EFF Ireland - Formation / Reformation

dahamsta · 24-08-2005 8:52pm

We had a big long discussion about the name last year, far too bloody long for my liking, and eventually settled on EFI. I ran a €100 logo competition and we picked this logo. Brendan Kehoe put money up for the domain name, which I just registered using a Registered Business Name I set up last week. The site is hosted on one of my servers with a WordPress install running content and news. It just needs tidying up before it's released to the content monsters. So I guess the next step is to nominate people as editors and/or writers.

Here's a site I threw together last week - obviously it can be changed if necessary - however I don't want it to be spidered by anything yet so you'll need to click the link and then remove the obvious space from the URL. Please don't post the URL anywhere else.

http://efi.ie/ content/

adam

dangerman · 24-08-2005 9:52pm

dahamsta wrote:

We had a big long discussion about the name last year, far too bloody long for my liking, and eventually settled on EFI. I ran a €100 logo competition and we picked this logo. Brendan Kehoe put money up for the domain name, which I just registered using a Registered Business Name I set up last week. The site is hosted on one of my servers with a WordPress install running content and news. It just needs tidying up before it's released to the content monsters. So I guess the next step is to nominate people as editors and/or writers.

Here's a site I threw together last week - obviously it can be changed if necessary - however I don't want it to be spidered by anything yet so you'll need to click the link and then remove the obvious space from the URL. Please don't post the URL anywhere else.

http://efi.ie/ content/

adam

adam, good work. I'm glad to see every single one of my suggestions has already been implemented.

[logo rant] whats with the orange dot? [/logo rant]

As for choosing editors/writers, maybe start a new thread here where people can post requesting access, and leave it as is, and let everyone start posting now without the site being spidered for a few weeks and see how it goes.

EWI · 24-08-2005 11:33pm

maidhc wrote:

Is there a particular reason why "EFI" must be used, it reminds me of an old toyota starlet we had once... the EFI being electronic fuel injection. But the name is the least of the issues.

I think the name ("EFI") is short, concise, and fits the bill pretty well. *shrug*

maidhc wrote:

I would be happy to lend support to updating and maintaining any website. I can do XHTML, PHP and MySQL; my pride and joy being the Irish Legal Information Initiative (www.irlii.org). I have to say tough I have never quite caught onto the notion of the blog, and would think the construction of an informative neutral POV website would suit an orgainisation better...

(I see that, cool ;-)

The blog is a great idea for publicity, building momentum, getting feedback and frankly just reassuring people that something's happening. I don't think a "neutral POV" is what we need; we're not exactly looking for shrill, but the purpose of an EFI would be to push-back against government and corporate interests, after all.

maidhc wrote:

I'm not sure if it is common sense as to what the EFI takes on, I think it would need to be carefully thought about. I think orgainisations like the ICCL spend a lot of time fighting the wrong battles and fail to capture the public's interest.

Well, I think that the notion of what such an organisation should address is pretty obvious. ID cards, patent law, online privacy and all that. Obviously in areas where there's someone already ably filling the niche (like electronic voting) they can just be left to get on with it, with help and advice being offered if they need it.

EWI · 24-08-2005 11:43pm

dangerman wrote:

adam, good work. I'm glad to see every single one of my suggestions has already been implemented.

[logo rant] whats with the orange dot? [/logo rant]

Is there (ahem) any chance that the orange dot might be put over the "i" in EFI? ;-) Green lettering might be nice, as well - otherwise, fine.

dangerman wrote:

As for choosing editors/writers, maybe start a new thread here where people can post requesting access, and leave it as is, and let everyone start posting now without the site being spidered for a few weeks and see how it goes.

Och. This is where the need of a full-time co-ordinator/editor comes in.

EWI · 24-08-2005 11:44pm

dahamsta wrote:

We had a big long discussion about the name last year, far too bloody long for my liking, and eventually settled on EFI. I ran a €100 logo competition and we picked this logo. Brendan Kehoe put money up for the domain name, which I just registered using a Registered Business Name I set up last week. The site is hosted on one of my servers with a WordPress install running content and news. It just needs tidying up before it's released to the content monsters. So I guess the next step is to nominate people as editors and/or writers.

Quite right.

Here's a site I threw together last week - obviously it can be changed if necessary - however I don't want it to be spidered by anything yet so you'll need to click the link and then remove the obvious space from the URL. Please don't post the URL anywhere else.

http://efi.ie/ content/

adam[/QUOTE]

Good stuff

dahamsta · 24-08-2005 11:56pm

EWI wrote:

Is there (ahem) any chance that the orange dot might be put over the "i" in EFI? ;-) Green lettering might be nice, as well - otherwise, fine.

I'm not a designer, and past experience suggests that when people get distracted with things like logos and names, the outcome is invariably... nothing. This might seem arrogant, but my advice would be to take the current identity as-is, and come back to it when a real foundation for the organisation exists.

Och. This is where the need of a full-time co-ordinator/editor comes in.

I disagree with with the assertion that EFI needs to be funded at the outset, as people who've been involved previously will know. Get it off the ground first, make some noise, then think about donations. IMHO.

