[Noisebridge-discuss] Access control and the DJ booth - Can't We All Get Along?

[nils at shkoo.com]

Hi,

I don't think all of our communication on this subject has been 
successful, but I think everyone involved has the best interests of the 
space at heart.

I believe that the concerns that DrJ and Sai have are about people messing 
up infrastructure, and they are valid concerns.  People have put a lot of 
work into building out the space, both in terms of the physical buildout, 
and in terms of setting up the network and systems.

I certainly consider it non-excellent to interrupt things that everyone's 
using (like internet connectivity or whatnot), and to expect others to fix 
it.  Also, that disrespects the people who have put a lot of work into 
setting it up.

It would definitely piss me off if someone took the LED sign down, tried 
to reprogram it, and left it in an unworking state.  I don't think there's 
anyone else who has programmed it in its current state (even though all 
the info should be in the wiki), so it would probably fall on me to repair 
it.  I would be completely OK with that if someone talked to me about 
their plans so I could help them do what they're trying to do without 
making it nonfunctional.

There's enough of a variety of interests here that not everyone knows or 
cares how to configure network gear, and I don't really think they should 
be forced to learn how if they want internet access.  That's one of the 
reasons why we have infrastructure that we provide to facilitate people 
hacking on things unrelated to network infrastructure.

I also agree with Jacob that the way to fix it is *not* to implement a 
bunch of new rules or access control.  I believe our one rule, "Be 
Excellent To Each Other", is sufficient.  We just all need to make sure we 
communicate our concerns (in a non-abrasive manner), and respect other 
people's concerns.

My request to address these specific concerns would be this: Please don't 
mess with infrastructure stuff (network, music, etc.) unless you know what 
you're doing, and you at least try to coordinate with the people who set 
it up.  If you want to play around with breaking network gear, please take 
it upon yourself to set yourself up a lab network so you can mess it up 
without interrupting everyone else.

Also, if you're setting up infrastructure stuff, please make sure you put 
as much info as you can on the wiki so people can do what they're trying 
to do without having to try to change how things are set up.

Thanks!

Also, I think we need a group hug. :)

-nils