diff --git a/LDP/howto/docbook/XFree-Local-multi-user-HOWTO.xml b/LDP/howto/docbook/XFree-Local-multi-user-HOWTO.xml index 5a310a7a..ea47903a 100644 --- a/LDP/howto/docbook/XFree-Local-multi-user-HOWTO.xml +++ b/LDP/howto/docbook/XFree-Local-multi-user-HOWTO.xml @@ -1,7 +1,5 @@ - - + @@ -17,6 +15,12 @@ Sep 2003 + + 1.2.1 + 2003-09-25 + SS + yet another bugfix release :( - fix BusID (x:xx.x vs x:xx:x) again + 1.2 2003-09-17 @@ -756,19 +760,19 @@ EndSection For the older(version 1) Preferred Bus ID XFree Server only this choice is valid. - For example on command line [root@svetljo mnt]# startx -- /usr/X11R6/bin/X0 :0 -prefbusid 1:0.0 vt7 , or from a display manager (gdm): .............................. + For example on command line [root@svetljo mnt]# startx -- /usr/X11R6/bin/X0 :0 -prefbusid 1:0:0 vt7 , or from a display manager (gdm): .............................. # Definition of the standard X server. [server-Standard] name=Standard server -command=/usr/X11R6/bin/X0 :0 -layout first-Xserver -deferglyphs 16 -ac -prefbusid 1:0.0 vt7 +command=/usr/X11R6/bin/X0 :0 -layout first-Xserver -deferglyphs 16 -ac -prefbusid 1:0:0 vt7 flexible=true [server-Second] name=Second server -command=/usr/X11R6/bin/X1 :1 -layout second-Xserver -deferglyphs 16 -prefbusid 0:13.0 vt9 +command=/usr/X11R6/bin/X1 :1 -layout second-Xserver -deferglyphs 16 -prefbusid 0:13:0 vt9 flexible=true -.............................. and for xdm/kdm :0 local /bin/nice -n -10 /usr/X11R6/bin/X0 :0 -deferglyphs 16 -prefbusid 1:0.0 vt7 -:1 local /bin/nice -n -10 /usr/X11R6/bin/X1 :1 -xf86config /etc/X11/XF86Config-4.TNT2 -prefbusid 0:13.0 vt9 +.............................. and for xdm/kdm :0 local /bin/nice -n -10 /usr/X11R6/bin/X0 :0 -deferglyphs 16 -prefbusid 1:0:0 vt7 +:1 local /bin/nice -n -10 /usr/X11R6/bin/X1 :1 -xf86config /etc/X11/XF86Config-4.TNT2 -prefbusid 0:13:0 vt9 @@ -804,27 +808,9 @@ ln -s XFree[modified] X2 DUMB2: tty16 to tty23 - - - - For the older(version 1) Preferred Bus ID XFree Server you also have to specify the desired graphic card with parameter -prefbusid x:x:x, where x:x:x is the Bus ID of the desired graphic card. - - - For AGP cards, something similar to -prefbusid 1:0:0 - - - For PCI cards, something similar to -prefbusid 0:x:0 (x is normally the IRQ number) - - - - - In the following explanation I will not use this option. If you use the Preferred Bus ID X server just append -prefbusid x:x:x with the correct Bus ID of the card you want to start right before the last argument vt[x] . - - - In case you are using the latest(version 2) prefbusid patch/ binary you may omit the -prefbusid x:x:x argument when starting X, but you have to specify the correct settings in the XFree configuration file(s). - - - + + Have in mind that for the older Preferred Bus ID XFree Server (version 1) you have to specify the desired graphic card with parameter -prefbusid x:x:x where x:x:x is the Bus ID of the desired graphic card. Just append "-prefbusid x:x:x" with the correct Bus ID of the card you want to start right before the last argument vt[x]. + If you have 3 video cards, 3 keyboards, and you have started the Backstreet Ruby kernel with dumbcon=2, you can start 3 independent X servers for 3 simultaneous users with the following commands: For the 1st X server with the 1st keyboard: @@ -2391,7 +2377,7 @@ your display manager will start a single X server with the corresponding XF86Con Dynamically switching the number of X servers - There is a very experimental GUI/CLI for dynamically switching the number of running X servers. It uses the automatic configuration of the display managers (mentioned in ), Python, dialog for the CLI, and Xdialog for the GUI. + There is a very experimental GUI/CLI for dynamically switching the number of running X servers. It uses the automatic configuration of the display managers (mentioned in ), Python, dialog for the CLI, and Xdialog for the GUI. Once it is more tested and bug-free, you could, for example, use it under Backstreet Ruby to switch between 2, 3 or more X servers and a single X server using Xinerama. So when your PC isn't used by more then one user, you could use the other monitors under Xinerama. Or one more funny example: you're simulating net gaming with a number of friends on your bruby Linux PC, you have invested a bit more in an additional graphic card which is already configured, but you don't have enough money right now to buy one more monitor and keyboard/mouse pair. One friend of yours comes and says, Hey guys, that's cool. Can I join? What would you answer? Using the GUI could result in the following answer from your side: No problem, just bring your monitor,keyboard and mouse. If you are feeling like a hacker and want to try out this BUGGY GUI/CLI, check the current status at http://varna.demon.co.uk/~svetlio/ruby-contrib/bruby-python/. But remember, it's not very tested, and if not configured properly it can cause you serious troubles. Please wait until it is more stable if you are not that familiar with Linux. If you feel comfortable enough under Linux, and think of yourself as a hacker, please help in testing it and making it better, bug-free and easy to configure. diff --git a/LDP/howto/linuxdoc/User-Group-HOWTO.sgml b/LDP/howto/linuxdoc/User-Group-HOWTO.sgml index 901ce60f..992f532b 100644 --- a/LDP/howto/linuxdoc/User-Group-HOWTO.sgml +++ b/LDP/howto/linuxdoc/User-Group-HOWTO.sgml @@ -1,1364 +1,1395 @@ - - -
- -Linux User Group HOWTO -<author><url name="Rick Moen" url="mailto:rick@linuxmafia.com"></author> -<date>v1.6.7, 2003-08-04 - -<abstract> -The Linux User Group HOWTO is a guide to founding, maintaining, and -growing a Linux user group, co-authored by Kendall Clark and Rick Moen -(now maintained by Rick Moen). -</abstract> - -<toc> - -<sect>Introduction - -<sect1>Purpose -<p> -The Linux User Group HOWTO is intended to serve as a guide to founding, -maintaining, and growing a Linux user group. - -Linux is a freely-distributable implementation of Unix for personal -computers, servers, and workstations. It was developed on the i386 and -now supports i486, Pentium, Pentium Pro, Pentium II, Pentium III, and -Pentium IV processors, as well as IA32 clones from AMD, Cyrix, VIA, IDT, -Winchip, NexGen, Transmeta, VIA C3 Ezra "CentaurHauls", and others. It -also supports most SPARC, DEC Alpha, PowerPC/PowerMac and G3/G4/G5, and -the Motorola 68020-68040 series on Mac/Amiga/Atari ST. - -It supports as well the Hitachi H8 series, Motorola Dragonball, Motorola -ColdFire, Motorola QUICC, ETRAX, Intel i960, NEC V850E, MPC, MediaGX, -STPC, Hitachi SH3/SH4 "SuperH", Intel ARM/StrongARM, and PRISMA -embedded/microcontroller/PDA machines, as well as Cisco 2500, 3000, and -4000 series routers. - -It supports MIPS, PA-RISC, AMD x86-64 "Hammer", and IA64/Itanium -minicomputers. It supports IBM S/390 and Fujitsu AP1000+ mainframes. - -<sect1>Other sources of information -<p> -If you want to learn more, the <url url="http://www.tldp.org/" -name="Linux Documentation Project"> is a good place to start. - -For general information about computer user groups, please see the -<url name="Association of PC Users Groups" -url="http://www.apcug.org/">. - -<sect>What is a Linux user group? -<p> - -<sect1>What is Linux? -<p> -To fully appreciate LUGs' role in the Linux movement, it helps to -understand what makes Linux unique. - -Linux as an operating system is powerful -- but Linux as an -<it><bf>idea</bf></it> about software development is even more so. Linux -is a <bf>free</bf> operating system: It's licensed under the GNU General -Public Licence. Thus, source code is freely available in perpetuity to -anyone. It's maintained by a unstructured group of programmers -world-wide, under technical direction from Linus Torvalds and other key -developers. Linux as a movement has no central structure, bureaucracy, -or any entity to direct its affairs. While this situation has -advantages, it poses challenges for allocation of human resources, -effective advocacy, public relations, user education, and training. - -<sect1>How is Linux unique? -<p> -Linux's loose structure is unlikely to change. That's a good thing: -Linux works precisely because people are free to come and go as they -please: <bf>Free programmers are happy programmers are effective -programmers</bf>. - -However, this loose structure can disorient the new Linux user: Whom -does she call for support, training, or education? How does she know for -what uses Linux is suitable? - -In large part, LUGs provide the answers, which is why LUGs are -vital to the Linux movement: Because your town, village, or metropolis -sports no Linux Corporation "regional office", the LUG takes on -many of the same roles such an office does for a large multi-national -corporation. - -Linux is unique in neither having nor being burdened by central -structures or bureaucracies to allocate its resources, train its users, -or support its products. These jobs get done through diverse means: the -Internet, consultants, VARs, support companies, colleges, and -universities. However, increasingly, in many places around the globe, -they are done by a LUG. - -<sect1>What is a user group? -<p> -Computer user groups, at least in the USA, are not new. In -fact, they were central to the personal computer's history: -Microcomputers arose in large part to satisfy demand for affordable, -personal access to computing resources from electronics, ham radio, and -other hobbyist user groups. Giants like IBM eventually discovered the -PC to be a good and profitable thing, but initial impetus came from the -grassroots. - -In the USA, user groups have changed -- many for the worse -- -with the times. The financial woes and dissolution of the largest user -group ever, the Boston Computer Society, were well-reported; but, all -over the USA, most PC user groups have seen memberships decline. -American user groups in their heyday produced newsletters, maintained -shareware and diskette libraries, held meetings and social events, and, -sometimes, even ran electronic bulletin board systems (BBSes). With the -advent of the Internet, however, many services that user groups once -provided migrated to things like CompuServe, AOL, and the Web. - -Linux's rise, however, coincided with and was intensified by the -general public "discovering" the Internet. As the Internet grew more -popular, so did Linux: The Internet brought to Linux new users, -developers, and vendors. - -So, just as traditional PC user groups were declining because of the -Internet's popularity, this popularity propelled Linux forward, creating -demand for new groups concerned exclusively with Linux. To give just one -indication of how LUGs differ from traditional user groups, I point out -a curious fact: Traditional user groups must maintain fairly tight -control over what software its users may copy and trade at meetings. -While illegal copying of restricted proprietary software certainly -occurred, it was officially discouraged -- and for good reason. - -At LUG meetings, however, that entire mindset simply does not apply: -Far from being what a LUG must discourage, unrestricted copying of Linux -should be among a LUG's primary goals. In fact, there is anecdotal -evidence of traditional user groups having difficulty adapting to -Linux's ability to be lawfully copied at will. - -(Caveat: A few Linux distributions bundle Linux with proprietary -software packages whose terms don't permit public redistribution. -Check licence terms, if in doubt.) - -<sect1>Summary -<p> -For the Linux movement to continue to flourish, along with other -factors, LUGs must proliferate and succeed. Because of Linux's -unique status, LUGs must provide some of the same functions a "regional -office" provides for large computer corporations like IBM, Microsoft, -and Sun. LUGs can and must train, support, and educate Linux users, -coordinate Linux consultants, advocate Linux as a computing solution, -and even serve as liaison to local media outlets such as newspapers and -television. - -<sect>What LUGs exist? -<p> -Since this document is meant as a guide not only to maintaining and -growing LUGs but also to founding them, we should, before going further, -discuss what LUGs exist. - -<sect1>LUG lists -<p> -There are several LUG lists on the Web. If you are considering founding a -LUG, your first task should be to find any nearby existing LUGs. -<it>Your best bet may be to join a LUG already established in your area, -rather than founding one.</it> - -As of mid-2003, there are LUGs in all 50 US states plus the District of -Columbia, nine of Canada's ten provinces, all six of Australia's states -plus the Australian Capital Territory, and over 100 other countries, -including India, Russia, China, and most of Western and Eastern Europe. - -<itemize> - <item><url name="Groups of Linux Users Everywhere (GLUE)" url="http://www.ssc.com:8080/glue/groups/"></item> - <item><url name="LUGs WorldWide Project" url="http://lugww.counter.li.org/"></item> - <item><url name="Linux Online -- User Groups" url="http://www.linux.org/groups/"></item> - <item><url name="Red Hat User Group Program" url="http://www.redhat.com/apps/community/LUG/"></item> - <item><url name="Open Directory: LUGS" url="http://dmoz.org/Computers/Software/Operating_Systems/Linux/User_Groups/"></item> - <item><url name="Yahoo Linux > User Groups" url="http://dir.yahoo.com/Computers_and_Internet/Software/Operating_Systems/Unix/Linux/User_Groups/"> - <item><url name="LUG Webring" url="http://nlug.org/webring/"></item> - <item><url name="CLUE: the Canadian Linux Users' Exchange" url="http://www.linux.ca/"></item> - <item><url name="Linux Australia" url="http://www.linux.org.au/"></item> -</itemize> - -<p> -It appears GLUE is more comprehensive for the USA, while the LUGs -WorldWide Project offers better coverage elsewhere. - -<sect1>Solidarity versus convenience -<p> -While (most) LUG lists on the Web are well-maintained, likely they don't -list every LUG. If considering founding a LUG, I suggest, in addition to -consulting these lists, posting a message to <url -name="comp.os.linux.announce" url="news:comp.os.linux.announce">, <url -name="comp.os.linux.misc" url="news:comp.os.linux.misc">, or an -appropriate regional Usenet hierarchy, inquiring about nearby LUGs. You -should also lodge a query (mailing list post, comment during a meeting) -at any existing LUG you are aware of anywhere near your area, -about LUGs near you. If no such (nearby) LUG exists, your postings will -alert potential members to your initiative. - -Carefully balance convenience against solidarity: If a LUG exists in -your metropolitan area but on the other side of the city, starting a new -group may be better for convenience's sake. On the other hand, joining -the other group may be better for reasons of unity and solidarity. -<bf><it>Greater numbers almost always means greater power, influence, -and efficiency</it></bf>. While two groups of 100 members each might be -nice, one with 200 has advantages. Of course, if you live in a small -town or village, any group is better than none. - -The point is that starting a LUG is a significant undertaking, which -should be commenced with all relevant facts and some appreciation of the -effect on other groups. - -<sect>What does a LUG do? -<p> -LUGs' goals are as varied as their locales. There is no LUG master -plan, nor will this document supply one. Remember: Linux is free from -bureaucracy and centralised control; so are LUGs. - -It is possible, however, to identify a core set of goals for a -LUG: - -<itemize> - <item>advocacy</item> - <item>education</item> - <item>support</item> - <item>socialising</item> -</itemize> - -Each LUG combines these and other goals uniquely, according to its -membership's needs. - -<sect1>Linux advocacy -<p> -The urge to advocate the use of Linux is widely felt. When you find -something that works well, you want to tell as many people as you can. -LUGs' role in Linux advocacy cannot be overestimated, especially since -wide-scale commercial acceptance of Linux is only newly underway. While -it is certainly beneficial to the Linux movement, each and every time a -computer journalist writes a positive review of Linux, it is also -beneficial every time satisfied Linux users brief their friends, -colleagues, employees, or employers. - -There is effective advocacy, and there is ineffective carping: As Linux -users, we must be constantly vigilant to advocate Linux in such a way as -to reflect positively on the product, its creators and developers, and -our fellow users. The Linux Advocacy mini-HOWTO, available at the Linux -Documentation Project, gives some helpful suggestions, -as does Don Marti's excellent <url name="Linuxmanship" -url="http://zgp.org/~dmarti/linuxmanship/"> essay. -Suffice it to say that advocacy is important to a LUG's mission. - -A time may come when Linux advocacy is irrelevant, because Linux has -more or less won the day, when the phrase "no one ever got fired for -using Linux" becomes reality. Until then, LUGs play a vital role in -promoting Linux use. They do so because their advocacy is free, -well-intentioned, and backed up by organisational commitment. If a -person encounters Linux through a LUG's efforts, then that new -user's already ahead of the game: <it>She knows of an organisation that -will help her install, configure, and even maintain Linux on whatever -computers she's willing to dedicate to it.