[GLLUG] Meeting Thursday, January 19

Charles Ulrich charles at idealso.com
Wed Jan 18 15:57:13 EST 2006


(The content of this announcement is identical to last week's pulled 
announcement, so you can skip it if you've already it.)

Another weekly GLLUG meeting is scheduled to be held at the Gone Wired 
cybercafe in Lansing at 6:00PM. Gone Wired is at 2021 E Michigan Ave in 
Lansing on the north side of the street between N Clemens and Fairview 
avenues. Here is a map with the (approximate) location:

http://tinyurl.com/7mh2w

We typically meet in the back portion of the cafe on the lower level. Venue 
website: http://www.gonewiredlansing.com/

Agenda: Call for Presentations / Penguicon Ramp-up

Well, it's that time of year again. Time, that is, to schedule a batch of new 
presentations for the upcoming months. By all reports, the LPI classes are 
going well and last year's presentations and workshops were largely a 
success. Those that are able to attend the meetings know how fun and 
informative they can be and this year we aim to make them even better.

Also this meeting, we'll be discussing the quickly-approaching Penguicon 4.0, 
our plans for the computer lounge, and how to volunteer.

Call for Presentations

Ever wanted to get up in front of a group of similar-minded geeks and
curious individuals to tell them all about your favorite technology?
Great! Let us know! Pass the word along to anyone else who might be
interested in delivering a speech or demonstration too. No reasonable
offer refused! We are open to any pretty much any topic you might have as
long as it fits in somehow with Linux, Unix, networking, technology, or
open-source software.

Would you like to give a presentation, but are not sure what topic you'd
like speak about? There are sources all over the net that you can pull
ideas from, such as other LUG sites, conference panel listings, HOWTOs,
even open-source software directories. There must be something out there
that really drives you to use (or consider using) open source software or
you wouldn't be subscribed to this list, now would you?

Once you've got your killer presentation figured out, seek me (Charles) out at 
the next meeting or if you are unable to attend, just fire off a quick email 
to me with at least the following information:

    * Your name (if not obvious in the From header)
    * A rough timeframe in which you'd like to give your presentation
    * A short title
    * A concise description

Penguicon Ramp-up

We have under four months left with which to build the Penguicon 4.0 
(http://www.penguicon.org) computer lounge. For those who have no earthly 
clue what I'm talking about, a brief recap:

    * Penguicon is an annual open-source/science-fiction convention in the 
Detroit-ish area.
    * Every year, they have a computer lounge available for people to waltz 
into and browse the web, check email, and so on.
    * Last year, there was much lamenting of the fact that the computer lounge 
was markely barren of computers. This was a bummer for those who didn't bring 
their laptops, assuming that a computer lounge would be available.
    * Worse, of the few computers that were there, none or very nearly none 
had Linux or any kind of open source software installed.
    * A flamefest ensued on the penguicon-general mailing list before the con 
even came to a close and it was discovered that nobody had really stepped up 
to run the lounge that year. A few people donated computers and network 
equipment, but were generally too busy with other stuff to worry too much 
about the lounge.
    * I volunteered GLLUG's services to enhance the lounge for Penguicon 4.0 
and turn it into an open-source showcase of sorts. By the summer, we had the 
green light from the concom (Convention Committee) to proceed.


So, starting exactly right about now, I'm putting the call out for volunteers 
and equipment. At the meeting, I'll explain a little bit more about what kind 
of help is needed (primarily technical assistance, guard duty, and 
imagination) and take names of those who can donate their time, use of 
equipment, or supplies. We need people to write signs, one-page tutorials of 
open source software, maybe even some coding help. We also need input on what 
*you* would like to see in the lounge of a computer con.

For those who haven't been yet to Penguicon, let me assure you that it is 
always a metric buttload of fun. If you'd like to volunteer at the con, 
you'll have to register for the con ($35 now, $40 in February) in order to 
attend. This year's lounge is in a big ol' room situated between the function 
space and the rest of the hotel, so there ought to be plenty of foot traffic. 
I think it'd be great if we could wow the crowd. :)

At the meeting, I'll be detailing what we plan to do (so far), what we have, 
and what we need in order to get this ball rolling. If you want to help out 
in some way and can't attend, go ahead and post to the list and/or shoot me 
an email (dincht at securenym.net) to let me know and we can probably make 
something happen.

Please take a moment to RSVP if you plan to attend this meeting so that we can 
get a general idea of how many will show up. Just reply to this message (with 
the GLLUG list address in the "To:" field) indicating your desire to attend 
and/or change the message Subject to "RSVP". Thanks!
-- 
Charles Ulrich
Ideal Solution, LLC -- http://www.idealso.com



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