Re: [BLUG] BLUG meetings topics?

That's awesome that you are getting e-mails like that Mark. I went to
a few meetings a few years ago, and would like to participate as much
as I can again. An install fest sounds like it could be fun. I have a
couple of co-workers that want to get started with this stuff (ok, I'm
requiring some of them too), but not everyone can get what they need
from a book. Install fest sounds like it could be a good time. Maybe
we can even throw the forgotten BSD (that would be NetBSD -- my
personal fav) on the list too.

I am going to encourage my co-workers to take that survey, so that
Mark can get some good feedback.

woot!

--Kirk

On Mon, Feb 1, 2010 at 11:37 PM, Aaron W. Hsu <arcfide@sacrideo.us> wrote:
> On Mon, 01 Feb 2010 20:44:02 -0500, Steven Black <blacks@indiana.edu>
> wrote:
>
>> On a similar note to talk about changing the meeting time, I think we
>> should discuss what we want to talk about at the meetings.
>
> I agree with Mark here. Given that new users were the ones requesting the
> meeting, I think that we should focus on new user topics to start with.
> One thing that I used to do with the New user install fests that we did in
> my old LUG was a "Personal Consult," where we would ask each new user why
> they wanted to use Linux, what they wanted out of it, and we would give
> them the layout of the land. Basically, at that time, we had people who
> didn't know whether they should use RedHat, Debian, Mandrake, Slackware,
> or a BSD. We helped them figure out what was right for them, and maybe
> guided them towards our favorites ( ;-) ), but in the end, it helped us to
> support them as they started out.
>
> For myself, my expertise in Linux lies with Slackware and OpenBSD. I'm
> quite good at getting new users up and running with something like
> Slackware. I'm sure that some of you have other experiences with other
> distributions. An install fest can be great when we all bring the
> appropriate installation disks for a bunch of distros, and then we let the
> Users discover which one is right for them. I'd consider the following
> just "basic" sets that we would want:
>
>        * Ubuntu
>        * Slackware
>        * RHEL/Fedora
>        * Debian
>        * SUSE Enterprise
>        * FreeBSD and OpenBSD
>
> That's if there are experienced users who know these distros and are
> willing to mentor the new users. I usually find that this helps a lot with
> getting new users started. The above distribution represent a fairly broad
> range of target users for Linux, but each of them is mature and accessible
> to new users because of their stability and documentation (community help,
> of course, counts too).
>
> On the other hand, if our New Users have already installed Linux to their
> satisfaction, maybe it doesn't make sense for us to have an Install Fest.
>
> One thing I could do is set up a little "Requested Topics" page where
> users can submit requests for topics or other items, and people can
> "sign-up" to discuss them. I like very informal meetings where people are
> all pretty much hacking and playing on their machines, and having a good
> time. I'm not as big a fan of the formal presentation thing. I prefer
> learning Linux to be interactive and educational.
>
>        Aaron W. Hsu
>
> --
> A professor is one who talks in someone else's sleep.
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>

--
Kirk Gleason

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