<div class="gmail_quote">On Mon, Feb 9, 2009 at 9:07 PM, <a href="mailto:hpp3@lavabit.com">hpp3@lavabit.com</a> <<a href="mailto:hpp3@lavabit.com">hpp3@lavabit.com</a>> wrote: <blockquote class="gmail_quote" style="border-left: 1px solid rgb(204, 204, 204); margin: 0pt 0pt 0pt 0.8ex; padding-left: 1ex;"> There used to be a blurb on the Xubuntu webpage that said Xubuntu doesn't have the resources to distribute CD's through the mail. I always wished I could do something about it, and with inspiration from a friend I think we have an idea that can help... During the Christmas season, I've noticed many department stores place what is called a "Giving Tree" in front of their lobby which is decorated with slips of paper inscribed with a number and a gift request. Apparently each of these slips represent a less-fortunate-than-you child and their humble plea. Shoppers may pick a slip off the tree that is within their budget, purchase the requested gift and drop it off at the tree on their way out. When a friend on a discussion forum offered to send me a CD of a distribution he had tried and didn't like, we both got to thinking maybe this would be a different way of distributing CD's to folks who don't have high-speed internet connections or DVD burners or some other restriction on their ability to acquire a copy of Xubuntu (or indeed any distro; Read on...) Here's how we envision it: Just like a "Giving Tree", imagine a web page where folks could sign up to receive a CD in the mail, or volunteer to mail one. Then, the generous folks who can burn an extra CD-R or two and have the pocket change sufficient for postage could volunteer to send it to someone on the request list. Here's some more details I'm thinking of: -To prevent spamming, there should be some form of authentication (CAPTCHA, email auth, whatever) and the requester's name should be taken off the list (perhaps an email notification) when a donor pulls their name. If they would like another CD (perhaps a different Distro), they can make a new, seperate request. -Make the list a searchable database so senders could find requesters close to their geographical area. -As this could easily be expanded beyond Xubuntu, perhaps searchable by Distro as well. -Requesters who have been waiting longer should be at the top of the list. As with most ideas, be they good bad or ugly, they usually come from folks who have no idea how to effectively implement them and I am no exception. Sorry to report I don't have any spare server space nor do I posses the necessary web and database coding skills, therefore I am calling on those who do and are... What do you folks think? Crazy? Stupid? Win? -Eddy </blockquote></div> This system is in use by Fedora [1] and has been brought up here before (can't find that atm) but I believe Cody then suggested this be implemented for Xubuntu.org. Obviously, nothing much has become of that. Maybe someone reading this list is willing to implement this, but I'm not sure how much is allowed on that front (Cody? :). [1] <a href="http://fedoraproject.org/wiki/Distribution/FreeMedia">http://fedoraproject.org/wiki/Distribution/FreeMedia</a> Cheers, -- Vincent