January Meeting

[cubiclegrrl]

Hi, all:

Since we more or less have lost Viterbo as a venue, Matthew Swank and
I discussed options at the last Linux User's Group meeting. What we
settled on was the idea of skipping the December meeting because
Viterbo isn't available and scrambling together a new venue on short
notice may be problematic. So in January, we'd meet at my home (818
Richmond Street on French Island) at 6 p.m. on the second Thursday
(the 8th) to hash out what folks are looking to do with this group.

If the weather is sufficiently cooperative, my husband and I will
throw burgers/brats on the grill. If not, I'll probably just toss
together a batch of spaghetti. In any case, dinner *will* be
provided. (Please see P.S. below.)

To get the discussion moving, here's my ***highly subjective
opinion*** on what folks should be mulling prior to the pow-wow:

1.) What am I looking to get from this group that makes it worth my
time?

2.) Realistically, how much time do I have for this?

3.) What do I bring to the table? (No room for modesty here: The
newest of newbies adds *something*.)

4.) What kinds of projects would play to my strengths?

5.) What kinds of projects would help me build new skills?

6.) What days/times work best for my schedule?

7.) What amenities (e.g. whiteboard, projector, wireless access, etc.)
do we need in a meeting place?

8.) What is airspeed velocity of an unladen swallow? (No, not
really. We just needed some geek-humor to liven this up... The
correct answer, as we all know, is "What do you mean? An African or a
European swallow?")

9.) Does it make more sense to work on projects as individuals, teams,
or on the buddy-system?

10.) How does the group adapt to new members joining and "veterans"
leaving?

11.) What are meetings supposed to accomplish?

12.) What is the best format for keeping in touch between meetings?


So...like I said, that's my take on the issues that should be hashed
out sooner rather than later. Just now it seems--again, in my
*opinion*--like we're all back at the Junior High School dance, with
everybody looking around, waiting for someone to scrape together
enough gumption to make the first move. FWIW, I would really,
reeeeeallly like to see a vibrant network of programmers (of all
backgrounds and experience levels) in the La Crosse area. So I guess
that nominates me to be the turkey that sticks her neck out to try and
get some traction on that.

Anyhoo, the take-away is: We don't have dibs on the Viterbo
conference room anymore; let's regroup at my house on January 8th,
have some dinner, and figure out how we're going to make this a
sustainable group that's more than the sum of its parts. Hope to see
as many as can make it. Those who can't make it, please tack your
thoughts/insights/objections/etc. onto this thread so that we can toss
those into the mix at the meeting.

Cheers,

cubiclegrrl


P.S.: Please note that our house contains two cats and several
finches. If allergies are a problem, please let me know ASAP.
Additionally, I'd reeeeeally appreciate it if folks would kindly RSVP
to cubic...@yahoo.com so that I don't err on the side of feeding a
small army and wind up with leftovers for two straight weeks. (I have
a tendency to do that...) ;-) And of course, a heads-up on dietary
restrictions (vegetarian, diabetic, allergies, lactose intolerance,
strong dislikes, what-have-you) would be even more appreciated.

[Matthew Metzger]

Hello Everyone,

thanks to cubiclegrrl for making the effort to regroup. I am feeling bad
about starting and not being able to continue. The CenturyTel sales job
is not going so well, as a result I'm looking for other work. If I find
other work, I'll most likely be able to come to meetings again. I hope
that will happen.

As I probably will not be able to come to the meeting at cubiclegrrl's
house, I wish you all well and hope that I can become more involved in
the group in the near future.

talk to you soon,

Matthew Metzger

[Brian Hopkins]

cubiclegrrl and all,

I have the Jan 8th on the calendar and certainly plan to attend if all
goes well.

Im sure what to say about the groups goals overall. Im not sure what I
can get or contribute to the larger group. It would be interesting to
have a group project or open source product as a goal, but its hard to
get motivated without some benefit.

At this point Ill be somewhat involved in whatever the group decides to
do, but Ill still probably divide my time between the Lclug and Lcpug
groups (not double my efforts).

Brian

--
Handi Gadgets Corp.
Brian Hopkins
608-785-0310
608-785-0315, Fax
P.O. Box 0938
La Crosse WI 54602-0938

[Brian Hopkins]

Hello,

The room will be all set up for Thurs 02-12-09, 6:30 at 1238 Clinton
Street. Its a grey door with "automation design" printed on the window.
We will be upstairs. (gps/google maps 43.841263,-91.238649)

I was thinking someone could present on a program they have written in
the past as a presentation at this or a future meeting. As an
alternative to "How to Program" this would be "why to" program.

Some of the points that could be presented about a persons project could be:

What Problems Needed solving
What did the program try to solve.
What were some of the requirements
Why did you Write it.
Was it for work, personal, or other
Who uses it (yourself or others)
How does it work
What Langauge(s) are used
Why didnt you use pre-packaged software
What is the user interface (benefits and limitations)
What is the coolest thing it does.
How is it adapted to changes
What is the programs future.

Ill have the internet up and going with Wifi.

See you then.



Brian

[cubiclegrrl]

Brian:

Not to, like, hog center stage or anything, but I thought that the
plan was for me to give a presentation on SQL Injection Attacks. If
anyone else prefers to talk on something else, I won't complain at
being "upstaged." ;-) I'll be ready for either scenario.

Cheers,

Doreen

> > to cubicleg...@yahoo.com so that I don't err on the side of feeding a

[Brian Hopkins]

Doreen,

No upstaging intended.

I was just expressing an idea for any future meeting.

Im glad you have plans for this meeting. I was more worried about
getting the room ready and didnt pay much attention to what was going to
go on.

I know of no other ideas on a presentation.

Im sorry for any confusion.



Brian

[Matthew Metzger]

I'm looking forward to it.

Feel free to invite people who may be interested in our topic.

see you tomorrow!

-Matthew

[cubiclegrrl]

No worries--it's not like I'm gonna go all prima-donna if someone has
something more worthwhile to present. ("I canNOT work like
this...I'll be in my trailer!") ;-) ;-)

See you all tomorrow night!

Doreen