Hi everyone,
As many of you will no doubt be aware, we have been considering for some time the possibility of moving the SOTA reflector to a different software platform. In this post I want explain the drivers behind this and our plans for making the transition.
When the existing facility was put in place, SOTA was tiny compared to the widespread international movement it has now become. I am personally surprised that software cobbled together one Christmas is still serving its purpose nearly a decade later. However, it is definitely fraying at the edges and gaps between its current front end and administrative functionality and that which we would ideally like to see for managing a large international online forum are becoming increasingly felt.
One of the reasons for building the software in the first place was because the forum software available at the time was, in my view, not very useable; a state of affairs that has persisted until quite recently. Many people have commented on how they have appreciated the clean and simple operation of the SOTAwatch reflector.
However, over the last couple of years I have been keeping eye on a new piece of software called Discourse. And about 6 month ago the MT agreed to give it a test drive. Since then, and after extensive use, the MT has unanimously come the conclusion that we should now transfer the main SOTAwatch reflector over to Discourse.
Now, I can tell you, many (in fact most!) members of the MT were highly suspicious of the new-fangled platform and had many misgivings initially about how things worked. But all have now got used to it and there is a full commitment behind its continued use.
But this does make us, the MT, realise that the SOTA community at large is not necessarily going to find the transition easy. And in fact we may not find the transition technically easy either. So, this is a plea for cooperation!
I do predict that:
- We may have some glitches in the transfer that will be irritating and possibly disruptive. (However, we will obviously do our best to avoid these!)
- There may be some difficulties in getting some existing users fully signed up and properly configured on the new system. This is likely to be personally frustrating for some users. (Again, maybe it will be supersmooth!)
- Quite a few of you will inevitably dislike being torn away from a system you have become very familiar with. And some, no doubt, will complain bitterly!
- Many may feel an aversion to the new system. It is different. It may take a while for some to get used to it.
However, we will be seeking to retain the entire reflector history (which will be searchable) and we will be seeking to automatically subscribe current SOTAwatch users to the new forum.
We will also be available to help anyone struggling and will be writing up FAQs associated with the use of the new facility.
We intend to do transfer at some point over the next few weeks as we find time amidst work commitments, etc. We will do a trial run first and then when we are ready, a final import and switch over. SOTAwatch will then contain a list of topics for the new reflector in much the same way it does now, so that aspect will remain lsrgely unchanged.
So apologies in advance for an enforced change. No-one really likes this and we do understand that. But we are convinced that it is an essential upgrade that will ensure the sustainability of the refector in the future.
73, Jon
GM4ZFZ obo MT
UPDATE: The move to the new system is planned for Friday 22nd August. See posts below for more information
