Proposal for a new website

[Romain LE DISEZ-5]

Hi all,

a very bad person has hijacked the thread of Bharat about Git. To take
him in the right way, I start a new thread here ;-)

It seems that some people agree that the "web presence" of the project
must be re-worked for a better consistency and visibility. As a starting
point for the discussion, I present the way I imagine it.


==== WHAT ====
A public website : www.galleryproject.org
    It is a "store" for the project. There should be :
     - news
     - forum
     - documentation for the user (installation, how to use, FAQ)
     - download
     - access to demo

A development website : dev.galleryproject.org
    This is the place that concentrate everything about development. The
    intented audience is the core team, the plugins developers, the
    themes developers, and people just interested to look at the code.
    There should be :
      - a wiki (No user info here, only API, roadmap, ...)
      - a bug tracker
      - a code browser

A VCS : git.galleryproject.org

A demo : demo.galleryproject.org
    A clean installation of the lastest version. It must be resetted
    each hour to avoid squatting. (some of the more popular themes could
    be added to the demo ?)

A forge : forge.galleryproject.org
    The goal is to group projects that turn around Gallery :
     - parallels branches (Windows, PgSQL, ...)
     - popular plugins and themes ?

    The projects in the forge have their own wiki/bug tracker (it is
    important that bugs introduced by theses projects are not in the
    main bug tracker, it's up to the maintainer to follow up the ticket
    to the core team)


==== WHO ====
There is a need for some skills :
 - Web design : create an identity for the project and adapt it for the
   differents websites

 - Web development : integrate the differents applications, may be some
   specific development

 - System administration : manage the server, DNS, and backups, install
   the applications


==== HOW ====
Depending of the resources of the project :
 - a dedicated server : it will handle all the services, everything
   needed could be installed

 - take the services where there are : there is no cost but it will be
   difficult to do good integration


==== MY POINT OF VIEW ====
It is probably clear that I'm in favor of a server that can be totally
managed, it will help to have something consistant.

The homepage must be clear and efficient : a quick presentation, the
last news and two big button "Try" (-> demo) and "Download". It should
not be longest than a screen (no scrollbar)

There must be no bridge between the public website and the two others
except ONE link in the menu (eg: "Development | Forge"). This way, the
end-user won't be lost in the dev except if he wanted it.

The sites must have the same design but must be clearly distinguable.
For example : three colors themes, and three logo (the main logo and two
adapted for dev and forge)

A shared authentication system would be great. This way, the same login
is valid for the forum, the bugtracker, and git (with a validation for
git, of course)


Waiting for feedback and candidatures...


Greetings.


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[Chris Kelly-2]

These are all great points, but it's a lot of information to
discuss and all of it may not be of direct interest to the
majority of people on this list. Could you create a new page
on our wiki, perhaps http://codex.gallery2.org/New_Website
with everything below so that we can track things we've
agreed on and more easily share progress updates? I'm not
saying that things can't be discussed here, but having all
of the information in one place will lead to shorter, more
digestible, emails and email threads.

I like that you separate the user docs/etc  from the dev
docs/etc. I feel like thats a separation we don't really
have now.

Some resources that we have that you may not be aware of:

1. I run a hosting company and have piles of equipment
(http://www.ithought.org) and do operations in my fulltime
job so I'm well versed in that area

2. Gallery has a handful of servers that we own and have
full use of. 3 or 4 of em, in two different colos (some
hosted with me)

3. We have two UI/UX/WebDesign people (Chad and Jakob) that
have done and awesome on Gallery 3 and will have some time
to spend on our website once G3 is out the door

-Chris


Romain LE DISEZ wrote:

