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AA Website Starter Kit

This discussion centers around Recovery Source, a project that offers tools and resources for free and easy-to-own websites for A.A. and 12-step programs. This project was spearheaded by an A.A. member who found their personal recovery journey considerably delayed by their inability to find accurate meeting data (i.e., meetings that still exist).

Background:

Dynamic websites (websites that automatically update/change based on data from website visitors and other information sources and show different content to different users based on that data), like those based on WordPress, Django, or WordPress, can be fantastic solutions when deployed correctly and diligently maintained. However, some groups struggle with technical roles and may go weeks or months without updates, leading to websites that show incorrect information, defacement, injected code, downtime, or other issues.

Purpose:

Recovery Source aims to provide all the tools required to build and deploy a website using Hugo, a Static website solution that pre-generates every page anyone may want to visit.

These “static” websites (websites that don’t change until they are changed manually by a person/Administrator) require a tiny fraction of the horsepower needed to run other websites and do NOT require an Administrator with technical skills (beyond using/navigating a website) and have a significantly smaller threat model (are safer), making them accessible and secure for platforms like Github to host for free–using y/our custom domain.

Audience:

Every 12-step support group needs a website to distribute meeting data but cannot maintain one.

Solution (Toolkit Components):

  • AAMod is a plugin (a tool that makes technical tasks easy to do for non-technical people, in this case) for the Hugo Static Site Generator that provides a default theme and custom features built specifically for 12-Step support group needs (i.e., meeting data, event info/flyers, meeting notes, etc.). Feature Demo
  • Hugo-website is a template project that provides a turnkey (copy/paste) solution (easily customizable ready-made website) to deploy a fully functional AA-focused website built using AAMod quickly.
  • Sober.Page offers free subdomains to either use as your own or to redirect to your website.
  • Recovery Source Handbook is a (not yet finished) guide for ALL to understand how websites work and how to use the tools provided by the project, starting with the fundamental building blocks.

Benefits:

Cost-effective: Eliminates hosting fees and reduces reliance on expensive and labor-intensive web development.

Accessibility: The site aims to be user-friendly, even for those with limited technical knowledge, primarily focusing on easily modified meeting data.

Supportable: The template provided uses git, which tracks all changes made. This makes it easy to pinpoint a problematic change and either fix it or undo it entirely.

Low Maintenance: Static sites require minimal upkeep, ensuring long-term stability.

SEO: The default theme and other components are lightweight and highly optimized for search engines.

Responsive: The default theme is also designed to work well on mobile and desktop browsers.

Integration: Creates printable PDF meeting schedules and JSON files suitable for the Meeting Guide.

Discussion highlights:

User feedback: Several users commented that the project has the potential to help AA entities that lack the resources to build and maintain complex websites.

Collaboration: Members provided feedback on the setup instructions, leading to further improvements and discussions on simplifying the process.

Documentation: The need for comprehensive documentation is emphasized, and a handbook covering fundamental concepts and terminology is planned.

Future considerations:

Video tutorials: A member suggested creating video guides to assist users further.

The Recovery Source project offers a promising solution for AA entities seeking low-cost and low-maintenance websites. The ongoing discussion demonstrates a collaborative effort to refine the toolkit and ensure its effectiveness in supporting the recovery community.

Further information:

Sites Demonstrating Using The Toolkit:

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