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2. We don't want personal information posted on the site. (Traditions 11 & 12) No personal information (last names, telephone numbers, postal addresses, etc.) will be posted on the site.
3. How is autonomy of the Groups, Districts, Central Offices and Intergroups going to be preserved? (Tradition 4) The Committee responsible for the Area 92 Website will respect the individual autonomy of Groups, Districts, Central Offices and Intergroups at all times. Each of these service entities will decide for themselves what information they do and do not want shown on the Area 92 website, so long as the information complies with AA's Traditions. For example, if one Group in a District doesn't want to have their meeting information on the Internet, then their meeting information will not be given.
4. We don't want to link to any outside enterprise or other people's AA pages. (Tradition 6) We won't link to anything outside of AA. There will be links to the G.S.O. and Grapevine web sites, other websites sponsored by bona fide AA service entities (e.g., other Areas) that follow AA's 12 Traditions will be linked to only if Option 2 passes.
5. We don't want non-A.A. websites linking to the Area 92 Website. We don't have control over who links to us, any more than we can control a non-AA library book referencing our Big Book: It's an outside issue and we don't pull our book off the shelf in response to this situation. And even if a non-AA website links to us, is this a bad thing? People will then see what AA is about in Area 92 (official meeting schedules and locally approved literature), as well as officially sanctioned AA material on the G.S.O. web site … as compared to someone's experience in AA. Anyone can link to the their web site, G.S.O. has no control over this either.
6. What about Areas that already have web sites, is there anything we can learn from them? Are there any problems that they have been experiencing? (Some Areas that have websites are trying to get rid of them?) Some lessons learned are given by G.S.O.'s 'Ten Frequently Asked Questions About A.A. Web Sites' (see Attachment), this guidance was followed during the development of the Area 92 Website motion, as was observance of A.A.'s principles and 12 Traditions.
In October 2000 17 Areas with web sites were contacted in an attempt to better understand the issues they have faced. As of October 22nd none of the 9 Areas that had responded were trying to get rid of their web site, nor were they aware of any other Areas wanting to do so. The Areas that had been on-line for a while were very positive about their web site experience. Further, any issues they identified and approaches to resolving them did not result in anything that hadn't already been considered and addressed during the development of the Area 92 Website motion: No new major problems were uncovered by the survey.
7. Having E-Mail contact to Area Officers on the web site is biased, what about those Area Officers that either do not have or do not want to use E-Mail? Having a Website does not mean that Area Officers need to have E-Mail. The trusted servants responsible for the maintenance of the Website will forward (postal mail, FAX, etc.) comments and questions to Area Officers that do not have E-Mail, or those who choose not to use it. Contact information will accompany the message to allow the Area Officer to reply in a manner they feel is appropriate.
8. We will be creating a service position that can't be done by everyone. Special skills and equipment would be needed by the trusted servants responsible for the development and maintenance of the web site. However this is not new to AA. Concept XI, under PI and Literature, talks about the need for expertise in carrying A.A.'s message to the still suffering alcoholic. Similarly, Archivists need training to preserve our history and Newsletters are today created using computers. Further, anyone would be welcomed to participate in the web site activity. There are many tasks that could be done without special skills or equipment. For example, the most important qualifications for the Website Committee chairperson are a willingness to make a commitment, ability to play well with others, and a demonstrated working knowledge of AA's 12 Traditions.
9. How can we expect to have a website when G.S.O. has hired a full-time employee?(A large part of this job is to clear up unwanted links to the G.S.O. web site.) The G.S.O. Public Information desk stated a full-time employee is not assigned to maintaining their web site. Updates are decided on by the GSO web site committee and then implemented by an individual who works in the Publication department. They also stated that they have no opinion on other sites linking to the G.S.O. web site, and they do not police or attempt to "clear up" links to their web site (G.S.O. considers the links to be an outside issue too, see Item 5 in this list of objections).
10. Not everyone has uses the Internet, is there enough benefit to justify spending the money to have an Area web site? G.S.O. established a presence on the World Wide Web (WWW) around late 1995. Since then it's continued used by the public and our fellowship have shown that it is a useful tool. Over the past two years visitors use has grown by 300% and in 2000 more than 3,000 page hits/day (on average) have been observed. Professionals' use of the G.S.O. web site tool to obtain information about A.A. has also grown. In 1999 there were nearly 1,500 requests for information originating from the G.S.O. web site, compared to the over 2,000 requests received from all sources.