> Hi all,
>
> a very bad person has hijacked the thread of Bharat about Git. To take
> him in the right way, I start a new thread here ;-)
>
> It seems that some people agree that the "web presence" of the project
> must be re-worked for a better consistency and visibility. As a starting
> point for the discussion, I present the way I imagine it.
>
>
> ==== WHAT ====
> A public website : www.galleryproject.org
>     It is a "store" for the project. There should be :
>      - news
>      - forum
>      - documentation for the user (installation, how to use, FAQ)
>      - download
>      - access to demo
>
> A development website : dev.galleryproject.org
>     This is the place that concentrate everything about development. The
>     intented audience is the core team, the plugins developers, the
>     themes developers, and people just interested to look at the code.
>     There should be :
>       - a wiki (No user info here, only API, roadmap, ...)
>       - a bug tracker
>       - a code browser
>
> A VCS : git.galleryproject.org
>
> A demo : demo.galleryproject.org
>     A clean installation of the lastest version. It must be resetted
>     each hour to avoid squatting. (some of the more popular themes could
>     be added to the demo ?)
>
> A forge : forge.galleryproject.org
>     The goal is to group projects that turn around Gallery :
>      - parallels branches (Windows, PgSQL, ...)
>      - popular plugins and themes ?
>
>     The projects in the forge have their own wiki/bug tracker (it is
>     important that bugs introduced by theses projects are not in the
>     main bug tracker, it's up to the maintainer to follow up the ticket
>     to the core team)
>
>
> ==== WHO ====
> There is a need for some skills :
>  - Web design : create an identity for the project and adapt it for the
>    differents websites
>
>  - Web development : integrate the differents applications, may be some
>    specific development
>
>  - System administration : manage the server, DNS, and backups, install
>    the applications
>
>
> ==== HOW ====
> Depending of the resources of the project :
>  - a dedicated server : it will handle all the services, everything
>    needed could be installed
>
>  - take the services where there are : there is no cost but it will be
>    difficult to do good integration
>
>
> ==== MY POINT OF VIEW ====
> It is probably clear that I'm in favor of a server that can be totally
> managed, it will help to have something consistant.
>
> The homepage must be clear and efficient : a quick presentation, the
> last news and two big button "Try" (-> demo) and "Download". It should
> not be longest than a screen (no scrollbar)
>
> There must be no bridge between the public website and the two others
> except ONE link in the menu (eg: "Development | Forge"). This way, the
> end-user won't be lost in the dev except if he wanted it.
>
> The sites must have the same design but must be clearly distinguable.
> For example : three colors themes, and three logo (the main logo and two
> adapted for dev and forge)
>
> A shared authentication system would be great. This way, the same login
> is valid for the forum, the bugtracker, and git (with a validation for
> git, of course)
>
>
> Waiting for feedback and candidatures...
>
>
> Greetings.
>
>
> ------------------------------------------------------------------------------
> Register Now for Creativity and Technology (CaT), June 3rd, NYC. CaT
> is a gathering of tech-side developers & brand creativity professionals. Meet
> the minds behind Google Creative Lab, Visual Complexity, Processing, &
> iPhoneDevCamp asthey present alongside digital heavyweights like Barbarian
> Group, R/GA, & Big Spaceship. http://www.creativitycat.com 
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>
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iPhoneDevCamp asthey present alongside digital heavyweights like Barbarian
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[Romain LE DISEZ-5]

Le samedi 23 mai 2009 à 12:07 -0400, Chris Kelly a écrit :
> Could you create a new page
> on our wiki, perhaps http://codex.gallery2.org/New_Website
> with everything below so that we can track things we've
> agreed on and more easily share progress updates?

Good idea, I did it : http://codex.gallery2.org/New_Website


> 1. I run a hosting company and have piles of equipment
> (http://www.ithought.org) and do operations in my fulltime
> job so I'm well versed in that area

Hi collegue... As I said in an other thread I work for an hosting
company in France (www.netensia.fr, we provide high availability by
geographical redundancy).


> 2. Gallery has a handful of servers that we own and have
> full use of. 3 or 4 of em, in two different colos (some
> hosted with me)

Thanks for these informations. I could not believe that Gallery need as
many servers. Can you explain me how they are used ? It will help my
understanding of the current situation.


> 3. We have two UI/UX/WebDesign people (Chad and Jakob) that
> have done and awesome on Gallery 3 and will have some time
> to spend on our website once G3 is out the door

Great.

Greetings.


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[Stephen Cupp]

I don't think gallery needs a new website. I think the current one can
be adapted easily enough.  Why would we want to change URL's and break
everyone's bookmarks to forums posts and whatnot and lose all the google
juice that gallery.menalto.com has?  I think the time would be better
spent reorganizing the codex instead of reinventing the wheel.  What
does codex mean anyways?

Stephen Cupp
--

"Goaltending is a normal job, Sure!  How would you like it in your job
if every time you made a mistake, a red light went on over your desk and
fifteen thousand people stood up and yelled at you?" -Hall of Fame
Goaltender Jacques Plante

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[Chad Kieffer-3]

Hey Stephen,

The primary reason to change the Url is to clarify the Gallery brand.  
Many folks are confused by "menalto" in the project web site's URL.  
Many refer to us as Menalto's Gallery. Using galleryproject.org is one  
way to strengthen our identity.

As far as the web site design goes, I think we can improve the current  
layout and address some visibility issues for new users while giving  
regular visitors faster acces to what they need.

I don't think we need to change URLs, beyond this and we'll certainly  
take proper redirects into consideration.

- Chad

On May 26, 2009, at 12:38 PM, Stephen Cupp <lvthunder@...>  
wrote:

> I don't think gallery needs a new website. I think the current one can
> be adapted easily enough.  Why would we want to change URL's and break
> everyone's bookmarks to forums posts and whatnot and lose all the  
> google
> juice that gallery.menalto.com has?  I think the time would be better
> spent reorganizing the codex instead of reinventing the wheel.  What
> does codex mean anyways?
>
> Stephen Cupp
> --
>
> "Goaltending is a normal job, Sure!  How would you like it in your job
> if every time you made a mistake, a red light went on over your desk  
> and
> fifteen thousand people stood up and yelled at you?" -Hall of Fame
> Goaltender Jacques Plante
>
> ---
> ---
> ---
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> Register Now for Creativity and Technology (CaT), June 3rd, NYC. CaT
> is a gathering of tech-side developers & brand creativity  
> professionals. Meet
> the minds behind Google Creative Lab, Visual Complexity, Processing, &
> iPhoneDevCamp as they present alongside digital heavyweights like  
> Barbarian
> Group, R/GA, & Big Spaceship. http://p.sf.net/sfu/creativitycat-com
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>
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[Bharat Mediratta]

Romain LE DISEZ wrote:
>> 2. Gallery has a handful of servers that we own and have
>> full use of. 3 or 4 of em, in two different colos (some
>> hosted with me)
>
> Thanks for these informations. I could not believe that Gallery need as
> many servers. Can you explain me how they are used ? It will help my
> understanding of the current situation.

