[Noisebridge-discuss] Access control and the DJ booth

[Ani Niow]

Is it just me or do we seem to have a lot of mailing list drama right before
a big event that introduces a lot of new people to Noisebridge? The thread
about kids happened right before Maker Faire and this is happening right
before Arse and our anniversary. It's almost like we *want* people to see us
at our most argumentative.
Any ideas on how to top this for the next time a big Noisebridge related
event happens?


-Ani



2009/9/30 Dr. Jesus <j at hug.gs>

> There was some discussion earlier tonight about putting a gate on the
> DJ booth. Although I wasn't planning on doing it anytime soon, I
> thought I'd write up my thoughts to prompt some discussion because I'm
> not sure I covered all the details earlier tonight.
>
> Basically, I thought it would be nice if we repurposed one of the
> gates and installed it in front of an enclosed area, probably the DJ
> booth.  I don't know whether I should install a lock or not, but if I
> did it would be keyed to the same key used for the rest of the locks
> at Noisebridge.  Door access would be audited by timestamp only, so
> anonymity concerns would only apply to the same degree they did with
> noisedoor (and no one has complained to me so far.)
>
> Locks in the space are a touchy subject, which is why I mention using
> the door keys.  This requires people who want access to the resources
> in there to participate in the existing web of trust model we use for
> access to the rest of the space.  It's not strong security by any
> means: I'm sure someone's going to program the makerbot to spit out
> keys in the near future.  Think of it more as an IQ test.  I honestly
> don't know whether the idea of installing a lock keyed to the door
> keys is offensive, so apologies in advance if it is.  The alternative
> is using an unlocked doorknob set and that's nearly as good, since the
> main thing about the gate is it provides a fixture on which a magnetic
> access sensor can be installed.
>
> There are several justifications for doing this.  First of all, it
> allows the computers hosted there to be troubleshot more effectively
> because the door access can be correlated with system failures.
> Today, it is not possible to reliably tell the difference between a
> hardware problem and someone using the machines for self education.
> There have already been two such situations at 2169: the DSL modem
> resetting and storage problems on pony.
>
> Second, it allows people who want to temporarily store expensive or
> medically related things at Noisebridge to have a some level of
> assurance that access to the gear is mostly limited to people included
> in the existing web of trust built out of the physical key
> distribution.  For example, when we host an event there will sometimes
> be objects present in the space which cannot comply with our general
> policy of being available for hacking.  Again, this is not so much
> about securing the gear as making sure that there's a mechanism for
> knowing -- possibly in real time -- when someone's been in there.  If
> what I heard about the last party is true, I think our average
> gathering might be pretty chaotic and it might be a good idea to have
> some island of stability where we can put things without worrying
> about drunken partygoers.
>
> Third, I think it would be a good idea to have a backup fire
> extinguisher, flashlight, and first aid kit in an area with access
> logging just in case the ones in the space are tampered with.  Sure,
> there's no guarantee that someone's not going to screw with the
> backups too, but I think it's less likely to happen accidentally due
> to chair hockey.  I also think it would be nice if the safety critical
> controllers like the fire and flood alarms are access audited so that
> when access is logged unexpectedly someone can go check them out to
> make sure a rat didn't get in there and eat them.  Being able to trust
> the integrity of those controllers isn't just nice, it has real world
> financial consequences.  I don't want to give an adjuster an excuse to
> bone us on a claim because we don't have reliable safety equipment in
> the space.  This is doubly important if we get that laser cutter that
> was discussed recently.
>
> Fourth, I found myself needing to have a private conversation earlier
> tonight on my netbook and I couldn't find a place at 2169 where there
> was reliable Internet, privacy, and distance from the noise being made
> on the far side of the space.  In my case the bathroom would have
> raised some uncomfortable questions since it was a video chat.  I'm
> sure other people might find it convenient to have a place to have
> less than public conversations as well.
>
> The bottom line is, do you care and if you do, do you want the gate to
> be lockable or not?  Please vote along with your (civil) comments.  If
> this rubs you the wrong way and you'd like to tell me to eat a dick,
> let's keep that off the mailing list.  I can send you my mailing
> address for cock-related packages privately.
>
> To preempt some points I think might come up:
>
>  - Yes, I have been treating parts of the DJ booth as my personal
> shelf, mainly because I had to store a few bulky and easy to lose
> items I'm using for working with the locks and controllers.  Most of
> those will go away in the near future because they're going to be
> bolted to a wall somewhere.  I'm planning on continuing to keep the
> remaining items (lock rekeying set, repair kit, glassware) out of the
> way in the DJ booth and have any personal projects on a regular shelf
> elsewhere.
>
>  - I am in no way married to the idea of enclosing the DJ booth in
> particular for satisfying the use cases above.  Any other area would
> be fine.
>
>  - Yes, even without locking the gate, adding access logging could be
> interpreted as a lack of mutual trust between members and our guests
> and this could have a chilling effect on our interactions.  I'm not
> going to rebut this because that interpretation is an opinion.
> However, I should point out that we did basically the same thing at
> 83c on a coarser scale with noisedoor and as far as I know that
> chilling effect didn't occur.
>
>  - Yes, I know the current staircase is mechanically incompatible with
> the available gates.
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