[ubuntu-uk] Happy Hour

[Liam Proven]

On 24 September 2011 15:03, Bruno Girin <brunogirin at gmail.com> wrote:
> On 24/09/11 13:54, Liam Proven wrote:
>
> On 24 September 2011 13:18, dan at fishms.org <dan at fishms.org> wrote:
>
> I heartily agree! Good accessible location (for Londoners at least) and nice
> to see canonical folks there (and some most welcome Google folk)
>
> Definitely agree!
>
> I was wondering if there would be any interest in a monthly London
> meet for FOSS folk. I go to 3 monthly London science-fiction meets,
> one that's been running since 1946, and 2 monthly sceptical meets, one
> that's 11 or 12 years old now, so there are a few such functions that
> are already working well...
>
> I'm sure that would work. Monthly is definitely manageable as it's just a
> case of finding a suitable pub 12 times a year. I've been helping to run a
> group that does weekly meets around London in a similar setting so I can
> fish out a list of likely watering holes. Thursdays are good to do such a
> thing as it's close to the weekend while not being the weekend quite yet.
>
> Now in terms of practicality, here are a few things we could do to make it
> easier:
>
> vary the location so that a majority of people can make it at some point;
> make sure that for each meet, at least 2 people commit to be there from the
> start (say 7pm): there's nothing worse than being on your own in a pub
> wondering whether you're too early and nobody's arrived yet or you're too
> late and everybody's gone home already;
> mention the 2 people above on the meet's details, possibly with a link to
> their wiki pages so that people have an idea what they look like (assuming
> they've got a photograph).
>
> So if anybody's interested, I'm happy to organise the next London one either
> end of October or November.

Sounds like a plan is forming!

I'd suggest /not/ the First Thursday, as that's the Tun AKA the London
Circle, the one that's been running since 1946. (If you read Arthur C
Clarke's /Tales of the White Hart/ you get a pretty good clue as to
what one of the early pubs was called...)

(There's also a techie meet in the City which I sometimes go to on the
First Thursday, but which is Top Secret so I will say no more. Those
who know, know.)

October will see the Ubuntu Oneiric release party, at Cask again, so
that is sort of already covered.

But from November?

I'd suggest someone brings along a large, conspicuous Tux penguin as a
recognition symbol: "you're after the bunch of people with a large
penguin on their table!" :¬) )

As for where, well, it depends how big it grows, but Cask is pretty
good. Free wifi, too.

Others I like with decent beer and a fair amount of room:

The Craft Beer Company, Leather Lane (same owners as Cask)
The Penderel's Oak, Holborn (former Skeptics in the Pub & London
Perlmongers venue)
Upstairs at The Old King's Head, London Bridge (former Skeptics in the
Pub venue)
The Cittie of Yorke, Holborn

But I reckon picking one and sticking to it until it gets known is not
a bad idea to start with.

-- 
Liam Proven • Info & profile: http://www.google.com/profiles/lproven
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