We have 2 servers in a colo in San Francisco:
   GMC 3 is our primary gallery.menalto.com server (webserver+db+mail) as
   well as the host for a few other smaller domains

   GMC 2 is our last generation gallery.menalto.com server and I use it
   as a development box

we have 2 servers in a colo in Atlanta:
   GMC 1 is gallery.menalto.com from 2 generations back.  It's currently
   unused as far as I know.

   parity is our over-the-network backup box with hourly backups of
   GMC 3 as well as several other boxes.

-Bharat




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[Gaynor McCartney]

Good points Stephen.
Also let us not forget that Gallery is generously provided to us by Bharat.
It is his baby that he shares with the world. It is good having him "at the
top" although he doesn;t wield his power unnecessarily.

Unlike the "corporate programmes" Gallery has this great "family and
friends" atmosphere. I would not like to see the URL lose the Menalto.

Gaynor


----- Original Message -----
From: "Stephen Cupp" <lvthunder@...>
To: <gallery-devel@...>
Sent: Wednesday, May 27, 2009 6:38 AM
Subject: Re: [Gallery-devel] Proposal for a new website

>I don't think gallery needs a new website. I think the current one can
> be adapted easily enough.  Why would we want to change URL's and break
> everyone's bookmarks to forums posts and whatnot and lose all the google
> juice that gallery.menalto.com has?  I think the time would be better
> spent reorganizing the codex instead of reinventing the wheel.  What
> does codex mean anyways?
>
> Stephen Cupp
> --
>
> "Goaltending is a normal job, Sure!  How would you like it in your job
> if every time you made a mistake, a red light went on over your desk and
> fifteen thousand people stood up and yelled at you?" -Hall of Fame
> Goaltender Jacques Plante
>
> ------------------------------------------------------------------------------
> Register Now for Creativity and Technology (CaT), June 3rd, NYC. CaT
> is a gathering of tech-side developers & brand creativity professionals.
> Meet
> the minds behind Google Creative Lab, Visual Complexity, Processing, &
> iPhoneDevCamp as they present alongside digital heavyweights like
> Barbarian
> Group, R/GA, & Big Spaceship. http://p.sf.net/sfu/creativitycat-com
> __[ g a l l e r y - d e v e l ]_________________________
>
> [ list info/archive --> http://gallery.sf.net/lists.php ]
> [ gallery info/FAQ/download --> http://gallery.sf.net ]

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[Chris Kelly-2]

On May 24, 2009, at 10:15 AM, Romain LE DISEZ wrote:
> Le samedi 23 mai 2009 à 12:07 -0400, Chris Kelly a écrit :
>> Could you create a new page
>> on our wiki, perhaps http://codex.gallery2.org/New_Website
>> with everything below so that we can track things we've
>> agreed on and more easily share progress updates?
>
> Good idea, I did it : http://codex.gallery2.org/New_Website

Thanks for doing this!  I don't have the time to spend a lot on this  
over the next few weeks, but once G3 is out the door there will be a  
few more sets of eyes free. Feel free to put information together  
there, and drive specific aspects of conversation about things on this  
mailing list. Things move forward when someone takes the lead in  
making them happen :)

-Chris
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[Romain LE DISEZ-5]

Hi Stephen,

"new website" will be what the visitors will see, it is just
communication. In fact, it will be nearly of a migration.

In a migration of a website, there is fundamental goals :
- minimum data loss (forum post, news, ...)
- minimum impact (users accounts, URLs, ...)

Changing to galleryproject.org doesn't mean that the gallery.menalto.com
will become unavailable. A proper configuration of Apache will do an
HTTP redirection :
    http://gallery.menalto.com/(.*) -> http://www.gallerymenalto.org/$1

This way, the old addresses stay valid and the new are referenced by the
search engines.

The majority of the current website could be reused, it just need some
reorganisation and clarification. There is not need to change drupal or
the forum (except if the code is unmaintained).

About codex, IMHO, it needs to be droped (see [1] for the proposal).

Greetings.

[1] http://codex.gallery2.org/New_Website

Le mardi 26 mai 2009 à 11:38 -0700, Stephen Cupp a écrit :
> I don't think gallery needs a new website. I think the current one can
> be adapted easily enough.  Why would we want to change URL's and break
> everyone's bookmarks to forums posts and whatnot and lose all the google
> juice that gallery.menalto.com has?  I think the time would be better
> spent reorganizing the codex instead of reinventing the wheel.  What
> does codex mean anyways?
>
> Stephen Cupp


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