During this time around 16 other Areas established a presence on the WWW, and they are still on-line providing useful information to our fellowship and the public. In March 1998 District 4's Website was created. Since that time it too has experienced significant use and growth: over the last two years web site traffic has increased by around 400%, and on average there are currently around 30 page hits/day. District 4's experience has been that the web site is a useful tool for the professional community, the general public, and our fellowship as a whole.
These statistics and experiences indicate that the WWW is indeed being used, but to what extent is it helping the still suffering alcoholic and those new to recovery? If two people came to the web site in one month & then wound up going to a meeting because they were too afraid to pick up that phone ... but found going to their computer in the privacy of their own home much easier ... is the web site worth it then? 3 people? 10? 100? When would it be worth it? It should be stressed that we will still be following guidelines ... ATTRACTION rather than promotion. We don't need to PROMOTE AA, but state facts.
Those that do not have personal access to the Internet can also benefit from the proposed Area 92 Website. For example, many local libraries have computers that can be used by the general public. They can also benefit from friends, family, relatives and professionals who are on-line, as well as those in our fellowship who have access to the Internet.
11. We don't want anyone changing the site that shouldn't. There are two ways to change or upload/download files that are stored on a server: Telnet and FTP.
Telnet is the most popular and easiest way for hackers to gain unauthorized access to a web server. What they do is telnet to a series of computers to hide their location, and then use a program to crack the password. Since the ISP candidates for hosting the Area 92 Website will not allow Telnet access, it's like making a phone call to somewhere and then getting disconnected (as opposed to a busy signal).
There are two kinds of FTP access: 1) password-protected and 2) Anonymous. Again, for security reasons, candidate servers will not allow Anonymous FTP access. So, that leaves only one way of accessing the server: password-protected. Since programs cannot be run in FTP (as opposed to Telnet), it's a matter of guessing the username and password to get access. We would use a password that is at least 6 characters in length and contain numbers to increase difficulty of guessing. Passwords will also be changed on a regular and as-needed basis to protect the Area Website from unauthorized access.
Hacking should not be of concern. It's like going to a car salesman & stating that you would like to buy a truck, but you are afraid of someone breaking into it or stealing it. Is it impossible? No, but if it is of concern, so you don't buy a fancy truck, don't store valuables in it, don't leave the keys in it, don't park in unsafe places and you don't leave your truck unattended. All of these same measures we would be taking with the web site. This person finds out that the benefits of having a truck (freedom, hauling equipment, moving furniture, etc.) far outweigh the risks of having it broken into. Another analogy: not buying a house because you are afraid it will burn down. Well, will a builder tell you your house will never, ever burn down? No, he won't. But he will tell you he doesn't build a house so it will burn down and precautionary measures that can be taken so the house won't burn to the ground.
12. We don't want people displaying our site information from within their web pages (Framesets). (Tradition 6) We can put tags on every page of our site to prevent people from displaying our content pages within someone else's frameset pages.
13. How come we don't hear any negative things about the proposed web site, aren't there any issues? There are issues associated with having a web site. While many solutions exist to resolving potential problems, it will be the Area 92 Website Committee's responsibility to handle them as they arise. Careful consideration of each issue and strict adherence to the 'Guidelines For The Website Of The Washington State East Area Assembly Of Alcoholics Anonymous' (attached to the website motion) will ensure that difficulties are taken care of in an appropriate manner. Some matters will be outside the scope of the Website Committee charter, these issues will be presented at Area 92 Quarterlies and/or Assemblies to obtain an informed group conscience.
| 1. | Q. | How do we start to set up a local A.A. web site? |
| A. |
Decisions in the Fellowship of Alcoholics Anonymous are usually made through an informed group conscience and the decision to post a web page is no different. Whether area or district, central office or intergroup - A.A. experience suggests forming a committee to discuss all aspects of setting up a home page, including all possible concerns about the Traditions.
