[nflug] Is this group still active?

[Brian Powell]

On Mon, Jan 12, 2009 at 2:12 PM, D. Joe <nflug at etrumeus.com> wrote:
>
> On Mon, Jan 12, 2009 at 07:54:15AM -0500, Tom Reid wrote:
>
>> Yes, the merge is complete.  You can probably read the
>> discussion in the archives--anyways, here is the link to the
>> LUG site, and we have a meeting this Wed.
>
> Given that the nflug.org web site and mailing list and mailing
> list archive are still operational, and that the nflug.org site
> makes no mention of wnylug on its front page or first level of
> secondary pages (or vice versa so far as I've seen) it seems the
> merge is far from complete.
>
> I'm only an occasional reader of the nflug mailing list--I
> appreciate that the web archive is public, something it shares
> with the NY Loco list but which the LUGOR list lacks.  I went
> back to see some of the background to what is an apparent fork
> in the LUG efforts in that part of the state and came up with
> the thread starting here:
>
> http://www.nflug.org/pipermail/nflug/2008-November/028214.html
>
> In this, Mark Musone recommends having only one list, probably
> shutting down nflug and moving to wnylug.  I agree that multiple
> lists would be sub-optimal, but I would caution against throwing
> away a web archive of such long standing (archives going back 7
> years).  At the very least, the pipermail archive should be
> maintained online, even if the list as an active entity is shut
> down.  Also, consider the implication of shutting down
> nflug.org--if the domain is abanoned, it will get squatted on.
> Links that exist in many places, and that are hard to
> change, will break.
>
> Additionally, the name "wnylug" holds a similar problem to the
> one the "nflug" name does--it beats around the bush that this
> is, essentially, a LUG centered on the Buffalo-Niagara Falls
> metropolitan area.  At least with nflug, there was less
> possibility of confusing "wnylug" with other ongoing western New
> York Linux and FOSS efforts like LUGOR and the
> Rochester-centered portion of the NY Loco community.  It does
> have a nice symmetry with the Western Pennysylvania Linux Users
> Group (http://www.wplug.org) centered on Pittsburg, though, and
> if wnylug seeks to emulate that group's prominence and success,
> I'm all for it.
>
> If there aren't solid agreements to convert the nflug.org web
> presence into redirects for wnylug.org any time soon, then it
> would be a service to the wider community to feature prominently
> on the wnylug web site links to nflug.org.  Similarly with links
> to other organizations that also support at least portions of
> the western New York FOSS community, like LUGOR, the RCSi Linux
> SIG, and so forth.
>
> I say all this as someone who moved back to New York state after
> the whole Linux/FOSS phenomenon had taken off.  It was
> frustrating to find much about efforts in this part of the
> country because I tend to think of that conurbation on the
> Niagara River as "Buffalo" and not the "Niagara Frontier" or the
> "Buffalo-Niagara Falls Metropolitan Statistical Area" and
> certainly not as the be-all, end-all of western New York.  Thus
> I did not include "Niagara" as a search term initially.
>
> Even now, searching "rochester linux" or "rochester ny linux"
> pops up LUGOR as the top hit, but "buffalo linux" (not the top
> 10) and "buffalo ny linux" (8th hit down) do not pop up up nflug
> (or wnylug) as a top hit.
>
> I also say this as someone who has made some effort to keep down
> or otherwise ameliorate a splinter-like proliferation of
> multiple groups in the Rochester area all dedicated, in whole or
> in part, to supporting and promoting FOSS.  One of my standard
> questions to newcomers to the #ubuntu-us-ny channel is to draw
> them out as to what their local LUG is--if there even is one, if
> they know about it, if they participate in it.  The underlying
> idea is to bring people together.
>
> So, on a lighter note, I don't want to get all angsty and accuse
> you guys of being splitters ;-)
>
>  http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Monty_Python's_Life_of_Brian#Political_satire
>  http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gb_qHP7VaZE
>
> but rather hope I've indicated well enough and in a constructive
> enough way what my concerns are and what might be done to
> address them.
>
> --
> Joe
>
> _______________________________________________
> nflug mailing list
> nflug at nflug.org
> http://www.nflug.org/mailman/listinfo/nflug
>

For what it is worth, a link to nflug.org has been posted on the
wnylug.org site since the groups creation, As for the other groups in
the area you mentioned I would be happy to get them added as well if
provided with the url's.

If nflug would like to merge that's great, if not, that is fine as
well. I sort of assumed it was a dead topic/issue once discussion
about it had stopped for the most part after Mark had suggested it.

The sole reason for wnylug's creation in the first place was due to
the fact that nflug didn't meet on a regular basis and not including
the activity on the mailing lists, appeared to be dead from an
outsiders perspective such as myself, having just moved into the area
about a year and a half ago. This still appears to be the case with
many others, since I keep seeing "Is this group still active", "When
is the next meeting" etc topics come across the mailing list here
frequently.

Ultimately I guess it comes down to what you are looking for in a LUG.
If it is regular meetings or active mailing lists because where one
group is currently lacking in one of those 2 areas the other picks up.

Coming originally from PA I am very familiar with WPLUG and CPLUG
(Central PA) and know quite a few people in both those groups and if
we could duplicate either of their successes over time in this area,
that would be awesome. Of course the key to doing that isn't in one
person alone but as a group, which goes back to sole reason for having
a charter and electing officials right out of the gate with wnylug.

-- 
Regards,

Brian Powell
http://fedoraproject.org
http://wnylug.org