Al,

We never really specifically addressed the AG Website at the January
meeting.  The Minnesota Mensa Board of Directors, which I am head of,
appointed Judy Hogan as the AG Chairperson and decided who the executive
committee for the AG along with management parameters for those.

I cannot address specially your issues with Webmasters.  But I am the head
of this organization and our board makes decisions about who is doing what.
In the case of the AG, they can decide who does what.  Judy Hogan is chair
of that.

Your e-mails will be shared with this board of directors about your
concerns.

DeDe Tredinnick
Loc Sec - MN Mensa


----- Original Message -----
From: Al Heigl <alheigl@rconnect.com>
To: <dehome@attglobal.net>
Cc: Paul Jensen <poppoppj@visi.com>; Jeff Rowan
<Jeff.Rowan@personneldecisions.com>; Mary Abbey <mabbey@isd.net>; Ken Silver
<kensilver@hotmail.com>; William T. Conlan <bill@conlan.com>;
<GKAndersen@aol.com>; Judy Hogan <mensajud@tcq.net>
Sent: Thursday, July 11, 2002 10:51 AM
Subject: Re: Web Site - AG 2003


> Thanks for your e-mail, DeDe. You raise some important issues.
>
> > dehome@attglobal.net wrote:
> >
> > Dear Al,
> >
> > It was the whole board of director's decision to appoint Jason
> > Schmitz to design and handle the Web Site for the AG 2003.
>
> I remember being at the January 29 Board Meeting when this was
> discussed, and I was one of those who was encouraging that Jason do the
> design work for the AG, as I wasn't interested and had no good ideas for
> it myself.
>
> I do NOT remember anything about the AG2003 pages comprising a separate
> website! If this was a Board decision, it was a very poor one, and I
> wish I had been at least consulted on it, as I do have considerable
> experience in evaluating people's webmastering expertise.
>
>
> > You are the Webmaster for MN Mensa.
>
> That's the whole point. In any group (or organization or business),
> typically the Webmaster oversees and is ultimately responsible for ALL
> of the group's presence on the WWW.
>
> (Granted, General Motors has a Webmaster, and Chevrolet has a Webmaster,
> etc. But we're not General Motors.)
>
> In a MN Mensa functional organization chart, do we want the Board at the
> top, and then the next row to read "LocSec - Secretary - Treasurer -
> Editor - Webmaster - Webmaster - Webmaster - Webmaster" ?? I certainly
> hope not.
>
> There should be ONE Webmaster, chosen for experience and expertise,
> responsible for ALL website activities carried out under the group's
> aegis.
>
> There can be lots of "sub-webmasters" and contributors, etc., but the
> buck should stop at somebody's desk - some one person should be
> responsible for having everything consistent, correct, technically
> competent, properly linked, properly *spelled* etc.
>
> (I still see only one Webmaster listed on the back of Mensagenda, and I
> believe that's exactly the way it *should* be. And where the
> responsibility should be.)
>
> I hope the Board will vote to formalize this.
>
>
> > You are not to do special Web Sites for
> > other events, such as Mind Games or Gatherings.
>
> To the best of my knowledge, Mind Games never had a "special Web Site"
> -- it didn't need one, as it was a official activity of Minnesota Mensa,
> and so was properly part of the Minnesota Mensa website.
>
> Ditto for Gatherings -- they get a special section within the MN Mensa
> website; that's the best way to do it.
>
> Ditto for Annual Gathering 2003, to my mind. It doesn't need a separate
> website -- it's an official MN Mensa activity. (Although the
> unfortunate way it's been set up, the tax boys might question that ...)
>
> If the Board wishes to vote on what you wrote above, so be it. But I
> hope it doesn't.
>
>
> > Those will be handled
> > as the committee decides. If the committee decides to choose you to
> > do their Web Site, that is fine. However, each committee makes those
> > decisions.
>
> The Board should vote to make those decisions. I hope the Board will
> vote that all official MN Mensa committees desiring a Web presence for
> their activity will consult with, and coordinate through, the officially
> appointed MN Mensa Webmaster.
>
> Keep in mind that I TOTALLY support others being recruited to design and
> produce website material! (I'm working on incorporating Jason's
> homepage design study for a total redesign of the MN Mensa website.)
>
> I am also not opposed to additional MN Mensa websites -- but if it's an
> official function, there would be stuff on it on mnmensa.org anyway.
>
> Could there be something like mnmensacookbook.com to sell the cookbook?
> I suppose so, but I don't see a compelling need for it.
>
> And there should STILL be one qualified Webmaster responsible to the
> Board to evaluate it and certify that it meets our minimum standards for
> representing MN Mensa on the web. (This ag2003.com thing doesn't, by a
> wide margin.)
>
>
> > Your e-mail to Kim was totally off the wall and Pam knows what is
> > going on here and so does Howard. You are not to communicate with
> > these people as you are not part of the AG committee.
>
> I do not believe my initial e-mail was off the wall in any way. I wrote
> to give the national website the link to a relevant portion of the MN
> Mensa website, which is certainly consistent with my job as Webmaster.
> At no prior time has anyone communicated to me in any way that my duties
> and responsibilities have been crippled.
>
> (Your e-mail to Pam seemed to be deliberately worded as to disparage me
> and my efforts. That seems rather heavy-handed, especially considering
> that this e-mail from you is the very first time I've heard anything at
> all about these issues.)
>
>
> > If you have any questions, call me at home. I tried your number and
> > it rang and rang.
>
> My main question is why I should have to defend myself for exercising
> the duties and responsibilities I thought the Board had delegated to me
> in the first place, so my best response should probably be an e-mail to
> all rather than a phone call to one.
>
> Sorry about your phoning attempt. My answering machine is a 1987
> vintage (!) and sometimes it shows its age.
>
>
> >
> > DeDe Tredinnick
> > Local Secretary - Minnesota Mensa
> >
>
> TO ALL -- The present purported "website" for AG 2003 is a debacle in so
> many ways that I am working on a separate message to describe them all.
> I'll try to finish it with tonight's midnight oil.
>
> Al
> Webmaster - Minnesota Mensa
>
> --
>
> Al Heigl
> Mill City Records
> P.O. Box 177
> Northfield Minnesota 55057-0177
> 507-663-6090
> (Professional Proofreading,
> Web Site Work using FrontPage 2002)
> http://www.mnmensa.org/webmaster/