Was anyone else humming the "Start Spangled Banner" by the end of this
message....? :-) Seriously, though, all great points and I especially
liked the point-of-view at the end about NUNs ("We don't do them because
it's hard, we do them because we're excited").
-Larry
-----Original Message-----
From: Jon 'maddog' Hall, Executive Director, Linux International
[SMTP:[EMAIL PROTECTED]]
Sent: Monday, April 16, 2001 8:14 PM
To: Kenneth E. Lussier
Cc: [EMAIL PROTECTED]
Subject: Re: Are LUG's Hurting Linux?
Ken,
Let no one tell you different....LUGs are the backbone and lifeblood
of Linux.
Over the years DECUS, the Sun User Group, HP's User Group, IBM's
User Group were
worth millions of dollars of advertising. More importantly, they
allowed the
users of the software and computers to get together with the
managers
and developers to help them figure out what to do next.
Linux has existed as a "bottom up" operating system. Linux has
entered into
corporate America from the users and systems administrators who
pushed it into
their organizations.
I agree with Bruce Dawson (and others) though...it is time for the
LUGs to
move to the next step (not to be confused with NextStep(TM), an
operating
system by Steve Jobs).
While install fests and NUN nights are still useful, we should move
the
level up one or two notches to "solution nights". A "home network"
night,
showing people how to set up their home network from DSL or cable
input to
LAN (including firewalls, SAMBA servers, AppleTalk servers, etc.
Or a "business night", showing people how to set up a small home
office,
complete with accounting software.
I think that part of the problem is that a lot of the leaders have
been doing
Linux for four or five years now, so "there is nothing new". Hmmm,
they must
not have looked at SourceForge lately, because there have been 7,000
new
projects added since Christmas.
Now is the time to redouble efforts. Drag two of your computer
friends who
have not been exposed to Linux (the "great unwashed") to a NUN
night.
Attack school libraries with you next older version of Linux (or
perhaps one
or two of the 'freebee' disks).
Be in-your-face-offensive about Linux. Wear penguin clothing and
pins, not
only to Linux meetings, but to church. I had two people in the
Dunkin' Donuts
yesterday ask me about Linux, having seen my penguin.
FREE installation fests and FREE NUN nights don't indicate that
Linux is hard
to install or use....simply that there are people who are so
enthusiastic about
it that they devote their time and energy to promoting it. There is
a reason
why these LUGs don't exist to the same degree and enthusiasm for
Microsoft
products.....Microsoft has nothing to be enthusiastic about, nothing
which
drives their users to enthusiasm.
You know the drill....don't falter.
md
--
============================================================================
=
Jon "maddog" Hall
Executive Director Linux(R) International
email: [EMAIL PROTECTED] 80 Amherst St.
Voice: +1.603.672.4557 Amherst, N.H. 03031-3032 U.S.A.
WWW: http://www.li.org
Board Member: Uniforum Association, USENIX Association
(R)Linux is a registered trademark of Linus Torvalds in several
countries.
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