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Okay, – so :
Yep, I will create a new one as soon as possible, and we will work on the way to apply it to this homepage.
Thank you very much for inspiration and guidance.Oh, looks like I started a great discussion here 🙂
I am happy to see the capabilities outside our forum, but I ask myself: We already have included a good map here. Shouldn’t it be possible to use these system for another map, too?
For the website of my Aquaristikverein (I don’t know how to spell it in english) I used Joomla (the CMS that works here) and I am a bit familiar with ist. If it could be helpful, I offer to support Helene.
And related to the data security, I suggest only to mark the known locations manually. Or is there a need to expose the breeders in particular? This would require some more work at the beginning, but I think it would be worth it.
Thank you all for contributing to this subject. At the moment I am trying a few things out, – you may look up under maps now, and see my first attempt. This is in fact almost the same as what Tom suggested regarding google maps, – but of course not a map in which everyone can add themselves.
However, I also – as webmaster – fear a little bit loosing control 🙂 … I had a little bit troubles doing the google map right, and I worry about someone who would even find it more difficult than me, – and theres a bigger risk of something going wrong if many people have to ‘edit’ in it, I would worry about that. It also means that people wanting to use it would have to have a google account. I dont know about this in general, but I have never really felt comfortable with google accounts, – its a little bit confusing to me. Thats probably just me. I have about 3 google accounts, and I am not sure why I have so many, and which one is for what 🙂 …
A second thing, is regarding how much information should be written. My experience with forums etc is that when things like this is created, it needs to be updated – in particular when it comes to what kind of species one has. It may easily change, and then we would hope that everyone would always have to remember to update this map as well, – or else it will soon become ‘old’ and not so useful.
If people have to write to PP – they will get very updated information, because we always have the latest census to go by, and in this way it might be more accurate.
And thank you to Nathea for offering some assistance on the website – that could become very helpful.In my opinion it would be enough information to see the name of the location instead of the peoples names. That would prevent problems like data security and it would make it easier to update special informations, for example the species that are available at the viewed location.
And because no persons name would be displayed, I suggest to mark all known towns, where Paro-breeders reside. Only the GPS data will be needed to update the map.
What do you think about that idea?
With all due respect to Sylvia I would tend to disagree with her on the names. I think it is beneficial to have name (or handle) along with city, state or region and country depicted on the map. For example, when Big Tom first posted information and photos of his beautiful aquarium I could tell he was a native english speaker, but from where? I knew all the American members and he was not one of them from what I could tell. The map linking the name or “handle” with a general geographic location would appear to be most helpful.
Do all PP-Member have accounts here at the PP-site? Will it be possible to locate all of them here at our map?
This very interesting discussion reveals that we have to think carefully on the diverse solutions possible. There are good arguments for names (as Bill suggests), but there are good arguments for omitting names, too, als Sylvia suggests. The names are not lost in that case, but could be received on special request from our database. The question only is: Should they be readble readily by all internet-surfers or not? Possibly there are different traditions in Europe and in America as data security is concerned. Certainly, quite a few friends would be happy about seeing names directly, but I fear quite a few would request to cancel theirs if openly displayed. The latter is quite impossible if the location would be given in detail; but even if there is only the town given I know spontaneously some people who would not bear that. I don’t say now that we will not openly display names, but we must think it over carefully regarding the pros and cons. Again: Any mails to info@parosphromenus-project.org would and will be answered, and if it’s request to help with the nearest living friends of the licorice, we shall give that information in private eMail (if we have it), of course.
Therefore further arguments are very much welcomed. Let’s take the necessary time to find the best solution. Until that we should discuss it.
One thing is quite clear already: We are moving towards a big step in making our network more useful. Thanks to you![quote=”Nathea” post=776]Do all PP-Member have accounts here at the PP-site? Will it be possible to locate all of them here at our map?[/quote]
No, by no means all. We have nearly 120 members now that have logged-in here. But we gather names since 2005. And there are further actual and relevant addresses about the same quantity. When we send our newsletter we cannot do this for the first 120 only; we do it for all. When we create such a map we should display all, otherwise the map would be full of gaps. The problem is mainly situated in Europe, especially Central Europe, but some addresses are situated at other places too. Time by time the one or other of the second 120 logs-in. It’s a process; you cannot speed it up as you want; one needs patience.
But I admit: Perhaps it would be accelerated if we have the incomplete map first.I just want to add quickly that I have made the menu point ‘Maps’ so that it will only appear when you login to the site. In this way it is not visible to ‘all internet surfers’ at all. You have to be a registered user here before you see it.
Regarding names – locations .. is it not possible to have both. People can write to me that they would like to have their name posted, – but with regards to all the adresses we have, – why should we not be able to pin a star to a location with the name of the location, indicating that here is a possible contact ? Even without asking for permission ?
We are not disclosing any private personal information doing it like this.Fortunately I am able to test website-plugins (especially Joomla-Plugins) on my PC at home and on the website of my “fish club”. And so I tested a combination – both, names and locations – there and like to show you the result here:
I marked my home place as an arrow, named, and marked our clubhouse using another sign, a “house”.
So we could differenciate the “anonymously” locations and the “named” places, if our Paro-friends like to name their markers. And we may add some additional informations to the names, if wanted.
I think the discussion on this topic is coming together as we communicate. Sylvia has closed the location even tighter than I was proposing initially. For me,I placed my star over the largest city in the area. Sylvia places her location almost to the point where I could come to her town and locate her home. I’m not sure we wish to define the locations that precisely. I think members could decide if they wished to have first name, first & last name or just their “handle” displayed on the map. With that I see no security issue of importance.
The mapping tool is able to simply generate the precise coordinates using the postal code and, if desired, the exact address. No special knowledge is needed, it lloks great to me.
try postal code 33760-1741 if you have a chance. That’s for the USA. I dont know if additional if there is an additional international code for each country. It will be interesting to see
In the map that I am using here its only on adresses. If you have any exact adress it will put in the precise coordinates.
I think it works fine like that.
The only problem with ‘our’ map as it is now is that it opens up on Europe, but America is still there 🙂The positioning of the marker in my case was close enough. It was on the east coast of Florida rather than then the west, but it gave people the general idea. As to the map being centered on Europe that is fine as far as I am concerned. I will scroll to the left for USA and someone like David Wei Dai will scroll to the right to find Shanghai. Makes perfect sense to me.
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