</it> - -New Linux users already in contact with a LUG are ahead -of others whose interest in Linux has been piqued by a computer -journalist, but who have no one to whom to turn for aid in their -quest to install, run, and learn Linux. - -It is, therefore, important for LUGs to advocate Linux, because -their advocacy is effective, well-supported, and free. - -<sect1>The limits of advocacy -<p> -Advocacy can be misaimed; advocacy can go wrong and be -counterproductive; advocacy can be simply inappropriate in the first -place. The matter merits careful thought, to avoid wasted time or -worse. - -Many attempts at advocacy fail ignominiously because the advocate fails -to listen to what the other party feels he wants or needs. (As Eric -S. Raymond says, "Appeal to the prospect's interests and values, not to -yours.") If that person wants exactly the proprietary-OS setup she -already has, then advocating Linux wastes your time and hers. If her -stated requirements equate exactly to MS-Project, MS-Visio, and -Outlook/Exchange groupware, then trying to "sell" her what she doesn't -want will only annoy everyone (regardless of whether her requirements -list is real or artificial). Save your effort for someone more -receptive. - -Along those lines, bear in mind that, for many people, perhaps most, an -"advocate" is perceived as a salesman, and thus classified as someone to -resist rather than listen to fairly. They've never heard of someone -being enthusiastic for getting them to adopt a piece of software without -standing to gain materially, so they assume there must be something in -it for you, and will overtly or unconsciously decide to argue back, and -suggest they'd be doing you a personal favour to even listen, let alone -try your recommendations. - -I recommend bringing such discussions back to a rational basis -immediately, by pointing out that software policy should be based in -one's own long-term self interest, that you have no personal stake in -what choices they make, and that you certainly wouldn't want to force -them to listen to your analyses against their will. After that, if -they're still interested, at least you won't face the same artificial -obstacle. - -At the same time, make sure you don't live up to the stereotype of the -OS advocate, either. Just shoving your views at someone is downright -rude and offensive. Moreover, when done concerning Linux, it's -also clueless: Unlike the case with proprietary OSes, Linux will not -live or die by the level of corporate acceptance and release/maintenance -of ported applications. It and all key applications are open source: -the programmer community that maintains it is self-supporting, and would -keep it advancing and and healthy regardless of whether the business -world and general public uses it with wild abandon, only a little, or -not at all. Because of its open-source licence terms, its raw source -code is permanently available. Linux cannot be "withdrawn from the -market" at the whim of some company. Accordingly, there is simply no -point in pesky OS advocacy -- unlike that of some communities we could -mention. (Why not just make information available for those receptive -to it, and stop there? That meets any reasonable person's needs.) - -Last, understand that the notion of "use value" for software is quite -foreign to most people -- the notion of measuring software's value by -what you can do with it. The habit of valuing everything at -<it>acquisition cost</it> is deeply ingrained. In 1996, I heard a young -fellow from Caldera Systems speak at a Berkeley, California LUG about -the origins of Caldera Network Desktop (the initial name of their Linux -distribution) in Novell, Inc.'s "Corsair" desktop-OS project: In -surveying corporate CEOs and CTOs, they found corporate officers to be -inherently unhappy with anything they could get for free. So, Caldera -offered them a solution -- by charging money. - -Seen from this perspective, being conservative about the costs and -difficulties of Linux deployments helps make them positively attractive --- and protects your credibility as a spokesman. Even better would be -to frame the discussion of costs in terms of the cost of functionality -(e.g., 1000-seat Internet-capable company e-mail with offline-user -capability and webmail) as opposed to listing software as a retail-style -line-item with pricing: After all, any software project has costs, -even if the acquisition price tag is zero, and the real point of open -source isn't initial cost but rather long-term control over IT -- a key -part of one's operations: With proprietary systems, the user (or -business) has lost control of IT, and is on the wrong side of a monopoly -relationship with one's vendor. With open source, the user is in -control, and nobody can take that away. Explained that way (as -opportunity to reduce and control IT risk), people readily understand -the difference -- especially CEOs -- and it's much more significant over -the long term than acquisition cost. - -<sect1>Linux education -<p> -Not only is it the business of a LUG to advocate Linux usage, but -also to train members, as well as the nearby computing public, -to use Linux and associated components -- a goal that can make a huge -real-world difference in one's local area. While universities and -colleges are increasingly including Linux in their curriculums, for -sundry reasons, this won't reach some Linux users. For those, a LUG can -give basic or advanced help in system administration, programming, -Internet and intranet technologies, etc. - -In an ironic twist, many LUGs have turned out to be a backbone of -corporate support: Every worker expanding her computer skills through -LUG participation is one fewer the company must train. Though home -Linux administration doesn't exactly scale to running corporate data -warehouses, call centres, or similar high-availability facilities, it's -light years better preparation than MS-Windows experience. As Linux has -advanced into journaling filesystems, high availability, real-time -extensions, and other high-end Unix features, the already blurry line -between Linux and "real" Unixes has been increasingly vanishing. - -Not only is such education a form of worker training, but it will also -serve, as information technology becomes increasingly vital to the -global economy, as community service: In the USA's metropolitan areas, -for example, LUGs have taken Linux into local schools, small businesses, -community and social organisations, and other non-corporate -environments. This accomplishes the goal of Linux advocacy and also -educates the general public. As more such organisations seek Internet -presence, provide their personnel dial-in access, or other -Linux-relevant funcitons, LUGs gain opportunities for community -participation, through awareness and education efforts -- extending to -the community the same generous spirit characteristic of Linux and the -free software / open source community from its very beginning. Most -Linux users can't program like Torvalds, but we can all give time and -effort to other Linux users, the Linux community, and the broader -surrounding community. - -Linux is a natural fit for these organisations, because deployments -don't commit them to expensive licence, upgrade, or maintenance fees. -Being technically elegant and economical, it also runs very well on -cast-off corporate hardware that non-profit organisations are only too -happy to use: The unused Pentium 133 in the closet can do <bf>real -work</bf>, if someone installs Linux on it. - -In addition, Linux education assists other LUG goals over time, in -particular that of Linux support: Better education means better -support, which in turn facilitates education, and eases the Linux -community's growth. Thus, education forms the entire effort's keystone: -If only two or three percent of a LUG assume the remainder's support -burden, that LUG's growth will be stifled. One thing you can count on: -<bf><it>If new and inexperienced users don't get needed help -from their LUG, they won't participate there for long</it></bf>. -If a larger percentage of members support the rest, the LUG will not -face that limitation. Linux education -- and, equally, support for -allied projects such as the Apache Web server, XFree86, TeX, LaTeX, etc. --- is key to this dynamic: Education turns new Linux users into -experienced ones. - -Finally, Linux is a self-documenting operating environment: In other words, -writing and publicising our community's documentation is up to us. -Therefore, make sure LUG members know of the <url name="Linux -Documentation Project" url="http://www.tldp.org/"> and its worldwide -mirrors. Consider operating an LDP mirror site. Also, make sure to -publicise -- through <tt>comp.os.linux.announce</tt>, the LDP, and other -pertinent sources of Linux information -- any relevant documentation -the LUG develops: technical presentations, tutorials, local FAQs, etc. -LUGs' documentation often fails to benefit the worldwide Linux -community for no better reason than not notifying the outside world. -Don't let that happen: It is highly probable that if someone at one LUG -had a question or problem with something, then others elsewhere -will have it, too. - -<sect1>Linux support -<p> -Of course, for the desperate <bf>newcomer</bf>, the primary role of a -LUG is Linux support -- but it is a mistake to suppose that Linux -support means only <it>technical</it> support for new Linux users. It -can and should mean much more. - -LUGs have the opportunity to support: - -<itemize> - <item>users</item> - <item>consultants</item> - <item>businesses, non-profit organisations, and schools</item> - <item>the Linux movement</item> -</itemize> - -<sect2>Users -<p> -New Linux users' most frequent complaint, once they have gotten Linux -installed, is the steep learning curve that is not unique to Linux but -is, rather, characteristic of all modern Unixes. With that learning -curve, however, comes the power and flexibility of a real operating -system. A LUG is often the a new user's only resource to flatten out the -learning curve. - -However, even if a new Linux user doesn't yet know it, she needs more -than just support: Linux and the free software worlds are both moving -targets. LUGs form a valuable source of information on Linux and -other free software products. Not only does Linux lack a central -bureaucracy, but also for the most part lacks journalistic -infrastructure from which other computer systems' users benefit. The -movement does have resources like <url name="Linux Journal" -url="http://www.linuxjournal.com/"> and <url name="Linux Gazette" -url="http://www.linuxgazette.com/">, but new users may be unaware of -them. In addition, being <it>monthly</it> publications, they're often out -of date about bug fixes, security problems, patches, new kernels, etc. -This is where LUGs as sources and conduits of timely information can be -vital to all Linux users. - -(Fairness requires amending the above old HOWTO text to mention standout -on-line news sources with weekly or better publication cycles, such as <url -name="Linux Weekly News" url="http://lwn.net/">, <url name="Linux -Today" url="http://linuxtoday.com">, <url name="FreshNews" -url="http://freshnews.org/">, and <url name="Newsforge" -url="http://newsforge.com/">.) - -For example, until new Linux users know that the newest kernels are -available from <url name="ftp.kernel.org" url="ftp://ftp.kernel.org"> -or that the <bf>Linux Documentation Project</bf> usually has newer -versions of Linux HOWTOs than does a CD-based Linux distribution, -LUGs, as primary support entities, should convey such -timely and useful information. - -In fact, it may be a bit misleading to focus on the support role -LUGs provide new users: intermediate and advanced users -also benefit from proliferation of timely and useful tips, facts, -and secrets. Because of the Linux world's manifold aspects, even -advanced users often learn new tricks or techniques simply by -participating in a LUG. Sometimes, they learn of software packages -they didn't know existed; sometimes, they just remember arcane -<tt>vi</tt> command sequences they've not used since college. - -<sect2>Consultants -<p> -It is, I think, obvious to claim that LUGs should support new users. -After all, if they don't do that, what else is there? It may not be as -obvious that LUGs can be an important resource for Linux consultants. -Both full-time and otherwise, Linux consultants can be an important part -of a LUG. How can the LUG support them? - -The answer is that of a related question: What do Linux consultants -need? <bf><it>They need someone for whom to consult.</it></bf> A LUG -provides the best way for those <it>offering</it> Linux consulting to -find those who <it>need</it> their services. The LUG can informally -broker connections between consulting suppliers and consulting -consumers, simply by getting people interested in Linux in contact, as -will be detailed. The vital point is that LUGs can and should fill -<it>this</it> role, as well. Although the Linux Consultants Guide is an -important resource, it surely lists only a small fraction of available -Linux talent. - -The relationship is mutually beneficial: Consultants aid LUGs by -providing experienced leadership, both technically and organisationally, -while LUGs aid consultants by putting them in contact with potential -clients. New and inexperienced users gain benefit from both LUGs and -consultants, since their routine or simple requests for support are -handled by LUGs <it>gratis</it>, and their complex needs and problems -- -the kind obviously requiring a paid consultant's services -- can be -handled by consultants the LUG helps them contact. - -The line between support requests needing a consultant and those -that don't is sometimes indistinct; but, in most cases, the difference -is clear. While a LUG doesn't want to gain the reputation for -pawning new users off unnecessarily on consultants -- as this is simply -rude and very anti-Linux behaviour -- there is no reason for LUGs not to -help broker contacts between users needing consulting services and -professionals offering them. - -Caveat: While "the difference is clear" to intelligent people of goodwill, -the Inevitable Ones are <it>also</it> always with us, who act willfully -dense about the limits of free support when they have pushed those -limits too far. Remember, too, my earlier point about the vast majority -of the population valuing everything at acquisition cost (instead of use -value), <it>including what they receive for free</it>. This leads some, -especially some in the corporate world, to use (and abuse) LUG -technical support with wild abandon, while simultaneously complaining -bitterly of its inadequate detail, insufficient promptness, supposedly -unfair expectations that the user learn and not ask minor variations on -the same question endlessly, etc. In other words, they treat relations -with LUG volunteers the way they would a paid support vendor, but one -they treat with <it>zero respect</it> because of its zero acquisition -cost. - -In the consulting world, there's a saying about applying "invoice therapy" -to such behaviour: Because of the value system alluded to above, if -your consulting advice is poorly heeded and poorly used, it just might -be the case that you need to charge more. By contrast, the technical -Linux community has often been characterised as a "gift culture", with a -radically different value system: Members gain status through enhanced -reputation among peers, which in turn they improve through visible -participation: code, documentation, technical assistance to the public, -etc. - -Clash between the two very different value-based cultures is inevitable -and can become a bit ugly. LUG activists should be prepared to intercede -before the ingrate newcomer is handed her head on a platter, and -politely suggest that her needs would be better served by paid -(consultant-based) services. There will always be judgement calls; -the borderline is inherently debatable and a likely source of -controversy. - -An additional observation that may or may not be useful, at this point: -There are things one may be willing to do for free, to assist others in the -Linux community, that one will refuse to do for money: Shifting from -assisting someone as a volunteer fundamentally changes the relationship. -A fellow hobbyist who suddenly becomes a customer is a very different -person; one's responsibilities are quite different, and greater. You're -advised to be aware, if not wary, of this distinction. - -Please see Joshua Drake's <url name="Linux Consultants Guide" -url="http://www.tldp.org/LDP/lcg/html/"> for an -international list of Linux consultants. - -<sect2>Businesses, non-profit organisations, and schools -<p> -LUGs also have the opportunity to support local businesses and -organisations. This support has two aspects: First, LUGs can support -businesses and organisations wanting to use Linux as a part of their -computing and IT efforts. Second, LUGs can support local businesses -and organisations developing software for Linux, cater to Linux users, -support or install Linux, etc. - -The support LUGs can provide to local businesses wanting to use Linux as -a part of their computing operations differs little from the help LUGs -give individuals trying Linux at home. For example, compiling the Linux -kernel doesn't really differ. Supporting businesses, however, may -require supporting proprietary Linux software -- e.g., the Oracle, Sybase, -and DB2 databases (or VMware, Win4Lin, and such things). If Linux is to -maintain momentum as a viable, general computing environment, it needs -software vendors willing to write for (and port to) Linux as a -proprietary-application platform. If LUGs helps business users evaluate -proprietary Linux solutions, more software vendors will consider Linux -in their development and planning. - -This leads us directly to the second kind of support a LUG can give to -local businesses: LUGs can serve as a clearinghouse for information -available in few other places. For example: - -<itemize> - - <item>Which local ISP is Linux-friendly?