metalug.com.org.net.ca and the MetaLUG Foundation.

[David J Patrick]

On 02/11/06, Russell McOrmond <russell at flora.ca> wrote:
>
>    One of the things I worry about is fragmentation of our community.
> There are groups that are already trying to do some of this work that
> could use the energy of new volunteers/etc.
The only group I know of (in Canada) that has this as a goal, is CLUE,
and I seen no active projects nor mechanisms to achieve it. Add to
that the (seeming) fact that CLUE has renewed its focus towards
lobbying and advocacy, add to that the bad blood that exists between
it and the GTAlug, and I fear that real interlug progress is more than
a tweak away.

fragmentation is a real concern, and I share it. metaLUG will not
cause fragmentation, but will become a resource with a very clear
purpose; catalog, support and interconnect Linux User Groups. I have
been surveying this landscape for years, and have not seen anything
that offers, and succeeds in this mission. Many people have sent links
to organizations and sites that feature exhaustive LUG lists, and
support organizations and I (immodestly) think I can offer something
clearer and more usable and cohesive.
>
>    I'm the new (as of the beginning of 2006) policy coordinator for
> CLUE.  We have expanded from being a LUG of LUGs (CLUE stood for the
> Canadian Linux User Exchange) to being a full-blown Association for Open
> Source.  This means an expansion beyond users and beyond just Linux.
CLUEs recent policy shift, towards lobbying and advocacy for FOSS (not
just linux) was a motivator for metaLUG. I want to be able to help
channel energies to existing groups, like CLUE, rather than create a
new group that diffuses focus.
>
>    My roll is to expand the type of work I've been doing in Ottawa on
> behalf of the FLOSS community (via http://digital-copyright.ca and
> http://GOSLINGcommunity.org), hopefully with the help of additional CLUE
> volunteers (and when resources allow, paid staff).
This is good and vital work. I applaud it and will champion it at
every opportunity. I hope like to lighten your inter-lug load and see
CLUE devote more effort to effecting positive change.
>
>    http://www.cluecan.ca/mcormond
>
>    While I was brought in to do policy work, this does not  mean that
> CLUE is no longer doing the work it was trying to do when it was the
> Canadian LUG of LUGs.
>
>    http://www.cluecan.ca/projects
>
>
>    I'm told there is multiple LUGs in Toronto.  I'm wondering if this
> best serves the community to have different groups, rather than trying
> to get along with each other?
There will always be different groups in a "market" like Toronto,
based on different needs, interests and Geography. It's like the
argument against "all those different linux distributions". What I
hope to achieve is a central connection point, not yet another LUG.

  If there are factions of Linux users in
> Toronto that aren't that keen on communicating, I can understand now why
> Bill Traynor and others at CLUE have been having such a hard time.
>
>
>    I'm told that there are plans for you (David J Patrick) to speak with
> Evan Leibovitch, our Executive Director.  I look forward to the
> possibilities, and hope that there will be a way to come together as a
> larger community rather than continue to fragment.
I echo your concerns, and hope to offer cohesion, not confusion. At
our meeting Evan put forth noble effort to co-opt my energy, and I had
to ask him to wait for the metaLUG alpha site to form before we
decided where to take it. It should be mostly formed within a week,
and I look forward to your feedback at that time.


>
>
>    Thanks for reading, and I hope people will consider CLUE as an
> existing group that is trying to get the Canadian FLOSS community together.
Thanks for writing, I do realize the fact, but hope to offer you a LUG
connection engine that allows CLUE to focus more strongly on higher
level issues.

I'm with you, not against you

and

Wonder if you would consider holding a workshop here, on
FLOSS use in Canadian institutions; why it's important, what to do
next. (or something like that)

thanks Russell,
djp


-- 
djp at linuxcaffe.ca
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