Technology Committee

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This is a committee that has not yet been formally charted by the Board. It is currently discussing what it will look like.

Contents

[edit] Members

Description Value to PCSAR mandate Difficulty to implement
Technology Committee/2016-04-22/Sug/0003 Show tech committee how to support RapidNotify not rated done
Technology Committee/2016-04-22/Sug/0004 Show tech committee how to support Phone.com none not rated
Technology Committee/2016-04-22/Sug/0005 provide technology committee root access to server not rated not rated
Description Value to PCSAR mandate Difficulty to implement
Technology Committee/2016-04-22/Sug/0001 determine how much of D4H equipment data can be easily exported not rated done
Technology Committee/2016-04-22/Sug/0002 request D4H custom field type for clickable URL not rated done
none.


(Database listing)

[edit] Mandate

  • chartered at 2016-03-01 board meeting

[edit] Meetings

[edit] Communications

The Technology Committee has a dedicated mailing list: pcsar-technology.

[edit] Discussion

The committee members have agreed to take on a technical role in PCSAR.

We don't want to create extra work for us, so we're proposing that we only rarely meet as committee, instead we use technology for our advantage. Email, SMS and the wiki. Or other means if you can recommend them.

As PCSAR is increasing its use of technology, it needs people like us to recommend a path forward and to support that technology when others can't.

One of our strategies should be to set up technology in such a way that non-technical members can use it without requiring much of our time. This should be especially true during searches, when we're all likely to be tied up elsewhere. We can achieve this through our choice of technology, our design of how its used, simplification procedures, and good documentation.

Areas which we think will fall partially under our area of responsibility:

The server, including

  • The wiki and web server
  • The membership database stored online
  • Mailing lists

D4H (the OFC's on-line record system)

RapidNotify (the call-out system)

Custom mapping

Phone.com (our multifeatured virtual phone system)

Our two regular phone lines (403-627-5804 and 403-627-2262)

inReach (satellite texting and locating service and device)

And possibly, when we look at the merits of future changes, to

  • the Sat Phones
  • the radios

Most of these are areas where Brett has traditionally been doing work. The intention isn't to dump these things on other people, but rather to make sure they're part of the decision making of where we are going with these and others have the knowledge and access to step in if he's not available.

[edit] Issues


Immediate

  • moving pcsar server to commercial host
    • not necessarily Canadian host
    • consider whipcord.com in Lethbridge
    • upgrade the distribution
    • better DNS
  • hand-off access to server (root)
  • computer in MCP
    • dedicated
  • email archive accessible to members
    • gmail account
    • use plus addressing for category: equipment, preplan
    • consider having an email address that automatically posts messages to the wiki

Medium Term

  • plan inventory tool
    • select tool:
    • trial run: firehall cabinet
  • examine whether cheaper phone configurations, sat phones, inReach, and land lines
  • data connectivity at MCP
  • email services
    • president@pcsar.ca
    • email portal webmail
    • consider google for business
  • inReach
    • how to integrate member's inReach devices into search
      • ask inReach if they could have a way to volunteer their inReach to be accessible by PCSAR
    • plan increase in number of team inReach devices
    • automating inReach rate changes
  • GPS data integration
    • download data from members GPS's or PCSAR's GPS's
    • load GPS with waypoints, route, base map, or segment area (geofence)


Medium Term extending into Long Term

  • examine cost of sat phones and alternatives
  • custom mapping
    • standard search segments
    • can we use front end tools that don't require much training


Long Term

  • Develop plan for provincial digital radio system


Priorities are set by:

  1. what offloads work from people that are busy
  2. what creates most impact
  3. what saves money

[edit] Financial

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