</item> - <item>Are there any local hardware vendors building Linux PCs?</item> - <item>Does anyone sell Linux CDs locally?</item> - -</itemize> - -Maintaining and making this kind of information public not only helps -the LUG members, but also helps Linux-friendly businesses and encourages -them to continue to be Linux-friendly. It may even, in some cases, help -further a competitive environment in which other businesses are -encouraged to follow suit. - -<sect2>Free / open-source software development -<p> -Finally, LUGs may also support the Linux movement by soliciting and -organising charitable giving. <url name="Chris Browne" -url="mailto:cbbrowne@cbbrowne.com"> has thought about this issue as much as -anyone I know, and he contributes the following: - -<sect3>Chris Browne on free software philanthropy -<p> -A further involvement can be to encourage sponsorship of various -Linux-related organisations in a financial way. With the <url -url="http://counter.li.org" name="multiple millions"> of Linux users, -it would be entirely plausible for grateful users to individually -contribute a little. Given millions of users, and the not-unreasonable -sum of a hundred dollars of "gratefulness" per Linux user ($100 being -roughly the sum <it>not</it> spent this year upgrading a Microsoft OS), -that could add up to <it>hundreds of millions</it> of dollars towards -development of improved Linux tools and applications. - -<p> -A user group can encourage members to contribute to various -"development projects". Having some form of "charitable tax exemption" -status can encourage members to contribute directly to the group, -getting tax deductions as appropriate, with contributions flowing on to -other organisations. - -<p> -It is appropriate, in any case, to encourage LUG members to direct -contributions to organisations with projects and goals they -individually wish to support. - -<p> -This section lists possible candidates. None are explicitly being -recommended here, but the list represents useful food for -thought. Many are registered as charities in the USA, thus -making US contributions tax-deductible. - -<p> -Here are organisations with activities particularly directed towards -development of software working with Linux: - -<itemize> -<item><url url="http://www.li.org/grants/grantdonation.php" name=" Linux International Development Grant Fund Donations"> -<item><url url="http://www.debian.org/donations.html" name="Debian/Software In the Public Interest"> -<item><url url="http://www.fsf.org/help/donate.html" name="Free Software Foundation"> -<item><url url="http://www.kde.org/helping/" name="KDE Project"> -<item><url url="http://www.gnome.org/friends/" name="GNOME Foundation"> -</itemize> - -<p> -Contributions to these organisations have the direct effect of -supporting creation of freely redistributable software usable with -Linux. Dollar for dollar, such contributions almost certainly yield -greater benefit to the Linux community than any other kind of spending. - -<p> -There are also organisations less directly associated with Linux, that -may nonetheless be worthy of assistance, such as: - -<itemize> -<item>The <url url="http://www.eff.org/" name="Electronic Frontier Foundation"> - -<p> -Based in San Francisco, EFF is a donor-supported membership organization -working to protect our fundamental rights regardless of technology; to -educate the press, policy-makers, and the general public about civil -liberties issues related to technology; and to act as a defender of -those liberties. Among our various activities, EFF opposes misguided -legislation, initiates and defends court cases preserving individuals' -rights, launches global public campaigns, introduces leading edge -proposals and papers, hosts frequent educational events, engages the -press regularly, and publishes a comprehensive archive of digital civil -liberties information at one of the most linked-to Web sites in the -world. - -<item>The LaTeX3 Project Fund - -<p> -The <url url="http://www.tug.org/" name="TeX Users Group (TUG)"> is -working on the "next generation" version of the LaTeX publishing -system, known as LaTeX3. Linux is one of the platforms on which TeX -and LaTeX are best supported. -<p> Donations for the project can be sent to: -<tscreen> -<verb> -TeX Users Group -P.O. Box 1239 -Three Rivers, CA 93271-1239 -USA -</verb> -</tscreen> -or, for those in Europe, -<tscreen> -<verb> -UK TUG -1 Eymore Close -Selly Oaks -Burmingham B29 4LB -UK -</verb> -</tscreen> - -<item> <URL URL="http://promo.net/pg/" name="Project Gutenberg"> - -<p> -Project Gutenberg's purpose is to make freely available in electronic -form the texts of public-domain books. This isn't directly a "Linux -thing", but seems fairly worthy, and they actively encourage platform -independence, which means their "products" are quite usable with Linux. - -<item> <url url="http://www.osef.org/donations.html" name="Open Source -Education Foundation"> - -<p> -The Open Source Education Foundation's purpose to enhance K-12 education -through the use of technologies and concepts derived from The Open -Source and Free Software movement. In conjunction with Tux4Kids, OSEF -created a bootable distribution of GNU/Linux based on Klaus Knopper's -Knoppix, aimed at kids, parents, teachers, and other school officials. -OSEF installs and supports school computer labs, and has developed a -"K12 Box" as a compact Plug and Play workstation computer for student -computer labs. - -<item> <url url="http://www.osafoundation.org/donations.htm" name="Open -Source Applications Foundation"> - -<p>OSAF is Mitch Kapor's non-profit foundation to create and popularise -open-source application software of uncompromising quality, starting -with its pioneering personal information manager, Chandler. - -</itemize> - -(Please note that suggested additions to the above list of Linux-relevant -charities are most welcome.) - - -<sect2>Linux movement -<p> -I have referred throughout this HOWTO to what I call the <bf>Linux -movement</bf>. There really is no better way to describe the -international Linux phenomenon: It isn't a bureaucracy, but is -organised. It isn't a corporation, but is important to businesses -everywhere. The best way for a LUG to support the international Linux -movement is to keep the local Linux community robust, vibrant, and -growing. Linux is <it>developed</it> internationally, which is easy -enough to see by reading <file>/usr/src/linux/MAINTAINERS</file> -- but -Linux is also <it>used</it> internationally. This ever-expanding -user base is key to Linux's continued success, and is where the LUGs -are vital. - -The Linux movement's strength internationally lies in offering -unprecedented computing power and sophistication for its cost and -freedom. The keys are value and independence from proprietary control. -Every time a new person, group, business, or organisation experiences -Linux's inherent value, the Linux movement grows. LUGs help that -happen. - -<sect1>Linux socialising -<p> -The last goal of a LUG we'll cover is socialising -- in some ways, -the most difficult goal to discuss, because it isn't clear how -many or to what degree LUGs do it. While it would be strange to -have a LUG that didn't engage in the other goals, there may be -LUGs for which socialising isn't a factor. - -It seems, however, that whenever two or three Linux users get together, -fun, hijinks, and, often, beer follow. Linus Tovalds has -always had one enduring goal for Linux: to have more fun. For hackers, -kernel developers, and Linux users, there's nothing quite like -downloading a new kernel, recompiling an old one, fooling with a -window manager, or hacking some code. Linux's sheer fun keeps many -LUGs together, and leads LUGs naturally to socialising. - -By "socialising", here I mean primarily sharing experiences, forming -friendships, and mutually-shared admiration and respect. There is -another meaning, however -- one social scientists call -<it>acculturation</it>. In any movement, institution, or human -community, there is the need for some process or pattern of events in -and by which, to put it in Linux terms, newcomers are turned into -hackers. In other words, acculturation turns you from "one of them" to -"one of us". - -It is important that new Linux users come to learn what Linux culture, -concepts, traditions, and vocabulary. Linux acculturation, unlike "real -world" acculturation, can occur on mailing lists and Usenet, although -the latter's efficacy is challenged by poorly acculturated users and by -spam. LUGs are often much more efficient at this task than mailing lists -or newsgroups, precisely because of the former's greater interactivity -and personal focus. - -<sect>LUG activities -<p> -In the previous section I focused exclusively on what LUGs do and -should do. This section's focus shifts to practical strategies. - -There are, despite permutations of form, two basic things LUGs do: -First, members meet in physical space; second, they communicate -in cyberspace. Nearly everything LUGs do can be seen in terms of -meetings and online resources. - -<sect1>Meetings -<p> -As I said above, physical meetings are synonymous with LUGs (and -most user groups). LUGs have these kinds of meetings: - -<itemize> - <item>social</item> - <item>technical presentations</item> - <item>informal discussion groups</item> - <item>user group business</item> - <item>Linux installation</item> - <item>configuration and bug-squashing</item> -</itemize> - -What do LUGs do at these meetings? - -<itemize> - <item>Install Linux for newcomers and strangers.</item> - <item>Teach members about Linux.</item> - <item>Compare Linux to other operating systems.</item> - <item>Teach members about software running on Linux.</item> - <item>Discuss Linux advocacy.</item> - <item>Discuss the free software / open-source movement.</item> - <item>Discuss user group business.</item> - <item>Eat, drink, and be merry.</item> -</itemize> - - -<sect1>Online resources -<p> -The commercial rise of the Internet coincided roughly with that of -Linux; the latter owes something to the former. The 'Net has always been -important to Linux development. LUGs are no different: Most have Web -pages, if not whole Web sites. In fact, I'm not sure how else to find a -LUG, but to check the Web. - -It makes sense, then, for a LUG to make use of whatever Internet -technologies they can: Web sites, mailing lists, wikis, FTP, e-mail, Web -discussion forums, netnews, etc. As the world of commerce is -discovering, the 'Net is an effective way to advertise, inform, educate, -and even sell. The other reason LUGs make extensive use of Internet -technology is that the very essence of Linux is to <it>provide</it> -a stable and rich platform to deploy these technologies. So, -not only do LUGs benefit from, say, establishment of a Web site, -because it advertises their existence and helps organise members, -but, in deploying these technologies, LUG members -learn about them and see Linux at work. - -Arguably, a well-maintained Web site is the one must-have, among those -Internet resources. My essay -<url name="Recipe for a Successful Linux User Group" -url="http://linuxmafia.com/~rick/essays/newlug.html">, for that reason, -spends considerable time discussing Web issues. Quoting it (in outline form): - -<itemize> - <item>You need a Web page. - <item>Your Web page needs a reasonable URL. - <item>You need a regular meeting location. - <item>You need a regular meeting time. - <item>You need to avoid meeting-time conflicts. - <item>You need to make sure that meetings happen as advertised, without fail. - <item>You need a core of several Linux enthusiasts. - <item>Your core volunteers need out-of-band methods of communication. - <item>You need to get on the main lists of LUGs, and keep your entries accurate. - <item>You must have login access to maintain your Web pages, as needed. - <item>Design your Web page to be forgiving of deferred maintenance. - <item>Always include the day of the week, when you cite event dates. Always check that day of the week, first, using gcal. - <item>Place time-sensitive and key information prominently near the top of your main Web page. - <item>Include maps and directions to your events. - <item>Emphasise on your main page that your meeting will be free of charge and open to the public (if it is). - <item>You'll want to include an RSVP "mailto" hyperlink, on some events. - <item>Use referral pages. - <item>Make sure every page has a revision date and maintainer link. - <item>Check all links, at intervals. - <item>You may want to consider establishing a LUG mailing list. - <item>You don't need to be in the Internet Service Provider business. - <item>Don't go into any other business, either. - <item>Walk the walk. -</itemize> - -That essay partly supplements (and partly overlaps) this HOWTO. - -Some LUGs using the Internet effectively: - -<itemize> - - <item><url name="Atlanta Linux Enthusiasts" url="http://www.ale.org/"></item> - - <item><url name="BLUG - BHZ Linux Users Group (Brazil)" url="http://www.artsoft.com.br/blug/"></item> - - - <item><url name="Boston Linux and Unix" url="http://www.blu.org/"></item> - - <item><url name="Colorado Linux Users and Enthusiasts" url="http://clue.denver.co.us/"></item> - - <item><url name="Düsseldorfer Linux Users Group" url="http://www.dlug.de/"></item> - - <item><url name="Essex Linux User Group" url="http://www.epos.demon.co.uk/"></item> - - <item><url name="Israeli Group of Linux Users" url="http://www.linux.org.il/"></item> - - <item><url name="Korean Linux Users Group" url="http://www.lug.or.kr/"></item> - - <item><url name="Linux México" url="http://www.linux.org.mx/"></item> - - <item><url name="Linux User Group Austria" url="http://www.luga.or.at/"></item> - - <item><url name="Linux User Group of Rochester" url="http://www.lugor.org/"></item> - - <item><url name="Linux User Group of Singapore" url="http://www.lugs.org.sg/"></item> - - <item><url name="Nederlandse Linux Gebruikers Groep (Netherlands Linux Users Group or NLLGG)" url="http://www.nllgg.nl/"></item> - - <item><url name="North Texas Linux Users Group" url="http://www.ntlug.org/"></item> - - <item><url name="Ottawa Carleton Linux Users Group" url="http://www.oclug.on.ca/"></item> - - <item><url name="Provence Linux Users Group" url="http://www.plugfr.org/"></item> - - <item><url name="St. Petersburg Linux User Group" url="http://linux.spb.org/"></item> - - <item><url name="Tokyo Linux Users Group" url="http://www.tlug.jp/"></item> - - <item><url name="Turkish Linux User Group" url="http://www.linux.org.tr/"></item> - - <item><url name="Victoria Linux User Group" url="http://www.vlug.org/"></item> - -</itemize> - -<p> -Please let me know if your LUG uses the Internet in an important or -interesting way; I'd like this list to include your group. - -<sect>Practical suggestions -<p> -Finally, I want to make some very practical, even mundane, suggestions -for anyone wanting to found, maintain, or grow a LUG. - -<sect1>LUG support organisations -<p> - -There are several organisations offering assistance to LUGs. - -<descrip> - - <tag>GLUE:</tag> Groups of Linux Users Everywhere is a user group - coordination and support program started by SSC, the same people who - publish <it>Linux Journal</it>. The <url name="GLUE program" - url="http://www.ssc.com:8080/glue/groups/"> is an inexpensive way - for a LUG to provide some benefits to its membership. - - <tag>Cleveland Linux User's Group:</tag> Own the Internet domain - <tt>lug.net</tt>. They will provide your LUG an Internet domain name - at <tt>lug.net</tt>: your-LUG-name-or-city.<tt>lug.net</tt>. More - information may be found by e-mailing <htmlurl name="Jeff - Garvas" url="mailto:jeff@cia.net">. - - <tag>Red Hat, Inc.'s User Group Program:</tag> Assists LUGs to - develop and grow. More information may be found at <url - url="http://www.redhat.com/apps/community/LUG/" name="Red Hat Web - site">. - -</descrip> - -<sect1>Founding a LUG -<p> - -<itemize> - - <item>Determine the nearest existing LUG</item> - <item>Announce your intentions on <tt>comp.os.linux.announce</tt> and on an appropriate regional hierarchy</item> - <item>Announce your intention wherever computer users are in your area: bookstores, swap meets, cybercafes, colleges and universities, corporations, Internet service providers, etc.