I think first and foremost, a User Group is there to assist/help its users - either newbies or veterans. That is the primary objective of a User Group - at least this is what I believe the objective is.
Take the case of a Mac User Group - it does not change its mandate because more people are using it. It extends its arms in helping its members figure out how best to use a Mac. It goes beyond what is a simple venue for tech support to more specialized avenues such as teaching how to use a Mac in education, in research, in multimedia, etc. The objective still remains - to help its members. Now, I do not know why PLUG has to be any different. It is there to help its users. Whilst it may be true that Linux and FOSS are already being taught in schools but, for example, have you even thought of teaching teachers how to use Linux and FOSS in their classroom? This is not the same as just giving them a brief tutorial - it goes even deeper, i.e., teaching them how to INTEGRATE Linux and FOSS in their curriculum, in their lesson plans. Believe me, we are just seeing the tip of the proverbial iceberg here. Most commercial IT companies simply teach you how to use Linux and how to manage Linux servers but that is about it. Do they teach you how to specifically use it in multimedia production? medical practice? I think with PLUG's diverse membership, we can still provide more value. Prof. Rom Feria, UP Diliman LPI-certified LPI Exam Proctor _________________________________________________ Philippine Linux Users' Group (PLUG) Mailing List [email protected] (#PLUG @ irc.free.net.ph) Read the Guidelines: http://linux.org.ph/lists Searchable Archives: http://archives.free.net.ph