Early on, it is important to agree upon a method for gathering the group conscience of the local A.A. community, and to inform local groups, districts, areas and central offices/intergroups (if affected) about the committee’s progress. When the committee has reached a consensus, its findings are shared with the whole group (district, area, etc.) and a decision is made through an informed group conscience vote. It is then that the actual work on the web site can begin. It is helpful to remember that there is no need to let the speed of this technology dictate the speed of our actions and technical questions regarding this communication method will need to be answered by experts in that field. | |
| 2. | Q. | Who is responsible for a web site? |
| A. | A thoughtful and informed group conscience is encouraged to be responsible for deciding the contents, policy and procedures involved in setting up and maintaining a web site. It has been suggested that a “web master” (chairperson) be appointed or elected to serve as a trusted servant, responsible to the committee/groups they serve. This can be an arduous task, if the “web master” is responsible for updating local meeting information. | |
| 3. | Q. | What A.A. information is suitable for a web site? |
| A. | Again, the group conscience will determine the contents. Copyright restrictions apply to material displayed on the web site - just as copyrights protect A.A. literature. Permission must be obtained from G.S.O. prior to including A.A.W.S. material on your web site. | |
| 4. | Q. | Who pays for a web site? |
| A. | In keeping with our Seventh Tradition, A.A. pays for its own expenses and this applies in cyberspace A.A. as well. | |
| 5. | Q. | What about linking to other sites? |
| A. | Linking to other bonafide A.A. web sites will often have the positive effect of significantly broadening the scope of your site. Information contained on these sites becomes instantly available to those visiting your site. However, since each A.A. entity is autonomous and has its own group conscience, a site to which you have linked may start to display information which your group conscience finds objectionable; and there is no way to know when this might occur, or to prevent it from happening. Linking to non-A.A. sites is even more problematic. Not only are they much more likely to display non-A.A. and/or controversial material, but linking might imply endorsement, if not affiliation, regardless of the contents. In the final analysis, experience strongly suggests that, when considering linking to another site, one must proceed with caution. | |
| 6. | Q. | What about anonymity? |
| A. | We observe all A.A.’s principles and Traditions on our web sites. As anonymity is the “spiritual foundation of all our Traditions”, we practice anonymity on A.A. web sites at all times. An A.A. web site is a public medium which has the potential for reaching the broadest possible audience, and, therefore, requires the same safeguards that we use at the level of press, radio and film. | |
| 7. | Q. | Will the General Service Office of A.A. act as a “clearinghouse” for local web sites? |
| A. | There is no central authority in Alcoholics Anonymous, hence, the General Service Office of A.A. is not a “clearinghouse” for local web sites. Questions regarding the Traditions, contents, linking, etc. are determined by a local group conscience. G.S.O. is available to share collected experience on any subject, including web sites. At this point, though, G.S.O. has only limited sharing from local web site committees regarding their experience with matters which are unique to web site creation. | |
| 8. | Q. | What can be found on G.S.O.'s A.A. Web Site? |
| A. |
In keeping with our Twelve Traditions and viewing the internet as a form of public and electronic media, G.S.O.'s A.A. Web Site is set up as a Public Information tool. Available in English, French and Spanish, it provides accurate and consistent information about Alcoholics Anonymous to the general public, media and professionals and includes:
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| 9. | Q. | How many people have visited G.S.O.'s A.A. Web Site? |
| A. | In 1998, the Web Site was visited 401,573 times and currently there is an average of approximately 1,700 hits daily. The web site address is: www.alcoholics-anonymous.org | |
| 10. | Q. | Is this promotion rather than attraction? |
| A. |
As our co-founder, Bill W., wrote:
"Public Information takes many forms the simple sign outside a meeting place that says ‘A.A. meeting tonight’; listing in local phone directories; distribution of A.A. literature; and radio and television shows using sophisticated media techniques. Whatever the form, it comes down to ‘one drunk carrying the message to another drunk,’ whether through personal contact or through the use of third parties and the media." The needs and experiences of people in your own area, large or small, urban or rural, will affect what you decide to do. |
You are invited to visit G.S.O.’s A.A. Web Site at: www.alcoholics-anonymous.org
General Service Office
P.O. Box 459, Grand Central Station
New York, New York 10163
(212) 870-3400
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