</item> - <item>Find Linux-friendly businesses or institutions in your area willing to help you form the LUG</item> - <item>Form a mailing list or some means of communication among the people who express an interest in forming a LUG</item> - <item>Ask key people specifically for help in spreading the word about your intention to form a LUG</item> - <item>Solicit space on a Web server to put a few HTML pages together about the group</item> - <item>Begin looking for a meeting place</item> - <item>Schedule an initial meeting</item> - <item>Discuss at the initial meeting the goals for the LUG</item> - -</itemize> - -<sect1>Maintaining and growing a LUG -<p> - -<itemize> - - <item>Make the barriers to LUG membership as low as possible</item> - <item>Make the LUG's Web site a priority: keep all information current, make it easy to find details about meetings (who, what, and where), and make contact information and feedback mechanisms prominent</item> - <item>Install Linux for anyone who wants it</item> - <item>Post flyers, messages, or handbills wherever computer users are in your area</item> - <item>Secure dedicated leadership</item> - <item>Follow Linus's <it>benevolent dictator</it> model of leadership</item> - <item>Take the big decisions to the members for a vote</item> - <item>Start a mailing list devoted to technical support and ask the "gurus" to participate on it</item> - <item>Schedule a mixture of advanced and basic, formal and informal, presentations</item> - <item>Support the software development efforts of your members</item> - <item>Find way to raise money without dues: for instance, selling Linux merchandise to your members and to others</item> - <item>Consider securing formal legal standing for the group, such as incorporation or tax-exempt status</item> - <item>Find out if your meeting place is restricting growth of the LUG</item> - <item>Meet in conjunction with swap meets, computer shows, or other community events where computer users -- i.e., potential Linux converts -- are likely to gather</item> - <item>Elect formal leadership for the LUG as soon as is practical: Some helpful officers might include President, Treasurer, Secretary, Meeting Host (general announcements, speaker introductions, opening and closing remarks, etc.), Publicity Coordinator (handles Usenet and e-mail postings, local publicity), and Program Coordinator (organises and schedules speakers at LUG meetings)</item> - <item>Provide ways for members and others to give feedback about the direction, goals, and strategies of the LUG</item> - <item>Support Linux and free software development efforts by donating Web space, a mailing list, or FTP site</item> - <item>Establish an FTP/Web site for relevant software</item> - <item>Archive everything the LUG does for the Web site</item> - <item>Solicit "door prizes" from Linux vendors, VARs, etc. to give away at meetings</item> - <item>Give credit where due</item> - <item>Join SSC's GLUE (Groups of Linux Users Everywhere) but be aware they charge a membership fee</item> - <item>Submit your LUG's information to all the LUG lists</item> - <item>Publicise your meetings on appropriate Usenet groups and in local computer publications and newspapers</item> - <item>Compose promotional materials, like Postscript files, for instance, members can use to help publicise the LUG at workplaces, bookstores, computer stores, etc.</item> - <item>Make sure you know what LUG members want the LUG to do</item> - <item>Release press releases to local media outlets about any unusual LUG events like an Installation Fest, Net Day, etc.</item> - <item>Use LUG resources and members to help local non-profit organisations and schools with their Information Technology needs</item> - <item>Advocate the use of Linux zealously but responsibly</item> - <item>Play to LUG members's strengths</item> - <item>Maintain good relations with Linux vendors, VARs, developers, etc.</item> - <item>Identify and contact Linux consultants in your area - <item>Network with the leaders of other LUGs in your area, state, region, or country to share experiences, tricks, and resources</item> - <item>Keep LUG members advised on the state of Linux software -- new kernels, bugs, fixes, patches, security advisories -- and the state of the Linux world at large -- new ports, trademark and licensing issues, where Linus is living and working, etc.</item> - <item>Notify the Linux Documentation Project -- and other pertinent sources of Linux information -- about the documentation the LUG produces: technical presentations, tutorials, local HOWTOs, etc.</item> -</itemize> - -<sect>Legal and political issues -<p> - -<sect1>Legal issues -<p> -The case for formal LUG organisation can be debated: - -<it>Pro:</it> Incorporation and recognised tax-exemption limits -liability and helps the group carry insurance. It aids fundraising. -It avoids claims for tax on group income. - -<it>Con:</it> Liability shouldn't be a problem for modestly careful -people. You're not doing skydiving, after all. Fundraising isn't needed -for a group whose activities needn't involve significant expenses. -(Dead-tree newsletters are so 1980.) Not needing a treasury, you avoid -needing to argue over it, file reports about it, or fear it being taxed -away. Meeting space can usually be gotten for free at ISPs, colleges, -pizza parlours, brewpubs, coffeehouses, computer-training firms, -Linux-oriented companies, or other friendly institutions, and can -therefore be free of charge to the public. No revenues and no expenses -means less need for organisation and comcomitant hassles. - -For what it's worth, this HOWTO's originator and second maintainer lean, -respectively, towards the pro and con sides of the debate -- but choose -your own poison: If interested in formally organising your LUG, this -section will introduce you to some relevant issues. - -<bf>Note:</bf> this section should not be construed as competent legal -counsel. These issues require the expertise of competent legal -counsel; you should, before acting on any of the statements made in -this section, consult an attorney. - -<sect2>United States of America -<p> -There are at least two different legal statuses a LUG in the USA may -attain: - -<enum> - <item>incorporation as a non-profit entity</item> - <item>tax-exemption</item> -</enum> - -Although relevant statutes differ among states, most states -allow user groups to incorporate as non-profit entitites. Benefits -of incorporation for a LUG include limitations of liability -of LUG members and volunteers, as well as limitation or even exemption -from state corporate franchise taxes. - -While you should consult competent legal counsel before incorporating -your LUG as a non-profit, you can probably reduce your legal -fees by being acquainted with relevant issues before consulting -with an attorney. I recommend the <it>Non-Lawyers' Non-Profit -Corporation Kit</it> (ISBN 0-937434-35-3). - -As for the second status, tax-exemption, this is not a legal status, so -much as an Internal Revenue Service judgement. It's important to realise -non-profit incorporation <bf>does not</bf> ensure that IRS will rule -your LUG tax-exempt. It is quite possible for a non-profit corporation -to <bf>not</bf> be tax-exempt. - -IRS has a relatively simple document explaining the criteria -and process for tax-exemption. It is <bf>Publication 557:</bf> -<it>Tax-Exempt Status for Your Organization</it>, available as -an Acrobat file from the IRS's Web site. I strongly recommend -you read this document <bf>before</bf> filing for non-profit incorporation. -While becoming a non-profit corporation cannot -ensure your LUG will be declared tax-exempt, some -incorporation methods will <bf>prevent</bf> IRS from declaring your -LUG tax-exempt. <it>Tax-Exempt Status for Your Organization</it> -clearly sets out necessary conditions for your LUG to be declared -tax-exempt. - -Finally, there are resources available on the Internet for non-profit -and tax-exempt organisations. Some of the material is probably -relevant to your LUG. - -<sect2>Canada -<p> -Thanks to <htmlurl name="Chris Browne" url="mailto:cbbrowne@cbbrowne.com"> -for the following comments about the Canadian situation. - -<p> -The Canadian tax environment strongly parallels the US environment, in -that the "charitable organisation" status confers similar tax -advantages for donors over mere "not for profit" status, while -requiring that similar sorts of added paperwork be filed by the -"charity" with the tax authorities in order to attain and maintain -certified charity status. - -<sect2>Germany -<p> -Correspondent <htmlurl name="Thomas Kappler" url="Thomas.Kappler@stud.uni-karlsruhe.de"> warns that the process of founding a non-profit entity in Germany -is a bit complicated, but is comprehensively covered at <url -name="http://www.wegweiser-buergergesellschaft.de/praxishilfen/arbeit_im_verein/vereinsrecht/vereinsgruendung_1.php" url="http://www.wegweiser-buergergesellschaft.de/praxishilfen/arbeit_im_verein/vereinsrecht/vereinsgruendung_1.php">. - - -<sect1>Software politics -<p> -<url name="Chris Browne" url="mailto:cbbrowne@cbbrowne.com"> has the -following to say about the kinds of intra-LUG political dynamics that -often crop up (lightly edited and expanded by the HOWTO maintainer): - -<sect2>People have different feelings about free software. -<p> -Linux users are a diverse bunch. As soon as you try to put a lot of -them together, <it>some</it> problem issues can arise. Some, who are -nearly political radicals, believe all software, always, should be -"free". Because Caldera charges quite a lot of money for their -distribution, and doesn't give all profits over to <it>(pick favorite -advocacy organisation)</it>, they must be "evil". Ditto Red Hat or -SuSE. Keep in mind that all three of these companies have made and -continue to make significant contributions to free software. - -(HOWTO maintainer's note: The above was a 1998 note, from before -Caldera exited the Linux business, renamed itself to The SCO Group, -Inc., and launched a major copyright / contract / patent / trade-secret -lawsuit and PR campaign against Linux users. My, those times do change. -Still, we're grateful to the Caldera Systems that <em> was </em>, for -its gracious donation of hardware to help Alan Cox develop SMP kernel -support, for funding the development of RPM, and for its extensive past -kernel source contributions and work to combine the Linux and historical -Unix codebases.) - -<p> -Others may figure they can find some way to highly exploit the -"freeness" of the Linux platform for fun and profit. Be aware that many -users of the BSD Unix variants consider <it>their</it> licences that -<it>do</it> permit companies to build "privatised" custom versions of -their kernels and C libraries preferable to the "enforced permanent -freeness" of the GPL as applied to the Linux kernel and GNU libc. Do -not presume that all people promoting this sort of view are necessarily -greedy leeches. - -<p> -If/when these people gather, disagreements can occur. - -<p> -Leaders should be clear on the following facts: - -<itemize> - -<item>There are a lot of opinions about the GPL and other open-source -licences and how they work -- mostly misinformed. It is easy to -misunderstand both the GPL and alternative licensing schemes. Most -attempts at debating same are, at root, pointless, ritualised symbolic -warfare among people who should know better. In the rare event that -participants actually aspire to understand the subject, please direct -them to the OSI's "license-discuss" mailing list and the Debian -Project's "debian-legal" mailing list, where substantive analysis is -possible and encouraged. - -<item> Linux benefits from contributions from many places, including -proprietary-software vendors, e.g., in the Linux kernel, XFree86, and -gcc. - -<item> Proprietary imples neither better nor horrible. - -</itemize> - -<p> -The main principle can be extended well beyond this; computer "holy -wars" have long been waged over endless battlegrounds, including -Linux vs. other Unix variants vs. Microsoft OSes, the "IBM PC" vs. -sundry Motorola 68000-based systems, the 1970s' varied 8-bit systems -against each other, KDE versus GNOME.... - -<p> -A wise LUG leader will seek to move past such differences, if only -because they're tedious. LUG leaders ideally therefore will have thick -skins. - -<sect2>Non-profit organisations and money don't mix terribly well. -<p> -It is important to be careful with finances in any sort of non-profit. -In businesses, which focus on substative profit, people are not -typically too worried about minor details such as alleged misspending of -immaterial sums. The same cannot be said about non-profit -organisations. Some people are involved for reasons of principle, and -devote inordinate attention to otherwise minor issues. LUG business -meetings' potential for wide participation correspondingly expands the -potential for exactly such inordinate attention. - -<p> -As a result, it is probably preferable for there to <it>not</it> be any -LUG membership fee, as that provides a specific thing for which people -can reasonably demand accountability. Fees not collected can't be -misused -- or squabbled over. - -<p> -If there <it>is</it> a lot of money and/or other substantive property -the user group must be accountable to members. - -<p> -Any vital, growing group, should have more than one active person. In -troubled nonprofits, financial information is often tightly held by -someone who will not willingly relinquish monetary control. Ideally, -there should be <it>some</it> LUG duty rotation, including duties -involving financial control. - -<p> -Regular useful financial reports should be made available to those -who wish them. A LUG maintaining official "charitable status" -for tax purposes must file at least annual financial reports -with the local tax authorities, which would represent a minimum -financial disclosure to members. - -<p> -With the growth of Linux-based financial software, regular reports are -now quite practical. With the growth of the Internet, it should even be -possible to publish these on the World-Wide Web. - -<sect1>Elections, democracy, and turnover -<p> -Operating your LUG via democratic process is absolutely vital -- if and -only if you believe it is. I intend that remark somewhat less cynically -than it probably sounds, as I shall explain. - -Tangible stakes in LUG politics tend to be minuscule to the point of -comic opera: There are typically no real assets, and differences can be -resolved by either engineering around them with technology (the Linux-ey -solution) or through the trivial exercise of setting up a parallel -effort (either in an additional LUG or otherwise). Moreover, even the -most militantly "democratic" LUGs typically field, like clockwork, -exactly as many candidates as there are offices to be elected -- not a -soul more. - -It's tempting to mock such exercises, as form over substance, but such -is not (much) my intent (nor to claim irregularities). Rather, I -mention them to point out something more significant: Active volunteers -are vital, and should be encouraged. It seems likely that the -"democratic" exercise stressed in some groups, substantive or not, -encourages participation, and gives those elected a sense of status and -legitimacy. Those are Good Things. - -Thus, if elections and formal structure help involve active -participants, use them. If their absence helps attract participants, -lose them. If door-prizes and garage sales bring people in, do -door-prizes and garage sales. Participation, as much as software, is -the lifeblood of your LUG. - -Last, plan for your replacement: If your LUG is a college student -group, and must go through a paperwork deathmarch every year to stay -accredited, make sure that and all other vital processes are documented, -so new LUG officers needn't figure everything out from scratch. Think -of it as a systems-engineering problem: You're trying to eliminate -single points of failure. - -And what works for the guys in the next town may not work for your crowd: -Surprise! The keys to this puzzle are still being sought. So, please -experiment, and let me know what works for you, so I can tell others. -Have fun! - -<sect>About this document - -<sect1>Terms of use -<p> - -Copyright (C) 2003, Rick Moen. Copyright (C) 1997-1998 by Kendall Grant -Clark. This document may be distributed under the terms set forth -in the LDP licence at <url -name="http://www.tldp.org/COPYRIGHT.html" -url="http://www.tldp.org/COPYRIGHT.html">. - -<sect1>New versions -<p> -New versions of the Linux User Group HOWTO will be periodically -uploaded to various Linux WWW and FTP sites, principally <url -url="http://linuxmafia.com/lug/" name="http://linuxmafia.com/lug/"> and -the <url name="Linux Documentation Project" -url="http://www.tldp.org/">. - -<sect1>Please contribute to this HOWTO -<p> -I welcome questions about and feedback on this document. Please send -them to me at <htmlurl name="rick@linuxmafia.com" -url="mailto:rick@linuxmafia.com">. <it>I am especially interested in -hearing from LUG leaders around the world</it>. I'd like to include -real-life examples of things described here. I'd also like to include -more on LUGs outside the USA, to reduce this HOWTO's residual -US-centrism. Please let me know of things your group does meriting -description here. - -<sect1>Document history -<p> -<itemize> - <item>1.0: Released on 13 July 1997.</item> - <item>1.1: Expanded online resources section.</item> - <item>1.3: Added LUG support organisations and expanded the Legal and Organisational Issues section.</item> - <item>1.3.1: General editing for clarity and conciseness.</item> - <item>1.4: General editing, added new LUG resources.</item> - <item>1.4.1: General editing for clarity.</item> - <item>1.5: Added some resources, some discussion of LUG documentation, also general editing.</item> - <item>1.5.1: Changed Web location for this document and author's e-mail address.</item> - <item>1.5.2: New copyright and licence.