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Registration Problems

 
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roger.pape
Site Admin


Joined: 17 Mar 2009
Posts: 414
Location: Liverpool, NY

PostPosted: Sun Dec 18, 2016 11:09 pm    Post subject: Registration Problems Reply with quote

All of the content on this message board can be viewed and/or downloaded without the need to register. However, registration is required if one wishes to comment on an existing posting, add a new posting, or start a new topic. While the message board used on this site has provisions that allow a person to apply for membership directly from the board (by clicking on 'Register' at the top of the board's main page), this feature has been disabled. Instead, one must contact me by e-mail requesting membership.

First of all, a little explanation as to why the change was made. The various search engines that we use to find information on the Web (such as Google, Bing, Yahoo, etc.) scan all of the websites on the Internet and index the contents of all files that they are able (and permitted) to read. This indexing is what allows you to find pages on the Web that contain the words or phrases that you specify in your search. The search engines use robots (called spiders because they crawl around on the Web) to periodically perform this scan. A given website can restrict these spiders from scanning the contents of any or all of its pages by means of a file called robots.txt. This, of course, assumes that the search engine robots will honor this request.

When this website was initially developed, I chose to specify no scanning by the robots. The thought was that this would keep hackers and spammers off of the site. The existence of the website was to be spread by word of mouth. But the honor system does not stop hackers and spammers from attempting to sign onto a website. So the restriction on the search engine spiders was removed. This did have an advantage because it allowed anyone to find information on the message board or other pages by means of a general search. However, this resulted in a significant increase in the number of registration applications (averaging about two dozen a day). While most of the requests could be ignored based on the username or address in the messages I receive, it was still necessary to clean those names off of the membership list. Since this website is a sideline, not a full-time job, maintaining the board became a unnecessary burden. So I finally decided to disable registrations from the message board page.

The bottom line is that now, in order to register on the board, one must send an e-mail message directly to me at roger.pape@ieee.org requesting membership. In the e-mail, include the username you would like to use and a little information indicating your knowledge of the Concordia area and/or its people. This will allow me to judge whether it is a legitimate request. I will send you a temporary password which you can change using 'Profile' on the board's main page.

I have always encouraged people to sign up and add postings to the board. Nowdays people tend to use various social media sites such as Facebook or Twitter; so a message board may seem to be outdated. However, it is still a good way to exchange information in a way that can be organized and easily located. I'm sure that many of you have information or stories that are at least as interesting as anything that I have posted. Postings on this board typically get at least several thousand views, so the time spent posting a topic on it is worth the effort.
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