DCN INFORMATION PROVIDER COMMITTEE MEETING NOTES

[These are draft notes until approved at a subsequent IPC meeting.]

DATE: 12/03/97
TIME: 6:15 - 7:30 PM
LOCATION: City of Davis Computer Lab, 600 A Street.

ATTENDEES: John Batchelder, John Chiles, Jason Coffer, Anne Hance (Chair),
           Paul Healey, Richard Lowenberg, Steve McMahon, Esther Polito,
           Vicki Suter, Richard Yamagata.
           
NOTE TAKER: Paul Healey


A  1. Approval of Agenda
    
      Approved.
      
B. Project Proposals for Consideration:

   1. Amnesty International of Davis -- Jan Monzer
   
      The project requested extension of the non-dial-up account to another year.
      Jan Monzer reviewed status of the project (much interest, little money) and
      noted its minimal usage of storage resources. The committee agreed to an
      additional year, with a note that the project was encouraged to pay for its
      own account as soon as possible.
      

C. Housekeeping

   1. Approve notes of 4/2/97, 5/7/97 and 11/5/97.
   
      The 11/5/97 notes were approved.
      
   2. Chair pro tem selection
   
      Jason Coffer was elected, by ballot preceding the meeting, as chair pro tem
      to fill in if Anne is away.
      
   3. Request from Steve Brown to have his IPC list address changed to a non-DCN
      address
      
      This request, and the implication that administration of Steve Brown's two
      mailing lists would be done from a non-DCN server, raised several questions:
      
        -- Whether IPC list subscription should require a DCN account.  There was
           general agreement that it should not.
           
        -- Whether there could be problems in Steve Brown's administering his
           project lists from another server, problems such as notification of
           system status changes.
           
        -- Whether DCN is receiving anything in return for its support.  The work
           is with the PTA, not the school district.
           
      It was noted that this request had been sent previously to the Public
      Education Committee, and the consensus was to send it there again, with the
      understanding that Steve Brown can bring the matter to the IPC if it remains
      unresolved.  Given the interesting questions raised, Richard Yamagata and
      Steve McMahon were assigned the task of formulating a policy proposal for
      the next meeting.
      
D. Content Review

   DISCUSSION: In what ways and in what areas can the IPC work more pro-actively
   to help develop appropriate, needed, inviting and interesting content on the
   DCN Web and other DCN electronic networking arenas?
   
     This discussion was prompted by Anne's concern that the IPC is too passive in
     its approach to providing on-line information -- waiting for proposals without
     actively promoting and seeking them out as well.  She divided the problem
     into two parts:
     
       1.  What should our content be -- both content per se and
           applications/tools?
           
       2.  How do we get more pro-active?
       
     On 1, it was suggested that DCN will be moving toward more emphasis on
     database and interactive applications generally; that resource scarcity will
     force deeper concentration on significant projects and more resource control;
     and that the Volunteer project, in particular, needs attention.
     
     With respect to 2, the possibility of making project promotion a more
     explicit obligation of committee members was mentioned.  Also noted was that
     newspaper advertising might be effective in volunteer recruitment.
     
E. Reports

   1. Sponsored and Mini Projects Evaluations Report
   
      Anne reported that feedback from project leaders was willingly given and very
      helpful.  The report can be seen at
      
         http://www.dcn.davis.ca.us/go/rahance/IPC/eval.html
         
   2. DCN Board -- Strategic Planning
   
      Strategic Planning will continue post-retreat.
    
   3. Web Team -- Steve McMahon
   
      The Web Team continues with reworking of the organizational pages, skill
      building and reeducation.
   
   5. Ad Hoc Committee on Content Policy.
   
      Work continues.  [The chair expressed discomfort with the subcommittee's
      waywardness.]
      
   5. Projects
      
      -- The Yolo Basin Foundation page is up and can be seen at
         http://www.yolobasin.org/
      
      -- The Hattie Weber Museum page is up, and John Chiles asked for feedback.
         See http://www.dcn.davis.ca.us/go/hattie/
      
      -- It is not known whether the Delphi project has obtained its accounts yet.
F.

G.

H. Meeting Adjourned at 7:39 p.m.