[HCoop-Discuss] My hats

[Graham Freeman]

Folks,

Here's my take:

Nathan became busy with law school and possibly also frustrated with  
Hcoop, and ended up being more flaky in a couple of situations than  
he really should have.  Adam C. is correct that a little  
communication goes a long way, and that it was unreasonable to make  
an appointment to be at the datacenter, not show, and not communicate  
about not showing.

However, I agree with Michael that this is being handled badly all  
around, and I also think Nathan's frustration is justified.  It  
doesn't help that Adam C. was making negative comments about Nathan  
in public list traffic (with irrelevant subject lines) without first  
communicating with him directly about the problem.   It also doesn't  
help that Adam C. is quick to say negative things about an Hcoop  
member's participation and slow to give positive feedback.  When  
financial remuneration is unavailable, good vibes usually become the  
major currency.  If Adam C. is to be successful in serving in a  
leadership role in a cooperative venture, he *must* learn to be a  
nicer person via electronic communications.

Finally, there seems to be an expectation that a "good" volunteer  
will read all list traffic, watch all IRC conversations, etc.  That's  
simply not practical for anyone with a busy schedule.   I think  
someone suggested establishing pre-defined means of communicating  
with a given volunteer - that's a great idea.  e.g. "I'm generally  
available via direct email, sometimes available via IM, I try to read  
email list traffic, and I will once in a while pop in to IRC, but for  
anything time-sensitive please call me at +1 900 HOT-TECH."

thanks,

Graham