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Nicaragua Real Estate Survey
Submitted by fyl on Sat, 2008/01/05 - 17:57.
*** LAST DAY *** The housing survey that I threatened to do in an earlier post is now up and running. If you have plans to move to Nicaragua (part or full-time) in the future, it is worth filling out. You can access it here.
A bit of thought and collaboration went into the questions. Hopefully they will make you think about what you really want.
The survey is open until the end of February. In early March I will publish the results. Other sites who have agreed to link to the survey will also have the option of publishing the results. (If you would like to link to the survey, feel free and let me know so that I can send you the results.)
When you follow the access link you will be asked for your name and email address. You will then receive a link to take the survey. The link contains a unique token. This token is not linked to your responses. Here is what it is used for:
- It insures that you only take the survey once
- You will receive email confirming that your completed survey has been received
- If you sign up but don't take the survey (within a few days, I guess), you will be send a reminder email.
So, what use are the results? We have had some discussion recently on NL about "what Gringos want" here. It was a lot of differing opinion. I don't think any of it was wrong but I am guessing there is a pretty diverse group looking at Nicaragua. The results of the survey will:
- Help define the diversities
- Give those considering creating projects to address those needs a starting point
That's it. Have fun.
privacy
I'm guessing that more people didn't respond because of fear of violation of privacy. The first time I attempted to take the survey, I bailed out because right in the beginning it asked for my name and email address. OK, now I have your assurance that my name won't be linked with my responses. So I went ahead and answered all the questions, but I still didn't put my name on it (just initials). I think if you'd asked for initials rather than name, more people would have completed the survey.
Name?
I did set this up two months ago but I am reasonably sure the only thing "name" was for was for emails sent to you. I didn't write this software but I did check it out pretty seriously. Here is how it works.
You need to "register". This is where you enter a "name" and email address. You are sent a login token that you use to take the survey. This information (name, email address and token plus your status (basically, whether you have completed the survey) is saved in one database. It is used to send you your original token, reminders if you haven't completed the survey and a thank-you when you complete it.
The main reason the registration is used is to prevent duplicates. A less sophisticated survey would just put your email address in the survey result database. With this system, only the token is put there.
The reporting software only reads the results database. Without access to the other one, there is no way to associate responses even back to your email address.
Now, being a computer geek, I could write a program to "figure out who you are". I won't and as I am not selling anything related to the survey, I would have no reason to do this. The only reason I mention this is that you might want to think about this issue if someone who was selling something was running LimeSurvey on a computer then had access to.
To get a bit more geeky, the survey is run on NicaPages.com. I am the only one with access. I can allow others to use the survey software but even that would not give them access to the tokens database. The software is quite nice and secure. You can read more about it at http://www.linuxjournal.com//node/1006003 if you are interested.
All that said, this is the last week for the survey. A few days after it is closed I will post the results.
Linux user
Ah, you're a Linux user. Great. So am I. Maybe I'll have a chance to meet you and discuss geeky things (if you're interested). I'm currently in El Paso, Texas, but will be heading down to Nicaragua next month.
best regards
A Bit More
The Geek Ranch project will use as much in the way of Linux as possible. I have been writing about it on LinuxJournal.com. Hopefully we can get a few Linux geeks hanging out there.
Linux Journal
Cool. I used to read Linux Journal all the time, and probably read some of your articles. Just now I went to the Linux Journal web site and found your Geek Ranch article. Sounds like a great idea, and I hope to pay the ranch a visit once you get it up and running. My original plan though is to head for Granada where I have friends awaiting my arrival, but I'll be watch Nicaliving with anxious anticipation to hear more about the ranch project as it develops.
Maybe you've read some of my articles - I used to write for DistroWatch, and maybe I will again once I get settled wherever (in Nicaragua, I hope). My most fun project for DistroWatch was the April Fool's series, an example of which is found here.
Best regards.
One more month
The survey has been up for about 30 days with another 30 to run. I am disappointed that we still have less than 100 responses. So, do it and tell your friends about it.
I previewed the results. Some not so surprising but there are also some surprises. You will get to see in early March.
results...
results of the survey?
The "Threat" of Iran
Iran is as much of a "threat" to the world as Iraqnam was 5 years ago right now when Chimpy McFlightsuit was running around talking tough about "smoke em out and git em". Its as much of a threat as Iraqnam was on May 1 2003 when Chimpy McFlightsuit landed on the deck of the USS Abraham Lincoln moored 500 meters off the shore of San Diego and he made his famous speech under a banner proclaiming Mission Accomplished.
Chimpy has dragged this country into an abyss from which it will be damned near impossible to extract ourselves. And for what earthy purpose? None. Chimpy ran away from his responsibilities in the Texas Air Guard. Chimpy has never been successful in a single venture in his life and now Chimpy is living in the White House fucking up what remains of democracy in the United States.
Any of you who voted for Chimpy who can still be proud of that vote need your heads examined. Any of you who voted for Chimpy who feel regret for your mistake need to work hard to make sure that no more Repignofascist Reich-wing nuts make it to the White House. The rest of us need to make sure that we have the wherewithall to try to fix the horrific mess this assinine fool has created for us and the rest of the world.
Heckuva job, Dubya.
yea!
that big spending, un loving, no child left behind, saddam attempted to assinate his daddy, would have left a foil to iran if he had not gone into iraq, big gov't authoritarian liberal dubya! look into a new book out called liberal fascism. btw, i had a top secret clearance.
Hey guys
why not confine your political posts to the appropriate forums? Very few of us living in Nicaragua even care about the elections or US politics unless it affects us here directly.
Anyone that has so far not taken the survey, please do so. It takes just a few minutes and it will help to channel a lot of effort and resources in the right direction.
As fyl has said, the survey software can not connect your input to the registration. So you don't have to worry about your privacy.
i did
respond to the survey. O2TT egged me on with his anti bush screed, i suspect he didn't know that i was not enthralled with big spender bush either. spending opm does not help liberty.
Thank you Jim
eom
March
As it says in the original post, the survey will be open through the month of February. It is my hope that a few other places will pick it up so we can get a better cross-section. While we like to think that NicaLiving is the only place people go for Nicaragua information, that just isn't the case.
It has been picked up by Jon Berger's sites, mentioned on Linux Joruanl and at least one mailing is going out. We'll see.
sorry
while i took the survey, i did not see the date. i know a site that is more to the right of this one. (this one is the people's site. and we in the communist leadership appreciate your efforts, che.)