Try a rebirth on-line?
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NYCPaul
Jan 29, 2015, 4:06:48 PM1/29/15
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Hi Folks,
I'm not even an Apple user - my 89 year old brother in Liverpool is. When he had a chance to go to your meetings I got on this Google group so I could pass on messages. I'm really sorry you had to close up shop. However, as a 75-year old PC nerd I wanted to say that groups like yours need not dissolve, just reform in a different medium.
I'm a big user of SKYPE and UStream for keeping family members together and I managed TV studios for internal communication when working at AT&T. I think you guys should re-form using a UStream web cast from a location that has a lot of Apple products to use in demonstration. Your members can tune in on the internet. Then just use SKYPE to set up a large conference call to computers and/or regular phones so questions can be asked and/or comments can be added.
I don't offer this idea as a pipedream. Take a look at who is already doing this:
http://www.ustream.tv/channel/emiratesmac-apple-user-group-meetings
http://www.ustream.tv/channel/augm-tokyo
And there are more. So if you want to help out a lot of older members who would love to be able to travel to the meetings but can't I suggest you try out a meeting or two this way with a small group of folks to see how it works. I've use UStream to webcast family events, my high-school reunion, etc. But adding a SKYPE conference call that can use regular phones really makes the interaction possible.
Just a thought. Not even a member but my brother Frank really loved your meetings.
Paul
I'm not even an Apple user - my 89 year old brother in Liverpool is. When he had a chance to go to your meetings I got on this Google group so I could pass on messages. I'm really sorry you had to close up shop. However, as a 75-year old PC nerd I wanted to say that groups like yours need not dissolve, just reform in a different medium.
I'm a big user of SKYPE and UStream for keeping family members together and I managed TV studios for internal communication when working at AT&T. I think you guys should re-form using a UStream web cast from a location that has a lot of Apple products to use in demonstration. Your members can tune in on the internet. Then just use SKYPE to set up a large conference call to computers and/or regular phones so questions can be asked and/or comments can be added.
I don't offer this idea as a pipedream. Take a look at who is already doing this:
http://www.ustream.tv/channel/emiratesmac-apple-user-group-meetings
http://www.ustream.tv/channel/augm-tokyo
And there are more. So if you want to help out a lot of older members who would love to be able to travel to the meetings but can't I suggest you try out a meeting or two this way with a small group of folks to see how it works. I've use UStream to webcast family events, my high-school reunion, etc. But adding a SKYPE conference call that can use regular phones really makes the interaction possible.
Just a thought. Not even a member but my brother Frank really loved your meetings.
Paul
Paul Richards
Jan 29, 2015, 4:49:36 PM1/29/15
to smug...@googlegroups.com, Paul Richards
Hello NYCPaul.
One of the fundamental ideas of user groups right from the start was for the members to help each other - sharing ideas, sharing tools, sharing things they learned. Somehow it got away from that and became more about a small core group organizing and running things and preparing and putting on the presentations while many of the other members came expecting to be taught. That gets pretty old after a while for the presenters who are uncompensated volunteers. Don't get me wrong, we did this because we enjoyed helping folks. But I actually had one member get downright irate when he suggested an idea for a future topic of my small breakout group and I responded that it would be a good topic that we could all pitch in to explore various aspects and then share our findings. We were paying the same dues as everyone else and it ate up a lot of our time and energy to do this stuff. Fresh volunteers were not coming forward and the attending group just kept shrinking.
Also, the techniques you describe require having a certain level of computer and communications savvy to start with before it can be employed to present to a group. A large percentage of the members we were supporting weren't there. We were at the level of showing them how to sign up for Skype, download it and launch it to keep in touch with relatives. (In fact, a few of our members had dial-up connections...) Even that could be a struggle for some.
Back to my first paragraph: repeatedly in your note you suggest, "I think you guys should" and "Your members can" and "if you guys want to help out"...
My response is that YOU should please feel free to launch such a service. If you build it, maybe they will come.
BTW, are you affiliated with UStream?
Paul Richards
Former user group liaison of
Syracuse Macintosh Users Group
Also at various times membership chair, secretary, newsletter mailing processor, presenter, etc.
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One of the fundamental ideas of user groups right from the start was for the members to help each other - sharing ideas, sharing tools, sharing things they learned. Somehow it got away from that and became more about a small core group organizing and running things and preparing and putting on the presentations while many of the other members came expecting to be taught. That gets pretty old after a while for the presenters who are uncompensated volunteers. Don't get me wrong, we did this because we enjoyed helping folks. But I actually had one member get downright irate when he suggested an idea for a future topic of my small breakout group and I responded that it would be a good topic that we could all pitch in to explore various aspects and then share our findings. We were paying the same dues as everyone else and it ate up a lot of our time and energy to do this stuff. Fresh volunteers were not coming forward and the attending group just kept shrinking.
Also, the techniques you describe require having a certain level of computer and communications savvy to start with before it can be employed to present to a group. A large percentage of the members we were supporting weren't there. We were at the level of showing them how to sign up for Skype, download it and launch it to keep in touch with relatives. (In fact, a few of our members had dial-up connections...) Even that could be a struggle for some.
Back to my first paragraph: repeatedly in your note you suggest, "I think you guys should" and "Your members can" and "if you guys want to help out"...
My response is that YOU should please feel free to launch such a service. If you build it, maybe they will come.
BTW, are you affiliated with UStream?
Paul Richards
Former user group liaison of
Syracuse Macintosh Users Group
Also at various times membership chair, secretary, newsletter mailing processor, presenter, etc.
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Paul Richards
Jan 30, 2015, 10:05:30 AM1/30/15
to smug...@googlegroups.com, nycp...@gmail.com
Oh, look! I just found where you tried to push the same idea to us in June 2009! I knew this all sounded familiar...
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