alan seconded by Joe.

 

Committee Reports

Financial Report

Alan submitted the financial statement for July 2009 doing better than he had expected. At the Board's request, Alan performed a 'what if' financial analysis to determine the cost if CCN had to stop providing services. The Board agreed that CCN is in no way obligated to provide financial restitution. Nevertheless, the Board wanted to do whatever was in its power to attempt to give members a pro-rated payment based on time left in their membership. The shortfall was projected to be $13,890. Alan moved acceptance of his report, seconded by Jeff - so moved.

Technical Report

Good news : received long term loan of an almost new server from Dal Math department .

Bad news: Too many members give out their password too readily - even write it on renewal cheques !

A fraudulent email, claiming to be from Chebucto, was enough for several members to give their password, as a result our service was flooded with phish and so Aliant delayed our email traffic for a week or more.

One experienced member left his website wide open to a take over and as a result a fraudulent site claiming to be Bank of America was found to be operating from Chebucto.

A stern email letter will go out to all members, laying down the law, not to ever give out their password to anyone, because of the consequences for all members of Chebucto from such lapses in one or two members' personal security.

Our wireless antenna - loss of signal - weather has corroded line out from it. If we can't repair, we must buy a new antenna ($200)- but in any case, lesson is we'd do better job than the professionals in seeing that this line out was well protected from weather.

Hands on meeting, on roof, with head of Templeton Properties, re Fenwick Tower went very well.

Dal has turned on our relay, so Templeton can hookup to our system. Tech Report approved, moved by Michael, seconded by Joe.

 

Wifi update

Wireless signal affected by need to get antenna line corrosion problem licked now and in future. No users of wifi yet, so no effect, but in the future, needs to be reliable.

Moved by Jeff, seconded by Kent, Board approved motion to spend up to $200 on antenna but keep an eye on amount of staff time eaten up on this project.

 

Joe Howe Manor

The person we were to contact to start the process never answered calls or emails. Bill Matheson will contact the person(s) responsible at Housing Authority who can approve a meeting of us with residents to see how many are interested in our service. One such name mentioned was Bill Jandron.

 

Approach to HRM re our 15th anniversary

Councillor McCluskey mentioned us at Council meeting but no response from Wayne Anstey, HRM civil servant, re any further HRM recognition. Bernie has written the Mayor asking a small CCN delegation appear before councillors. ACORN paying for ad in Herald re our 15th anniversary.

 

Website policy

Marilyn felt more urgent issues right now, Joe move and Allan seconded we postpone consideration of web posting policy - so moved.

 

Town Hall Meeting - Future of the Internet

A meeting of Mary, Joy Woolfrey and Michael resolved only worth pursuing if it helped keep Chebucto alive - as an internet provider. Focus therefore on right of every citizen, particularly poorest, to a modest amount of high speed access at a very modest price; a form of digital citizenship.

During wide-ranging discussion the Board felt a much much broader emphasis on the rights of all citizens to a internet that is open and transparent to all citizens might make for a Town Hall Session that would attract a wide audience and remind NS government why community internet providers like Chebucto are worth keeping around to offer an alternative to commercial providers.

Moved by Alan, seconded by Kent, that Andrew, Jeff and Michael form a committee to find partners, guest panelists and themes for Town Hall Session, to tie in with our 15 year anniversary. (This committee met immediately after the Board Meeting and thought something under the rubric of "Who is Shaping Your Internet Future: are emerging digital monopolies threatening our civil liberties?" would be appropriate.)

Topic might interest the Dal SUB VP for External Affairs enough to consider co-sponsoring a meeting in the McInnes Room for mid October.

 

Other business

Andrew noted many things being talked about at ACORN that could give us hope to be part of a fibre optics tomorrow and for today, including offering "points of presence" for rural dialup.

 

Next meeting

8:30PM: Board meeting adjourned, to meet again in September 10th 2009.

 

 

 

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