On this matter specifically, if every interested member pens just one article a month there will be plenty of content for the site, and all an editor will need to do is tidy that content up and mark it for publishing.

adam

maidhc · 25-08-2005 12:56am

EWI wrote:

The blog is a great idea for publicity, building momentum, getting feedback and frankly just reassuring people that something's happening. I don't think a "neutral POV" is what we need; we're not exactly looking for shrill, but the purpose of an EFI would be to push-back against government and corporate interests, after all.

While a blog is as you say good for generating momentum I would think a website should contain factual information e.g. "fair usage rights in Ireland." or "How the copyright enforcment/software patents/next evil thing from Janelly Fourtou directive affects you....". Again EPIC, the NGO for which I can profess to know something about have a very detailed "Privacy A-Z" which often serves as a reference point for their work. The vast majority of their work tends to be education through electronic and print media rather than any sexy Grisham inspired legal arguments.

When I say be balanced and neutral I mean not stooping to subterranean IRMA levels when explaining the law and its effects, I dont mean being apologists for corporate interests. I am completing a thesis on the privacy effects of ID cards, and I can't tell you how offputting it is to read a document which sets out from the point that ID cards are bad, evil, going to kill your granny, etc without even considering alternative viewpoints (just as bad are UK goverment documents setting out the good points of ID cards). I am merely suggesting that anything the EFI does should be researched and read as such, not be opinion pieces like a bad 2nd year law essay.

Looking at the EFI website: There is a lot on data retention on PI's website, including an interesting article on the Criminal Justice (Terrorist Offences) Act.

Rotten URL: http://www.privacyinternational.org/index.shtml?cmd[342][]=c-1-Communications+surveillance&als[theme]=Communications%20surveillance&conds[1][category........]=Communications%20surveillance

dangerman · 25-08-2005 9:48am

maidhc wrote:

While a blog is as you say good for generating momentum I would think a website should contain factual information e.g. "fair usage rights in Ireland." or "How the copyright enforcment/software patents/next evil thing from Janelly Fourtou directive affects you....". Again EPIC, the NGO for which I can profess to know something about have a very detailed "Privacy A-Z" which often serves as a reference point for their work. The vast majority of their work tends to be education through electronic and print media rather than any sexy Grisham inspired legal arguments.

The blog setup there has plenty of scope for static informational pages as well. So if content like that is created it can be linked to up the top [like the 'issues link' and remain seperate from the opiniated/news type stuff on the main blog. With blog posts being being made with peoples names associated with them, it's much clearer it's an opinion.

Static pages could be worked on by more than one person and can be made more authoritive by being seperated from the blog. - this distinction can be made fairly clear through the structure/navigation.

As has been said, start small and simple - and I agree with not changing anything like the logo as it's just not important right now.

EWI · 25-08-2005 3:09pm

dahamsta wrote:

I'm not a designer, and past experience suggests that when people get distracted with things like logos and names, the outcome is invariably... nothing. This might seem arrogant, but my advice would be to take the current identity as-is, and come back to it when a real foundation for the organisation exists.

Oh, I agree. I was just making a few comments on it.

dahamsta wrote:

I disagree with with the assertion that EFI needs to be funded at the outset, as people who've been involved previously will know. Get it off the ground first, make some noise, then think about donations. IMHO.

No, you're right. Initially, there's nothing much required in the way of financing. As it goes on, they can develop, of course.

dahamsta wrote:

On this matter specifically, if every interested member pens just one article a month there will be plenty of content for the site, and all an editor will need to do is tidy that content up and mark it for publishing.

adam

The point I would make is that you really do need a good editor for all this, and, well, a small number of good, knowledgable writers on the subjects in question. There're a number of people out there with those qualifications.

EWI · 25-08-2005 3:22pm

maidhc wrote:

When I say be balanced and neutral I mean not stooping to subterranean IRMA levels when explaining the law and its effects, I dont mean being apologists for corporate interests. I am completing a thesis on the privacy effects of ID cards, and I can't tell you how offputting it is to read a document which sets out from the point that ID cards are bad, evil, going to kill your granny, etc without even considering alternative viewpoints (just as bad are UK goverment documents setting out the good points of ID cards). I am merely suggesting that anything the EFI does should be researched and read as such, not be opinion pieces like a bad 2nd year law essay.

I'm not at all suggesting Slashdot-style hysterics and shrillness, but the EFI do need to be addressing the issues in an assertive manner (look at how the E-voting issue was won). Groklaw is an excellent model, as is War and Piece.

maidhc wrote:

Looking at the EFI website: There is a lot on data retention on PI's website, including an interesting article on the Criminal Justice (Terrorist Offences) Act.

Rotten URL: http://www.privacyinternational.org/index.shtml?cmd[342][]=c-1-Communications+surveillance&als[theme]=Communications%20surveillance&conds[1][category........]=Communications%20surveillance

An important purpose of an EFI would be to provide a one-stop shop for this (with properly-referenced articles), rather than having to go hunting through the 'Net.

damien · 25-08-2005 3:29pm

Guys, those long URLs are fuking up the formatting of the pages. Can you use http://tinyurl.com/ for the links please?

towel401 · 23-02-2009 12:27pm

hai

EFF Ireland - Formation / Reformation

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