</item> - <item>1.5.3: Miscellaneous edits and minor re-organisations</item> - <item>1.6: Added Chris Browne's material: Linux philanthropic -donations and LUG political considerations.</item> - <item>1.6.1: Very minor additions.</item> - <item>1.6.2: Minor corrections.</item> - <item>1.6.3: Maintenance assumed by Rick Moen: General initial touchup, -correction of broken URLs, etc. - <item>1.6.4: Further minor fixes and additions. - <item>1.6.5: More-extensive edits, added "Limits of advocacy", -added caveat about conflicting value systems in support contexts. Added -more news sites, reordered examples of LUGs using Internet well. General -tightening of phrasing, greater brevity in places. - <item>1.6.6: More small fixes, added Yahoo LUG list. - <item>1.6.7: Added formal-organisational pros/cons, "Elections, -democracy, and turnover" section, Web site suggestions, and link -to Recipe for a Successful Linux User Group" essay. Fixed mis-tagged -sections under "Legal and political issues". -</itemize> - - -<sect1>Acknowledgements -<p> - -I would like to give a big thank-you to Kendall Grant Clark for the -initial versions of this document in 1997-1998, and for trusting me to take -over and renovate his creation starting in 2003. - -Warn regards and thanks to <url name="Chris Browne" -url="mailto:cbbrowne@cbbrowne.com"> for describing the situation with -non-profit and charitable groups in Canada, his thoughts on financial -donations as a way to participate in Linux and the free software -movement, and his ideas about the kinds of political issues likely to -arise within LUGs. - -In addition, the following people have made helpful comments and -suggestions: - -<itemize> - <item>Hugo van der Kooij</item> - <item>Greg Hankins</item> - <item>Charles Lindahl</item> - <item>Jeff Garvas</item> - <item>James Hertzler</item> - <item>Thomas Kappler</item> -</itemize> - - -</article> - +<!doctype linuxdoc system> + +<article> + +<title>Linux User Group HOWTO +<author><url name="Rick Moen" url="mailto:rick@linuxmafia.com"></author> +<date>v1.6.8, 2003-09-27 + +<abstract> +The Linux User Group HOWTO is a guide to founding, maintaining, and +growing a Linux user group, co-authored by Kendall Clark and Rick Moen +(now maintained by Rick Moen). +</abstract> + +<toc> + +<sect>Introduction + +<sect1>Purpose +<p> +The Linux User Group HOWTO is intended to serve as a guide to founding, +maintaining, and growing a Linux user group. + +Linux is a freely-distributable implementation of Unix for personal +computers, servers, workstations, PDAs, and embedded systems. It was developed on the i386 and +now supports i486, Pentium, Pentium Pro, Pentium II, Pentium III, and +Pentium IV processors, as well as IA32 clones from AMD, Cyrix, VIA, IDT, +Winchip, NexGen, Transmeta, VIA C3 Ezra "CentaurHauls", and others. It +also supports most SPARC, DEC Alpha, PowerPC/PowerMac and G3/G4/G5, and +the Motorola 68020-68040 series on Mac/Amiga/Atari ST. + +It supports as well the Hitachi H8 series, Motorola Dragonball, Motorola +ColdFire, Motorola QUICC, ETRAX, Intel i960, NEC V850E, MPC, MediaGX, +STPC, Hitachi SH3/SH4 "SuperH", Intel ARM/StrongARM, and PRISMA +embedded/microcontroller/PDA machines, as well as Cisco 2500, 3000, and +4000 series routers. + +It supports MIPS, PA-RISC, AMD x86-64 "Hammer", and IA64/Itanium +minicomputers. It supports IBM S/390 and Fujitsu AP1000+ mainframes. + +<sect1>Other sources of information +<p> +If you want to learn more, the <url url="http://www.tldp.org/" +name="Linux Documentation Project"> is a good place to start. + +For general information about computer user groups, please see the +<url name="Association of PC Users Groups" +url="http://www.apcug.org/">. + +<sect>What is a Linux user group? +<p> + +<sect1>What is Linux? +<p> +To fully appreciate LUGs' role in the Linux movement, it helps to +understand what makes Linux unique. + +Linux as an operating system is powerful -- but Linux as an +<it><bf>idea</bf></it> about software development is even more so. Linux +is a <bf>free</bf> operating system: It's licensed under the GNU General +Public Licence. Thus, source code is freely available in perpetuity to +anyone. It's maintained by a unstructured group of programmers +world-wide, under technical direction from Linus Torvalds and other key +developers. Linux as a movement has no central structure, bureaucracy, +or any entity to direct its affairs. While this situation has +advantages, it poses challenges for allocation of human resources, +effective advocacy, public relations, user education, and training. + +<sect1>How is Linux unique? +<p> +Linux's loose structure is unlikely to change. That's a good thing: +Linux works precisely because people are free to come and go as they +please: <bf>Free programmers are happy programmers are effective +programmers</bf>. + +However, this loose structure can disorient the new Linux user: Whom +does she call for support, training, or education? How does she know +what Linux is suitable for? + +In large part, LUGs provide the answers, which is why LUGs are +vital to the Linux movement: Because your town, village, or metropolis +sports no Linux Corporation "regional office", the LUG takes on +many of the same roles such an office does for a large multi-national +corporation. + +Linux is unique in neither having nor being burdened by central +structures or bureaucracies to allocate its resources, train its users, +or support its products. These jobs get done through diverse means: the +Internet, consultants, VARs, support companies, colleges, and +universities. However, increasingly, in many places around the globe, +they are done by a LUG. + +<sect1>What is a user group? +<p> +Computer user groups are not new. In +fact, they were central to the personal computer's history: +Microcomputers arose in large part to satisfy demand for affordable, +personal access to computing resources from electronics, ham radio, and +other hobbyist user groups. Giants like IBM eventually discovered the +PC to be a good and profitable thing, but initial impetus came from the +grassroots. + +In the USA, user groups have changed -- many for the worse -- +with the times. The financial woes and dissolution of the largest user +group ever, the Boston Computer Society, were well-reported; but, all +over the USA, most PC user groups have seen memberships decline. +American user groups in their heyday produced newsletters, maintained +shareware and diskette libraries, held meetings and social events, and, +sometimes, even ran electronic bulletin board systems (BBSes). With the +advent of the Internet, however, many services that user groups once +provided migrated to things like CompuServe and the Web. + +Linux's rise, however, coincided with and was intensified by the +general public "discovering" the Internet. As the Internet grew more +popular, so did Linux: The Internet brought to Linux new users, +developers, and vendors. So, the same force that sent traditional user +groups into decline propelled Linux forward and inspired new groups +concerned exclusively with it. + +To give just one indication of how LUGs differ from traditional +user groups: Traditional groups must closely +monitor what software users redistribute at meetings. +While illegal copying of restricted proprietary software certainly +occurred, it was officially discouraged -- for good reason. +At LUG meetings, however, that entire mindset simply does not apply: +Far from being forbidden, unrestricted copying of Linux +should be among a LUG's primary goals. In fact, there is anecdotal +evidence of traditional user groups having difficulty adapting to +Linux's ability to be lawfully copied at will. + +(Caveat: A few Linux distributions bundle Linux with proprietary +software packages whose terms don't permit public redistribution. +Check licence terms, if in doubt.) + +<sect1>Summary +<p> +For the Linux movement to grow, among other requirements, +LUGs must proliferate and succeed. Because of Linux's +unusual nature, LUGs must provide some of the same functions a "regional +office" provides for large computer corporations like IBM, Microsoft, +and Sun. LUGs can and must train, support, and educate Linux users, +coordinate Linux consultants, advocate Linux as a computing solution, +and even serve as liaison to local news outlets. + +<sect>What LUGs exist? +<p> +Since this document is meant as a guide not only to maintaining and +growing LUGs but also to founding them, we should, before going further, +discuss what LUGs already exist. + +<sect1>LUG lists +<p> +There are several LUG lists on the Web. If you are considering founding a +LUG, your first task should be to find any nearby existing LUGs. +<it>Your best bet may be to join a LUG already established in your area, +rather than founding one.</it> + +As of mid-2003, there are LUGs in all 50 US states plus the District of +Columbia, nine of Canada's ten provinces, all six of Australia's states +plus the Australian Capital Territory, and over 100 other countries, +including India, Russia, China, and most of Western and Eastern Europe. + +<itemize> + <item><url name="Groups of Linux Users Everywhere (GLUE)" url="http://www.ssc.com:8080/glue/groups/"></item> + <item><url name="LUGs WorldWide Project" url="http://lugww.counter.li.org/"></item> + <item><url name="Linux Online -- User Groups" url="http://www.linux.org/groups/"></item> + <item><url name="Red Hat User Group Program" url="http://www.redhat.com/apps/community/LUG/"></item> + <item><url name="Open Directory: LUGS" url="http://dmoz.org/Computers/Software/Operating_Systems/Linux/User_Groups/"></item> + <item><url name="Yahoo Linux > User Groups" url="http://dir.yahoo.com/Computers_and_Internet/Software/Operating_Systems/Unix/Linux/User_Groups/"> + <item><url name="LUG Webring" url="http://nlug.org/webring/"></item> + <item><url name="CLUE: the Canadian Linux Users' Exchange" url="http://www.linux.ca/"></item> + <item><url name="Linux Australia" url="http://www.linux.org.au/"></item> +</itemize> + +<p> +It appears GLUE is more comprehensive for the USA, while the LUGs +WorldWide Project offers better coverage elsewhere. + +<sect1>Solidarity versus convenience +<p> +While (most) LUG lists on the Web are well-maintained, likely they don't +list every LUG. If considering founding a LUG, I suggest, in addition to +consulting these lists, posting a message to <url +name="comp.os.linux.announce" url="news:comp.os.linux.announce">, <url +name="comp.os.linux.misc" url="news:comp.os.linux.misc">, or an +appropriate regional Usenet hierarchy, inquiring about nearby LUGs. You +should also lodge a query (mailing list post, comment during a meeting) +at any existing LUG you are aware of anywhere near your area, +about LUGs near you. If no such (nearby) LUG exists, your postings will +alert potential members to your initiative. + +Carefully balance convenience against solidarity: If a LUG exists in +your metropolitan area but on the other side of the city, starting a new +group may be better for convenience's sake. On the other hand, joining +the other group may be better for reasons of unity and solidarity. +<bf><it>Greater numbers almost always means greater power, influence, +and efficiency</it></bf>. While two groups of 100 members each might be +nice, one with 200 has advantages. Of course, if you live in a small +town or village, any group is better than none. + +The point is that starting a LUG is a significant undertaking, which +should be commenced with all relevant facts and some appreciation of the +effect on other groups. + +<sect>What does a LUG do? +<p> +LUGs' goals are as varied as their locales. There is no LUG master +plan, nor will this document supply one. Remember: Linux is free from +bureaucracy and centralised control; so are LUGs. + +It is possible, however, to identify a core set of goals for a +LUG: + +<itemize> + <item>advocacy</item> + <item>education</item> + <item>support</item> + <item>socialising</item> +</itemize> + +Each LUG combines these and other goals uniquely, according to its +membership's needs. + +<sect1>Linux advocacy +<p> +The urge to advocate the use of Linux is widely felt. When you find +something that works well, you want to tell as many people as you can. +LUGs' role in Linux advocacy cannot be overestimated, especially since +wide-scale commercial acceptance of Linux is only newly underway. While +it is certainly beneficial to the Linux movement, each and every time a +computer journalist writes a positive review of Linux, it is also +beneficial every time satisfied Linux users brief their friends, +colleagues, employees, or employers. + +There is effective advocacy, and there is ineffective carping: As Linux +users, we must be constantly vigilant to advocate Linux in such a way as +to reflect positively on the product, its creators and developers, and +our fellow users. The Linux Advocacy mini-HOWTO, available at the Linux +Documentation Project, gives some helpful suggestions, +as does Don Marti's excellent <url name="Linuxmanship" +url="http://zgp.org/~dmarti/linuxmanship/"> essay. +Suffice it to say that advocacy is important to a LUG's mission. + +A time may come when Linux advocacy is irrelevant, because Linux has +more or less won the day, when the phrase "no one ever got fired for +using Linux" becomes reality. Until then, LUGs play a vital role in +promoting Linux use. They do so because their advocacy is free, +well-intentioned, and backed up by organisational commitment. If a +person encounters Linux through a LUG's efforts, then that new +user's already ahead of the game: <it>She knows of an organisation that +will help her install, configure, and even maintain Linux on whatever +computers she's willing to dedicate to it.</it> + +New Linux users already in contact with a LUG are ahead +of others whose interest in Linux has been piqued by a computer +journalist, but who have no one to whom to turn for aid in their +quest to install, run, and learn Linux. + +It is, therefore, important for LUGs to advocate Linux, because +their advocacy is effective, well-supported, and free. + +<sect1>The limits of advocacy +<p> +Advocacy can be mis-aimed; advocacy can go wrong and be +counterproductive; advocacy can be simply inappropriate in the first +place. The matter merits careful thought, to avoid wasted time or +worse. + +Many attempts at advocacy fail ignominiously because the advocate fails +to listen to what the other party feels he wants or needs. (As Eric +S. Raymond says, "Appeal to the prospect's interests and values, not to +yours.") If that person wants exactly the proprietary-OS setup she +already has, then advocating Linux wastes your time and hers. If her +stated requirements equate exactly to MS-Project, MS-Visio, and +Outlook/Exchange groupware, then trying to "sell" her what she doesn't +want will only annoy everyone (regardless of whether her requirements +list is real or artificial). Save your effort for someone more +receptive. + +Along those lines, bear in mind that, for many people, perhaps most, an +"advocate" is perceived as a salesman, and thus classified as someone to +resist rather than listen to fairly. They've never heard of someone +urging them to adopt a piece of software without +benefiting materially, so they assume there must be something in +it for you and will push back, and +act as if they're doing you a personal favour to even listen, let alone +try your recommendations. + +I recommend bringing such discussions back to Earth +immediately, by pointing out that software policy should be based in +one's own long-term self interest, that you have zero personal stake in +their choices, and that you have better uses for your time than speaking +to an unreceptive audience. After that, if +they're still interested, at least you won't face the same artificial +obstacle. + +At the same time, make sure you don't live up to the stereotype of the +OS advocate, either. Just shoving your views at someone is downright +rude and offensive. Moreover, when done concerning Linux, it's +also pointless: Unlike the case with proprietary OSes, Linux will not +live or die by the level of corporate acceptance and release/maintenance +of ported applications. It and all key applications are open source: +the programmer community that maintains it is self-supporting, and would +keep it advancing and and healthy regardless of whether the business +world and general public uses it with wild abandon, only a little, or +not at all. Because of its open-source licence terms, source +code is permanently available. Linux cannot be "withdrawn from the +market" at the whim of some company. Accordingly, there is simply no +point in pesky OS advocacy -- unlike that of some communities we could +mention. (Why not just make information available for those receptive +to it, and stop there? That meets any reasonable person's needs.) + +Last, understand that the notion of "use value" for software is quite +foreign to most people -- the notion of measuring software's value by +what you can do with it. The habit of valuing everything at +<it>acquisition cost</it> is deeply ingrained. In 1996, I heard a young +fellow from Caldera Systems speak at a Berkeley, California LUG about +the origins of Caldera Network Desktop (the initial name of their Linux +distribution) in Novell, Inc.'s "Corsair" desktop-OS project: In +surveying corporate CEOs and CTOs, they found corporate officers to be +inherently unhappy with anything they could get for free. So, Caldera +offered them a solution -- by