[TriLUG] TriLUG Frequently Asked Questions
TriLUG FAQ Maintainer
lovelace at wayfarer.org
Fri Feb 22 15:07:00 EST 2002
This is a monthly posting of the Frequently Asked Questions
of The Triangle Linux Users Group. More information about TriLUG
can be found at http://www.trilug.org/mailman/listinfo/trilug and
http://www.trilug.org/.
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The TriLUG FAQ
Maintained by Tanner Lovelace <lovelace(at)wayfarer.org>,
originally by Ed Hill <edhill(at)eh3.com>
v1.0, 21 Feb 2002
The TriLUG mailing list has become rather successful as a channel for
discussion of all aspects of Linux and free/open-source software. As
is often a result with such lists, increased in the volume of traffic
has prompted users to call for a FAQ to help maintain the signal-to-
noise ratio. If you would like any help from the TriLUG mailing list,
this is the place to start!
______________________________________________________________________
Table of Contents
1. Preface
1.1 About the Document
1.2 Contact
2. TriLUG in General
2.1 What is TriLUG?
2.2 What does TriLUG do?
2.3 Who can join TriLUG?
2.4 Why join TriLUG?
2.5 How do I join TriLUG?
2.6 Who "runs" TriLUG?
2.7 Where is the technical FAQ?
3. TriLUG Mailing Lists
3.1 What are the TriLUG lists?
3.2 What is "appropriate content" for each of the TriLUG lists?
3.3 If the lists aren't moderated, how can there be any rules?
3.4 Are jobs-posts welcome?
3.5 Are other advertisements welcome?
4. TriLUG Meetings
4.1 May I request a topic for a talk?
4.2 How do I become a sponsor?
5. Miscellaneous Questions
5.1 What is the Barnes & Noble Card?
5.2 May I have a shell account on the TriLUG Alpha DS10 server (fatalpha.trilug.org)?
5.3 Why don't the mailto links in the HTML version of this FAQ work?
______________________________________________________________________
1. Preface
1.1. About the Document
This document is a collection of Frequently Asked Questions (FAQ) for
the Triangle Linux Users Group (TriLUG). It is mainly intended as a
helpful reference point for the TriLUG mailing lists, though it is a
good starting point for anyone interested in TriLUG in general.
This document is also available in a variety of formats: HTML, text,
Adobe Portable Document Format (PDF), Postscript, and SGML (Standard
Generalized Markup Language).
1.2. Contact
If you have any suggestions, additions, or corrections for this
document, please contact the following:
o TriLUG Steering Committee <steering(at)trilug.org>
o The current FAQ maintainer, Tanner Lovelace
<lovelace(at)wayfarer.org>
o The main TriLUG List <trilug(at)trilug.org>
2. TriLUG in General
These are general questions about TriLUG.
2.1. What is TriLUG?
TriLUG s the Triangle Linux Users Group. It is an educational
nonprofit [incorporated as a 501(c)3 for tax purposes] in the State of
North Carolina. