Ubuntu-ca disbanded?

[Darcy Casselman]

> Keep in mind that not all LoCos necessarily need to be official LoCos to
> be productive and engage their local communities. Ubuntu Vancouver LoCo
> has over 500 members, is not an official LoCo, and it does this without
> sitting in dark rooms on IRC, but is out there directly in the community
> face to face. There is no other way to really build a community a LoCo
> needs to be productive. If you look at ubuntu-ca's meeting minutes,
> virtually nothing gets done and it produces nothing other than the odd
> technical support. Even that is redundant with AskUbuntu.
>
> Just my two cents.

This is true.  And it's times like these when I wonder why I bother
with approved LoCo status.

The CDs are nice, I suppose...

As for IRC meetings, we pair ours up with the Waterloo Ubuntu Hour.  I
*do* actually meet up with Bob (and sometimes Ralph and others) in
person and we chat in person while hoping to coordinate with people
doing stuff who can't come to Waterloo.

In my ideal world, the IRC meeting would be where city teams across
the country could coordinate on bigger projects and share knowledge
and experience about what worked and what didn't.  For all you and
Randall talk about how wonderful Ubuntu Vancouver is, I still have no
idea what you guys actually do there.  (I mean *actually* do, as in
real-life experience, not marketing hype).  There is *some* value in
the IRC meetings, as in it gives us a chance to pitch the idea of
running events to people who just happen to be in the IRC channel.  I
think that's why Michael started doing the Toronto release parties.
And we've had other people nibble at the bait, even if we've never
actually been able to reel them in.

Mostly, though, it's just me and Bob telling each other things we
already know, or could more easily just say out loud, because we're in
the same room.  I don't *mind* doing them, but it does seem a bit
farcical sometimes.

I am coming more and more to the opinion that the LoCo Council is
useless bureaucracy and not in any way helpful.  My interactions with
them have not been incredibly positive.

Darcy.