charging money. + +Seen from this perspective, being conservative about the costs and +difficulties of Linux deployments helps make them positively attractive +-- and protects your credibility as a spokesman. Even better would be +to frame the discussion of costs in terms of the cost of functionality +(e.g., 1000-seat Internet-capable company e-mail with offline-user +capability and webmail) as opposed to listing software as a retail-style +line-item with pricing: After all, any software project has costs, +even if the acquisition price tag is zero, and the real point of open +source isn't initial cost but rather long-term control over IT -- a key +part of one's operations: With proprietary systems, the user (or +business) has lost control of IT, and is on the wrong side of a monopoly +relationship with one's vendor. With open source, the user is in +control, and nobody can take that away. Explained that way (as +opportunity to reduce and control IT risk), people readily understand +the difference -- especially CEOs -- and it's much more significant over +the long term than acquisition cost. + +<sect1>Linux education +<p> +Not only is it the business of a LUG to advocate Linux usage, but +also to train members, as well as the nearby computing public, +to use Linux and associated components -- a goal that can make a huge +real-world difference in one's local area. While universities and +colleges are increasingly including Linux in their curriculums, for +sundry reasons, this won't reach some Linux users. For those, a LUG can +give basic or advanced help in system administration, programming, +Internet and intranet technologies, etc. + +In an ironic twist, many LUGs have turned out to be a backbone of +corporate support: Every worker expanding her computer skills through +LUG participation is one fewer the company must train. Though home +Linux administration doesn't exactly scale to running corporate data +warehouses, call centres, or similar high-availability facilities, it's +light years better preparation than MS-Windows experience. As Linux has +advanced into journaling filesystems, high availability, real-time +extensions, and other high-end Unix features, the already blurry line +between Linux and "real" Unixes has been increasingly vanishing. + +Not only is such education a form of worker training, but it will also +serve, as information technology becomes increasingly vital to the +global economy, as community service: In the USA's metropolitan areas, +for example, LUGs have taken Linux into local schools, small businesses, +community and social organisations, and other non-corporate +environments. This accomplishes the goal of Linux advocacy and also +educates the general public. As more such organisations seek Internet +presence, provide their personnel dial-in access, or other +Linux-relevant functions, LUGs gain opportunities for community +participation, through awareness and education efforts -- extending to +the community the same generous spirit characteristic of Linux and the +free software / open source community from its very beginning. Most +Linux users can't program like Torvalds, but we can all give time and +effort to other Linux users, the Linux community, and the broader +surrounding community. + +Linux is a natural fit for these organisations, because deployments +don't commit them to expensive licence, upgrade, or maintenance fees. +Being technically elegant and economical, it also runs very well on +cast-off corporate hardware that non-profit organisations are only too +happy to use: The unused Pentium 133 in the closet can do <bf>real +work</bf>, if someone installs Linux on it. + +In addition, Linux education assists other LUG goals over time, in +particular that of Linux support: Better education means better +support, which in turn facilitates education, and eases the Linux +community's growth. Thus, education forms the entire effort's keystone: +If only two or three percent of a LUG assume the remainder's support +burden, that LUG's growth will be stifled. One thing you can count on: +<bf><it>If new and inexperienced users don't get needed help +from their LUG, they won't participate there for long</it></bf>. +If a larger percentage of members support the rest, the LUG will not +face that limitation. Linux education -- and, equally, support for +allied projects such as the Apache Web server, XFree86, TeX, LaTeX, etc. +-- is key to this dynamic: Education turns new Linux users into +experienced ones. + +Finally, Linux is a self-documenting operating environment: In other words, +writing and publicising our community's documentation is up to us. +Therefore, make sure LUG members know of the <url name="Linux +Documentation Project" url="http://www.tldp.org/"> and its worldwide +mirrors. Consider operating an LDP mirror site. Also, make sure to +publicise -- through <tt>comp.os.linux.announce</tt>, the LDP, and other +pertinent sources of Linux information -- any relevant documentation +the LUG develops: technical presentations, tutorials, local FAQs, etc. +LUGs' documentation often fails to benefit the worldwide Linux +community for no better reason than not notifying the outside world. +Don't let that happen: It is highly probable that if someone at one LUG +had a question or problem with something, then others elsewhere +will have it, too. + +<sect1>Linux support +<p> +Of course, for the <bf>newcomer</bf>, the primary role of a +LUG is Linux support -- but it is a mistake to suppose that Linux +support means only <it>technical</it> support for new Linux users. It +should mean much more. + +LUGs have the opportunity to support: + +<itemize> + <item>users</item> + <item>consultants</item> + <item>businesses, non-profit organisations, and schools</item> + <item>the Linux movement</item> +</itemize> + +<sect2>Users +<p> +New Linux users' most frequent complaint, once they have Linux +installed, is the steep learning curve characteristic of all modern +Unixes. With that learning curve, however, comes the power and +flexibility of a real operating system. A LUG is often the a new +user's main resource to flatten the learning curve. + +During Linux's first decade, it gained some first-class journalistic +resources, which should not be neglected: The main monthly magazines +of longest standing are <url name="Linux Journal" +url="http://www.linuxjournal.com/"> and <url name="Linux Gazette" +url="http://www.linuxgazette.com/"> (on-line). More recently, they've +been joined by <url name="Linux Format" url="http://www.linuxformat.co.uk/">, +<url name="LinuxUser and Developer" url="http://www.linuxuser.co.uk/">, +and <url name="Linux Magazine" url="http://linux-magazine.com/">. + +Standout on-line magazines with weekly or better publication cycles +include <url name="Linux Weekly News" url="http://lwn.net/">, +<url name="Linux Today" url="http://linuxtoday.com">, +<url name="FreshNews" url="http://freshnews.org/">, and +<url name="Newsforge" url="http://newsforge.com/">. + +All of these resources have eased LUGs' job of spreading essential +news and information -- about bug fixes, security problems, patches, +new kernels, etc., but new users must still be made aware of +them, and taught that the newest kernels are always +available from <url name="ftp.kernel.org" url="ftp://ftp.kernel.org">, +that the <bf>Linux Documentation Project</bf> has newer +versions of Linux HOWTOs than do CD-based Linux distributions, +and so on. + +Intermediate and advanced users +also benefit from proliferation of timely and useful tips, facts, +and secrets. Because of the Linux world's manifold aspects, even +advanced users often learn new tricks or techniques simply by +participating in a LUG. Sometimes, they learn of software packages +they didn't know existed; sometimes, they just remember arcane +<tt>vi</tt> command sequences they've not used since college. + +<sect2>Consultants +<p> + +LUGs can help Linux consultants find their customers and vice-versa, +by providing a forum where they can come together. +Consultants also aid LUGs by providing experienced leadership. +New and inexperienced users gain benefit from both LUGs and +consultants, since their routine or simple requests for support are +handled by LUGs <it>gratis</it>, while their complex needs and problems -- +the kind requiring paid services -- can be fielded by consultants found +through the LUG. + +The line between support requests needing a consultant and those +that don't is sometimes indistinct; but, in most cases, the difference +is clear. While a LUG doesn't want to gain the reputation for +pawning new users off unnecessarily on consultants -- as this is simply +rude and very anti-Linux behaviour -- there is no reason for LUGs not to +help broker contacts between users needing consulting services and +professionals offering them. + +Caveat: While "the difference is clear" to intelligent people of goodwill, +the Inevitable Ones are <it>also</it> always with us, who act willfully +dense about the limits of free support when they have pushed those +limits too far. Remember, too, my earlier point about the vast majority +of the population valuing everything at acquisition cost (instead of use +value), <it>including what they receive for free</it>. This leads some, +especially some in the corporate world, to use (and abuse) LUG +technical support with wild abandon, while simultaneously complaining +bitterly of its inadequate detail, insufficient promptness, supposedly +unfair expectations that the user learn and not ask minor variations on +the same question endlessly, etc. In other words, they treat relations +with LUG volunteers the way they would a paid support vendor, but one +they treat with <it>zero respect</it> because of its zero acquisition +cost. + +In the consulting world, there's a saying about applying "invoice therapy" +to such behaviour: Because of the value system alluded to above, if +your consulting advice is poorly heeded and poorly used, it just might +be the case that you need to charge more. By contrast, the technical +Linux community has often been characterised as a "gift culture", with a +radically different value system: Members gain status through enhanced +reputation among peers, which in turn they improve through visible +participation: code, documentation, technical assistance to the public, +etc. + +Clash between the two very different value-based cultures is inevitable +and can become a bit ugly. LUG activists should be prepared to intercede +before the ingrate newcomer is handed her head on a platter, and +politely suggest that her needs would be better served by paid +(consultant-based) services. There will always be judgement calls; +the borderline is inherently debatable and a likely source of +controversy. + +Telltale signs that a questioner may need to be transitioned to consulting-based assistance include: + +<itemize> + <item>An insistence on getting solutions in "recipe" (rote) form, with the apparent aim + of not needing to learn technological fundamentals. + <item>Asking the same questions (or ones closely related) repeatedly. + <item>Vague problem descriptions, or ones that change with time. + <item>Interrupting answers in order to ask additional questions (suggesting + lack of attention to the answers). + <item>Demands that answers be recast or delivered more quickly (suggesting + that the questioner's time and trouble but that helpers' are not). + <item>Asking unusually complex, time-consuming, and/or multipart questions. +</itemize> + +In general, LUG members are especially delighted to help, on a volunteer basis, members +who seem likely to participate in the Linux "gift culture" by picking up its body of lore +and, in turn, perpetuate it by teaching others in their turn. Certainly, there's nothing +wrong with having other priorities and values, but such folk may in some cases be best +referred to paid assistance, as a better fit for both their needs. + +An additional observation that may or may not be useful, at this point: +There are things one may be willing to do for free, to assist others in the +Linux community, that one will refuse to do for money: Shifting from +assisting someone as a volunteer fundamentally changes the relationship. +A fellow computerist who suddenly becomes a customer is a very different +person; one's responsibilities are quite different, and greater. You're +advised to be aware, if not wary, of this distinction. + +Please see Joshua Drake's <url name="Linux Consultants Guide" +url="http://www.tldp.org/LDP/lcg/html/"> for an +international list of Linux consultants. + +<sect2>Businesses, non-profit organisations, and schools +<p> +LUGs also have the opportunity to support local businesses and +organisations. This support has two aspects: First, LUGs can support +businesses and organisations wanting to use Linux (and Linux-based +applications) as a part of their +computing and IT efforts. Second, LUGs can support local businesses +and organisations developing software for Linux, cater to Linux users, +support or install Linux, etc. + +The support LUGs can provide to local businesses wanting to use Linux as +a part of their computing operations differs little from the help LUGs +give individuals trying Linux at home. For example, compiling the Linux +kernel doesn't really differ. Supporting businesses, however, may +require supporting proprietary Linux software -- e.g., the Oracle, Sybase, +and DB2 databases (or VMware, Win4Lin, and such things). +Some LUG expertise in these areas may help businesses make the leap +into Linux deployments. + +This leads us directly to the second kind of support a LUG can give to +local businesses: LUGs can serve as a clearinghouse for information +available in few other places. For example: + +<itemize> + + <item>Which local ISP is Linux-friendly?</item> + <item>Are there any local hardware vendors building Linux PCs?</item> + <item>Does anyone sell Linux CDs locally?</item> + +</itemize> + +Maintaining and making this kind of information public not only helps +the LUG members, but also helps Linux-friendly businesses and encourages +them to continue to be Linux-friendly. It may even, in some cases, help +further a competitive environment in which other businesses are +encouraged to follow suit. + +<sect2>Free / open-source software development +<p> +Finally, LUGs may also support the Linux movement by soliciting and +organising charitable giving. <url name="Chris Browne" +url="mailto:cbbrowne@cbbrowne.com"> has thought about this issue as much as +anyone I know, and he contributes the following: + +<sect3>Chris Browne on free software / open source philanthropy +<p> +A further involvement can be to encourage sponsorship of various +Linux-related organisations in a financial way. With the <url +url="http://counter.li.org" name="multiple millions"> of Linux users, +it would be entirely plausible for grateful users to individually +contribute a little. Given millions of users, and the not-unreasonable +sum of a hundred dollars of "gratefulness" per Linux user ($100 being +roughly the sum <it>not</it> spent this year upgrading a Microsoft OS), +that could add up to <it>hundreds of millions</it> of dollars towards +development of improved Linux tools and applications. + +<p> +A user group can encourage members to contribute to various +"development projects". Having some form of "charitable tax exemption" +status can encourage members to contribute directly to the group, +getting tax deductions as appropriate, with contributions flowing on to +other organisations. + +<p> +It is appropriate, in any case, to encourage LUG members to direct +contributions to organisations with projects and goals they +individually wish to support. + +<p> +This section lists possible candidates. None are explicitly being +recommended here, but the list represents useful food for +thought. Many are registered as charities in the USA, thus +making US contributions tax-deductible. + +<p> +Here are organisations with activities particularly directed towards +development of software working with Linux: + +<itemize> +<item><url url="http://www.li.org/grants/grantdonation.php" name=" Linux International Development Grant Fund Donations"> +<item><url url="http://www.debian.org/donations.html" name="Debian/Software In the Public Interest"> +<item><url url="http://www.fsf.org/help/donate.html" name="Free Software Foundation"> +<item><url url="http://www.kde.org/helping/" name="KDE Project"> +<item><url url="http://www.gnome.org/friends/" name="GNOME Foundation"> +</itemize> + +<p> +Contributions to these organisations have the direct effect of +supporting creation of freely redistributable software usable with +Linux. Dollar for dollar, such contributions almost certainly yield +greater benefit to the Linux community than any other kind of spending. + +<p> +There are also organisations less directly associated with Linux, that +may nonetheless be worthy of assistance, such as: + +<itemize> +<item>The <url url="http://www.eff.org/" name="Electronic Frontier Foundation"> + +<p> +Based in San Francisco, EFF is a donor-supported membership organization +working to protect our fundamental rights regardless of technology; to +educate the press, policy-makers, and the general public about civil +liberties issues related to technology; and to act as a defender of +those liberties. Among our various activities, EFF opposes misguided +legislation, initiates and defends court cases preserving individuals' +rights, launches global public campaigns, introduces leading edge +proposals and papers, hosts frequent educational events, engages the +press regularly, and publishes a comprehensive archive of digital civil +liberties information at one of the most linked-to Web sites in the +world. + +<item>The LaTeX3 Project Fund + +<p> +The <url url="http://www.tug.org/" name="TeX Users Group (TUG)"> is +working on the "next generation" version of the LaTeX publishing +system, known as LaTeX3. Linux is one of the platforms on which TeX +and LaTeX are best supported. +<p> Donations for the project can be sent to: +<tscreen> +<verb> +TeX Users Group +P.O. Box 1239 +Three Rivers, CA 93271-1239 +USA +</verb> +</tscreen> +or, for those in Europe, +<tscreen> +<verb> +UK TUG +1 Eymore Close +Selly Oaks +Burmingham B29 4LB +UK +</verb> +</tscreen> + +<item> <URL URL="http://promo.net/pg/" name="Project Gutenberg"> + +<p> +Project Gutenberg's purpose is to make freely available in electronic +form the texts of public-domain books. This isn't directly a "Linux +thing", but seems fairly worthy, and they actively encourage platform +independence, which means their "products" are quite usable with Linux. + +<item> <url url="http://www.osef.org/donations.html" name="Open Source +Education Foundation"> + +<p> +The Open Source Education Foundation's purpose to enhance K-12 education +through the use of technologies and concepts derived from The Open +Source and Free Software movement. In conjunction with Tux4Kids, OSEF +created a bootable distribution of GNU/Linux (Knoppix for Kids) based +on Klaus Knopper's Knoppix, aimed at kids, parents, teachers, and +other school officials. OSEF installs and supports school computer labs, +and has developed a "K12 Box" as a compact Plug and Play workstation +computer for student computer labs. + +<item> <url url="http://www.osafoundation.org/donations.htm" name="Open +Source Applications Foundation"> + +<p>OSAF is Mitch Kapor's non-profit foundation to create and popularise +open-source application software of uncompromising quality, starting +with its pioneering personal information manager, Chandler. + +</itemize> + +(Please note that suggested additions to the above list of Linux-relevant +charities are most welcome.) + + +<sect2>Linux movement +<p> +I have referred throughout this HOWTO to what I call the <bf>Linux +movement</bf>. There really is no better way to describe the +international Linux phenomenon: It isn't a bureaucracy, but is +organised. It isn't a corporation, but is important to businesses +everywhere. The best way for a LUG to support the international Linux +movement is to keep the local Linux community robust, vibrant, and +growing. Linux is <it>developed</it> internationally, which is easy +enough to see by reading the kernel source code's +<file>MAINTAINERS</file> file -- but +Linux is also <it>used</it> internationally. This ever-expanding +user base is key to Linux's continued success, and is where the LUGs +are vital. + +The Linux movement's strength internationally lies in offering +unprecedented computing power and sophistication for its cost and +freedom. The keys are value and independence from proprietary control. +Every time a new person, group, business, or organisation experiences +Linux's inherent value, the Linux movement grows. LUGs help that +happen. + +<sect1>Linux socialising +<p> +The last goal of a LUG we'll cover is socialising -- in some ways, +the most difficult goal to discuss, because it isn't clear how +many or to what degree LUGs do it. While it would be strange to +have a LUG that didn't engage in the other goals, there may be +LUGs for which socialising isn't a factor. + +It seems, however, that whenever two or three Linux users get together, +fun, hijinks, and, often, beer follow. Linus Tovalds has +always had one enduring goal for Linux: to have more fun. For hackers, +kernel developers, and Linux users, there's nothing quite like +downloading a new kernel, recompiling an old one, fooling with a +window manager, or hacking some code. Linux's sheer fun keeps many +LUGs together, and leads LUGs naturally to socialising. + +By "socialising", here I mean primarily sharing experiences, forming +friendships, and mutually-shared admiration and respect. There is +another meaning, however -- one social scientists call +<it>acculturation</it>. In any movement, institution, or human +community, there is the need for some process or pattern of events in +and by which, to put it in Linux terms, newcomers are turned into +hackers. In other words, acculturation turns you from "one of them" to +"one of us". + +It is important that new Linux users come to learn what Linux culture, +concepts, traditions, and vocabulary. Linux acculturation, unlike "real +world" acculturation, can occur on mailing lists and Usenet, although +the latter's efficacy is challenged by poorly acculturated users and by +spam. LUGs are often much more efficient at this task than are mailing +lists or newsgroups, precisely because of the former's greater interactivity +and personal focus. + +<sect>LUG activities +<p> +In the previous section I focused exclusively on what LUGs do and +should do. This section's focus shifts to practical strategies. + +There are, despite permutations of form, two basic things LUGs do: +First, members meet in physical space; second, they communicate +in cyberspace. Nearly everything LUGs do can be seen in terms of +meetings and online resources. + +<sect1>Meetings +<p> +As I said above, physical meetings are synonymous with LUGs (and +most user groups). LUGs have these kinds of meetings: + +<itemize> + <item>social</item> + <item>technical presentations</item> + <item>informal discussion groups</item> + <item>user group business</item> + <item>Linux installation</item> + <item>configuration and bug-squashing</item> +</itemize> + +What do LUGs do at these meetings? + +<itemize> + <item>Install Linux for newcomers and strangers.</item> + <item>Teach members about Linux.</item> + <item>Compare Linux to other operating systems.</item> + <item>Teach members about software running on Linux.</item> + <item>Discuss Linux advocacy.</item> + <item>Discuss the free software / open-source movement.</item> + <item>Discuss user group business.</item> + <item>Eat, drink, and be merry.</item> +</itemize> + + +<sect1>Online resources +<p> +The commercial rise of the Internet coincided roughly with that of +Linux; the latter owes something to the former. The 'Net has always been +important to Linux development. LUGs are no different: Most have Web +pages, if not whole Web sites. In fact, I'm not sure how else to find a +LUG, but to check the Web. + +It makes sense, then, for a LUG to make use of whatever Internet +technologies they can: Web sites, mailing lists, wikis, ftp, e-mail, Web +discussion forums, netnews, etc. As the world of commerce is +discovering, the 'Net is an effective way to advertise, inform, educate, +and even sell. The other reason LUGs make extensive use of Internet +technology is that the very essence of Linux is to <it>provide</it> +a stable and rich platform to deploy these technologies. So, +not only do LUGs benefit from, say, establishment of a Web site, +because it advertises their existence and helps organise members, +but, in deploying these technologies, LUG members +learn about them and see Linux at work. + +Arguably, a well-maintained Web site is the one must-have, among those +Internet resources. My essay +<url name="Recipe for a Successful Linux User Group" +url="http://linuxmafia.com/~rick/essays/newlug.html">, for that reason, +spends considerable time discussing Web issues. Quoting it (in outline form): + +<itemize> + <item>You need a Web page. + <item>Your Web page needs a reasonable URL. + <item>You need a regular meeting location. + <item>You need a regular meeting time. + <item>You need to avoid meeting-time conflicts. + <item>You need to make sure that meetings happen as advertised, without fail. + <item>You need a core of several Linux enthusiasts. + <item>Your core volunteers need out-of-band methods of communication. + <item>You need to get on the main lists of LUGs, and keep your entries accurate. + <item>You must have login access to maintain your Web pages, as needed. + <item>Design your Web page to be forgiving of deferred maintenance. + <item>Always include the day of the week, when you cite event dates. Always check that day of the week, first, using gcal. + <item>Place time-sensitive and key information prominently near the top of your main Web page. + <item>Include maps and directions to your events. + <item>Emphasise on your main page that your meeting will be free of charge and open to the public (if it is). + <item>You'll want to include an RSVP "mailto" hyperlink, on some events. + <item>Use referral pages. + <item>Make sure every page has a revision date and maintainer link. + <item>Check all links, at intervals. + <item>You may want to consider establishing a LUG mailing list. + <item>You don't need to be in the Internet Service Provider business. + <item>Don't go into any other business, either. + <item>Walk the walk. (Do the LUG's computing on Linux.) +</itemize> + +That essay partly supplements (and partly overlaps) this HOWTO. + +Some LUGs using the Internet effectively: + +<itemize> + + <item><url name="Atlanta Linux Enthusiasts" url="http://www.ale.org/"></item> + + <item><url name="BLUG - BHZ Linux Users Group (Brazil)" url="http://www.artsoft.com.br/blug/"></item> + + + <item><url name="Boston Linux and Unix" url="http://www.blu.org/"></item> + + <item><url name="Colorado Linux Users and Enthusiasts" url="http://clue.denver.co.us/"></item> + + <item><url name="Düsseldorfer Linux Users Group" url="http://www.dlug.de/"></item> + + <item><url name="Essex Linux User Group" url="http://www.epos.demon.co.uk/"></item> + + <item><url name="Israeli Group of Linux Users" url="http://www.linux.org.il/"></item> + + <item><url name="Korean Linux Users Group" url="http://www.lug.or.kr/"></item> + + <item><url name="Linux México" url="http://www.linux.org.mx/"></item> + + <item><url name="Linux User Group Austria" url="http://www.luga.or.at/"></item> + + <item><url name="Linux User Group of Rochester" url="http://www.lugor.org/"></item> + + <item><url name="Linux User Group of Singapore" url="http://www.lugs.org.sg/"></item> + + <item><url name="Nederlandse Linux Gebruikers Groep (Netherlands Linux Users Group or NLLGG)" url="http://www.nllgg.nl/"></item> + + <item><url name="North Texas Linux Users Group" url="http://www.ntlug.org/"></item> + + <item><url name="Ottawa Carleton Linux Users Group" url="http://www.oclug.on.ca/"></item> + + <item><url name="Provence Linux Users Group" url="http://www.plugfr.org/"></item> + + <item><url name="St. Petersburg Linux User Group" url="http://linux.spb.org/"></item> + + <item><url name="Tokyo Linux Users Group" url="http://www.tlug.jp/"></item> + + <item><url name="Turkish Linux User Group" url="http://www.linux.org.tr/"></item> + + <item><url name="Victoria Linux User Group" url="http://www.vlug.org/"></item> + +</itemize> + +<p> +Please let me know if your LUG uses the Internet in an important or +interesting way; I'd like this list to include your group. + +<sect>Practical suggestions +<p> +Finally, I want to make some very practical, even mundane, suggestions +for anyone wanting to found, maintain, or grow a LUG. + +<sect1>LUG support organisations +<p> + +There are several organisations offering assistance to LUGs. + +<descrip> + + <tag>GLUE:</tag> Groups of Linux Users Everywhere is a user group + coordination and support program started by SSC, the same people who + publish <it>Linux Journal</it>. The <url name="GLUE program" + url="http://www.ssc.com:8080/glue/groups/"> is an inexpensive way + for a LUG to provide some benefits to its membership. + + <tag>Cleveland Linux User's Group:</tag> Own the Internet domain + <tt>lug.net</tt>. They will provide your LUG an Internet domain name + at <tt>lug.net</tt>: your-LUG-name-or-city.<tt>lug.net</tt>. More + information may be found by e-mailing <htmlurl name="Jeff + Garvas" url="mailto:jeff@cia.net">. + + <tag>Red Hat, Inc.'s User Group Program:</tag> Assists LUGs to + develop and grow. More information may be found at <url + url="http://www.redhat.com/apps/community/LUG/" name="Red Hat Web + site">. + +</descrip> + +<sect1>Founding a LUG +<p> + +<itemize> + + <item>Determine the nearest existing LUG.</item> + <item>Announce your intentions on <tt>comp.os.linux.announce</tt> and on an appropriate regional hierarchy.</item> + <item>Announce your intention wherever computer users are in your area: bookstores, swap meets, cybercafes, colleges and universities, corporations, Internet service providers, etc.</item> + <item>Find Linux-friendly businesses or institutions in your area willing to help you form the LUG.</item> + <item>Form a mailing list or some means of communication among the people who express an interest in forming a LUG.</item> + <item>Ask key people specifically for help in spreading the word about your intention to form a LUG.</item> + <item>Solicit space on a Web server to put a few HTML pages together about the group.</item> + <item>Begin looking for a meeting place.</item> + <item>Schedule an initial meeting.</item> + <item>Discuss at the initial meeting the goals for the LUG.</item> + +</itemize> + +<sect1>Maintaining and growing a LUG +<p> + +<itemize> + + <item>Make the barriers to LUG membership as low as possible.</item> + <item>Make the LUG's Web site a priority: Keep all information current, make it easy to find details about meetings (who, what, and where), and make contact information and feedback mechanisms prominent.</item> + <item>Install Linux for anyone who wants it.</item> + <item>Post flyers, messages, or handbills wherever computer users are in your area.</item> + <item>Secure dedicated leadership.</item> + <item>Follow Linus's <it>benevolent dictator</it> model of leadership.</item> + <item>Take the big decisions to the members for a vote.</item> + <item>Start a mailing list devoted to technical support and ask the "gurus" to participate on it.</item> + <item>Schedule a mixture of advanced and basic, formal and informal, presentations.</item> + <item>Support the software development efforts of your members.</item> + <item>Find way to raise money without dues: for instance, selling Linux merchandise to your members and to others.</item> + <item>Consider securing formal legal standing for the group, such as incorporation or tax-exempt status.</item> + <item>Find out if your meeting place is restricting growth of the LUG.</item> + <item>Meet in conjunction with swap meets, computer shows, or other community events where computer users -- i.e., potential Linux converts -- are likely to gather.</item> + <item>Elect formal leadership for the LUG as soon as is practical: Some helpful officers might include President, Treasurer, Secretary, Meeting Host (general announcements, speaker introductions, opening and closing remarks, etc.), Publicity Coordinator (handles Usenet and e-mail postings, local publicity), and Program Coordinator (organises and schedules speakers at LUG meetings).</item> + <item>Provide ways for members and others to give feedback about the direction, goals, and strategies of the LUG.</item> + <item>Support Linux and free software / open source development efforts by donating Web space, a mailing list, or FTP site.</item> + <item>Establish an FTP/Web site for relevant software.</item> + <item>Archive everything the LUG does for the Web site.</item> + <item>Solicit "door prizes" from Linux vendors, VARs, etc. to give away at meetings.</item> + <item>Give credit where due.</item> + <item>Join SSC's GLUE (Groups of Linux Users Everywhere), but be aware they charge a membership fee.</item> + <item>Submit your LUG's information to all the LUG lists.</item> + <item>Publicise your meetings on appropriate Usenet groups and in local computer publications and newspapers.</item> + <item>Compose promotional materials, like Postscript files, for instance, members can use to help publicise the LUG at workplaces, bookstores, computer stores, etc.</item> + <item>Make sure you know what LUG members want the LUG to do.</item> + <item>Release press releases to local media outlets about any unusual LUG events like an Installation Fest, Net Day, etc.</item> + <item>Use LUG resources and members to help local non-profit organisations and schools with their Information Technology needs.</item> + <item>Advocate the use of Linux zealously but responsibly.</item> + <item>Play to LUG members' strengths.</item> + <item>Maintain good relations with Linux vendors, VARs, developers, etc.</item> + <item>Identify and contact Linux consultants in your area.</item> + <item>Network with the leaders of other LUGs in your area, state, region, or country to share experiences, tricks, and resources.</item> + <item>Keep LUG members advised on the state of Linux software -- new kernels, bugs, fixes, patches, security advisories -- and the state of the Linux world at large -- new ports, trademark and licensing issues, where Linus is living and working, etc.</item> + <item>Notify the Linux Documentation Project -- and other pertinent sources of Linux information -- about the documentation the LUG produces: technical presentations, tutorials, local HOWTOs, etc.</item> +</itemize> + +<sect>Legal and political issues +<p> + +<sect1>Legal issues +<p> +The case for formal LUG organisation can be debated: + +<it>Pro:</it> Incorporation and recognised tax-exemption limits +liability and helps the group carry insurance. It aids fundraising. +It avoids claims for tax on group income. + +<it>Con:</it> Liability shouldn't be a problem for modestly careful +people. (You're not doing skydiving, after all.) Fundraising isn't needed +for a group whose activities needn't involve significant expenses. +(Dead-tree newsletters are so 1980.) Not needing a treasury, you avoid +needing to argue over it, file reports about it, or fear it being taxed +away. Meeting space can usually be gotten for free at ISPs, colleges, +pizza parlours, brewpubs, coffeehouses, computer-training firms, +Linux-oriented companies, or other friendly institutions, and can +therefore be free of charge to the public. No revenues and no expenses +means less need for organisation and concomitant hassles. + +For what it's worth, this HOWTO's originator and second maintainer lean, +respectively, towards the pro and con sides of the debate -- but choose +your own poison: If interested in formally organising your LUG, this +section will introduce you to some relevant issues. + +<bf>Note:</bf> this section should not be construed as competent legal +counsel. These issues require the expertise of competent legal +counsel; you should, before acting on any of the statements made in +this section, consult an attorney. + +<sect2>United States of America +<p> +There are at least two different legal statuses a LUG in the USA may +attain: + +<enum> + <item>incorporation as a non-profit entity</item> + <item>tax-exemption</item> +</enum> + +Although relevant statutes differ among states, most states +allow user groups to incorporate as non-profit entities. Benefits +of incorporation for a LUG include limitations of liability +of LUG members and volunteers, as well as limitation or even exemption +from state corporate franchise taxes. + +While you should consult competent legal counsel before incorporating +your LUG as a non-profit, you can probably reduce your legal +fees by being acquainted with relevant issues before consulting +with an attorney. I recommend the <it>Non-Lawyers' Non-Profit +Corporation Kit</it> (ISBN 0-937434-35-3). + +As for the second status, tax-exemption, this is not a legal status, so +much as an Internal Revenue Service judgement. It's important to realise +non-profit incorporation <bf>does not</bf> ensure that IRS will rule +your LUG tax-exempt. It is quite possible for a non-profit corporation +to <bf>not</bf> be tax-exempt. + +IRS has a relatively simple document explaining the criteria +and process for tax-exemption. It is <bf>Publication 557:</bf> +<it>Tax-Exempt Status for Your Organization</it>, available as +an Acrobat file from the IRS's Web site. I strongly recommend +you read this document <bf>before</bf> filing for non-profit incorporation. +While becoming a non-profit corporation cannot +ensure your LUG will be declared tax-exempt, some +incorporation methods will <bf>prevent</bf> IRS from declaring your +LUG tax-exempt. <it>Tax-Exempt Status for Your Organization</it> +clearly sets out necessary conditions for your LUG to be declared +tax-exempt. + +Finally, there are resources available on the Internet for non-profit +and tax-exempt organisations. Some of the material is probably +relevant to your LUG. + +<sect2>Canada +<p> +Thanks to <htmlurl name="Chris Browne" url="mailto:cbbrowne@cbbrowne.com"> +for the following comments about the Canadian situation. + +<p> +The Canadian tax environment strongly parallels the US environment, in +that the "charitable organisation" status confers similar tax +advantages for donors over mere "not for profit" status, while +requiring that similar sorts of added paperwork be filed by the +"charity" with the tax authorities in order to attain and maintain +certified charity status. + +<sect2>Germany +<p> +Correspondent <htmlurl name="Thomas Kappler" url="Thomas.Kappler@stud.uni-karlsruhe.de"> warns that the process of founding a non-profit entity in Germany +is a bit complicated, but is comprehensively covered at <url +name="http://www.wegweiser-buergergesellschaft.de/praxishilfen/arbeit_im_verein/vereinsrecht/vereinsgruendung_1.php" url="http://www.wegweiser-buergergesellschaft.de/praxishilfen/arbeit_im_verein/vereinsrecht/vereinsgruendung_1.php">. + + +<sect1>Software politics +<p> +<url name="Chris Browne" url="mailto:cbbrowne@cbbrowne.com"> has the +following to say about the kinds of intra-LUG political dynamics that +often crop up (lightly edited and expanded by the HOWTO maintainer): + +<sect2>People have different feelings about free / open-source software +<p> +Linux users are a diverse bunch. As soon as you try to put a lot of +them together, <it>some</it> problem issues can arise. Some, who are +nearly political radicals, believe all software, always, should be +"free". Because Caldera charges quite a lot of money for their +distribution, and doesn't give all profits over to <it>(pick favorite +advocacy organisation)</it>, it must be "evil". Ditto Red Hat or +SuSE. Keep in mind that all three of these companies have made and +continue to make significant contributions to free / open-source software. + +(HOWTO maintainer's note: The above was a 1998 note, from before +Caldera exited the Linux business, renamed itself to The SCO Group, +Inc., and launched a major copyright / contract / patent / trade-secret +lawsuit and PR campaign against Linux users. My, those times do change. +Still, we're grateful to the Caldera Systems that <em> was </em>, for +its gracious donation of hardware to help Alan Cox develop SMP kernel +support, for funding the development of RPM, and for its extensive past +kernel source contributions and work to combine the Linux and historical +Unix codebases.) + +<p> +Others may figure they can find some way to highly exploit the +"freeness" of the Linux platform for fun and profit. Be aware that many +users of the BSD Unix variants consider <it>their</it> licences that +<it>do</it> permit companies to build "privatised" custom versions of +their kernels and C libraries preferable to the "enforced permanent +freeness" of the GPL as applied to the Linux kernel and GNU libc. Do +not presume that all people promoting this sort of view are necessarily +greedy leeches. + +<p> +If/when these people gather, disagreements can occur. + +<p> +Leaders should be clear on the following facts: + +<itemize> + +<item>There are a lot of opinions about the GPL and other open-source +licences and how they work -- mostly misinformed. It is easy to +misunderstand both the GPL and alternative licensing schemes. Most +attempts at debating same are, at root, pointless, ritualised symbolic +warfare among people who should know better. In the rare event that +participants actually aspire to understand the subject, please direct +them to the OSI's "license-discuss" mailing list and the Debian +Project's "debian-legal" mailing list, where substantive analysis is +possible and encouraged. + +<item> Linux benefits from contributions from many places, including +proprietary-software vendors, e.g., in the Linux kernel, XFree86, and +gcc. + +<item> Proprietary implies neither better nor horrible. + +</itemize> + +<p> +The main principle can be extended well beyond this; computer "holy +wars" have long been waged over endless battlegrounds, including +Linux vs. other Unix variants vs. Microsoft OSes, the "IBM PC" vs. +sundry Motorola 68000-based systems, the 1970s' varied 8-bit systems +against each other, KDE versus GNOME.... + +<p> +A wise LUG leader will seek to move past such differences, if only +because they're tedious. LUG leaders ideally therefore will have thick +skins. + +<sect2>Non-profit organisations and money don't mix terribly well. +<p> +It is important to be careful with finances in any sort of non-profit. +In businesses, which focus on substantive profit, people are not +typically too worried about minor details such as alleged misspending of +immaterial sums. The same cannot be said of non-profit +organisations. Some people are involved for reasons of principle, and +devote inordinate attention to otherwise minor issues. LUG business +meetings' potential for wide participation correspondingly expands the +potential for exactly such inordinate attention. + +<p> +As a result, it is probably preferable for there to <it>not</it> be any +LUG membership fee, as that provides a specific thing for which people +can reasonably demand accountability. Fees not collected can't be +misused -- or squabbled over. + +<p> +If there <it>is</it> a lot of money and/or other substantive property, +the user group must be accountable to members. + +<p> +Any vital, growing group should have more than one active person. In +troubled nonprofits, financial information is often tightly held by +someone who will not willingly relinquish monetary control. Ideally, +there should be <it>some</it> LUG duty rotation, including duties +involving financial control. + +<p> +Regular useful financial reports should be made available to those +who wish them. A LUG maintaining official "charitable status" +for tax purposes must file at least annual financial reports +with the local tax authorities, which would represent a minimum +financial disclosure to members. + +<p> +With the growth of Linux-based financial software, regular reports are +now quite practical. With the growth of the Internet, it should even be +possible to publish these on the World-Wide Web. + +<sect1>Elections, democracy, and turnover +<p> +Governing your LUG democratically is absolutely vital -- if and +only if you believe it is. I intend that remark somewhat less cynically +than it probably sounds, as I shall explain. + +Tangible stakes at issue in LUG politics tend to be minuscule to the point of +comic opera: There are typically no real assets. Differences of view +can be resolved by either engineering around them with technology (the Linux-ey +solution) or by letting each camp run efforts in parallel. Moreover, even the +most militantly "democratic" LUGs typically field, like clockwork, +exactly as many candidates as there are offices to be filled -- not a +soul more. + +It's tempting to mock such exercises as empty posturing, but such +is not (much) my intent. Rather, I +mention them to point out something more significant: Attracting and +retaining key volunteers is vital to the group's success. Anything that +makes that happen is good. It seems likely that the +"democratic" exercise stressed in some groups, substantive or not, +encourages participation, and gives those elected a sense of status, +legitimacy, and involvement. Those are Good Things. + +Thus, if elections and formal structure help attract key +participants, use them. If those deter participants, +lose them. If door-prizes and garage sales bring people in, do +door-prizes and garage sales. Participation, as much as software, is +the lifeblood of your LUG. + +The reason I spoke of "key" volunteers, above, is because, inevitably, a very few +people will do almost all of the needed work. It's just the way things go, in +volunteer groups. An anecdote may help illustrate my point: Towards the end +of my long tenure as editor and typesetter of San Francisco PC User Group's +40-page monthly magazine, I was repeatedly urged to make magazine +management more "democratic". I finally replied to the club president, +"See that guy over there? That's Ed, one of my editorial staff. Ed just +proofread twelve articles for the current issue. So, I figure he gets +twelve votes." The president and other club politicos were dismayed by my +of my work-based recasting of their democratic ideals: Their notion was that each +biped should have an equal say in editorial policy, regardless of ability to +typeset or proofread, or whether they had ever done iota to assist magazine +production. Although he looked quite unhappy about doing so, the president +dropped the subject. I figured that, when it came right down to it, he'd +decide that the club needed people who got work done more than they +needed his brand of "democracy". + +But we weren't quite done: A month or so later, I was introduced to a +"Publications Committee", who arrived with the intent of doing nothing but +vote on matters of newsletter policy (i.e., issue "executive" orders to the +volunteer production staff). Their first shock came when I listened politely +to their advice but then applied my editorial judgement as usual. Much +worse, though: I also assigned them work, as part of my staff. Almost +all immediately lost interest. (Bossing around other people seemed likely +to be fun; doing actual work was not.) + +The point is that the widespread urge to vote on everything is at best orthogonal +to any desire to perform needed work; at worst, the former serves as an +excuse to compulsively meddle in other people's performance of the +latter. + +To sum up: Have all the "democracy" that makes you happy, but watching after +the well-being of your key volunteers is what matters. (To quote Candide, +"We must cultivate our garden.") + +Last, plan for your replacement: If your LUG is a college student +group, and must go through a paperwork deathmarch every year to stay +accredited, make sure that and all other vital processes are documented, +so new LUG officers needn't figure everything out from scratch. Think +of it as a systems-engineering problem: You're trying to eliminate +single points of failure. + +And what works for the guys in the next town may not work for your crowd: +Surprise! The keys to this puzzle are still being sought. So, please +experiment, and let me know what works for you, so I can tell others. +Have fun! + +<sect>About this document + +<sect1>Terms of use +<p> + +Copyright (C) 2003, Rick Moen. Copyright (C) 1997-1998 by Kendall Grant +Clark. This document may be distributed under the terms set forth +in the LDP licence at <url +name="http://www.tldp.org/COPYRIGHT.html" +url="http://www.tldp.org/COPYRIGHT.html">. + +<sect1>New versions +<p> +New versions of the Linux User Group HOWTO will be periodically +uploaded to various Linux WWW and FTP sites, principally <url +url="http://linuxmafia.com/lug/" name="http://linuxmafia.com/lug/"> and +the <url name="Linux Documentation Project" +url="http://www.tldp.org/">. + +<sect1>Please contribute to this HOWTO +<p> +I welcome questions about and feedback on this document. Please send +them to me at <htmlurl name="rick@linuxmafia.com" +url="mailto:rick@linuxmafia.com">. <it>I am especially interested in +hearing from LUG leaders around the world</it>. I'd like to include +real-life examples of things described here. I'm particularly trying to +include more on LUGs outside the USA. Please let me know of +things your group does meriting description here. + +<sect1>Document history +<p> +<itemize> + <item>1.0: Released on 13 July 1997.</item> + <item>1.1: Expanded online resources section.</item> + <item>1.3: Added LUG support organisations and expanded the Legal and Organisational Issues section.</item> + <item>1.3.1: General editing for clarity and conciseness.</item> + <item>1.4: General editing, added new LUG resources.</item> + <item>1.4.1: General editing for clarity.</item> + <item>1.5: Added some resources, some discussion of LUG documentation, also general editing.</item> + <item>1.5.1: Changed Web location for this document and author's e-mail address.</item> + <item>1.5.2: New copyright and licence.</item> + <item>1.5.3: Miscellaneous edits and minor re-organisations</item> + <item>1.6: Added Chris Browne's material: Linux philanthropic +donations and LUG political considerations.</item> + <item>1.6.1: Very minor additions.</item> + <item>1.6.2: Minor corrections.</item> + <item>1.6.3: Maintenance assumed by Rick Moen: General initial touch-up, +correction of broken URLs, etc. + <item>1.6.4: Further minor fixes and additions. + <item>1.6.5: More-extensive edits, added "Limits of advocacy", +added caveat about conflicting value systems in support contexts. Added +more news sites, reordered examples of LUGs using Internet well. General +tightening of phrasing, greater brevity in places. + <item>1.6.6: More small fixes, added Yahoo LUG list. + <item>1.6.7: Added formal-organisational pros/cons, "Elections, +democracy, and turnover" section, Web site suggestions, and link +to "Recipe for a Successful Linux User Group" essay. Fixed mis-tagged +sections under "Legal and political issues". + <item>1.6.8: Fixed small glitches. Rewrote section concerning +Linux news outlets; parts of sections concerning consultants, businesses, +and elections. +</itemize> + + +<sect1>Acknowledgements +<p> + +I would like to give a big thank-you to Kendall Grant Clark for the +initial versions of this document in 1997-1998, and for trusting me to take +over and renovate his creation starting in 2003. + +Warn regards and thanks to <url name="Chris Browne" +url="mailto:cbbrowne@cbbrowne.com"> for describing the situation with +non-profit and charitable groups in Canada, his thoughts on financial +donations as a way to participate in Linux and the free software and +open-source software movements, and his ideas about the kinds of +political issues likely to arise within LUGs. + +In addition, the following people have made helpful comments and +suggestions: + +<itemize> + <item>Hugo van der Kooij</item> + <item>Greg Hankins</item> + <item>Charles Lindahl</item> + <item>Jeff Garvas</item> + <item>James Hertzler</item> + <item>Thomas Kappler</item> +</itemize> + + +</article> +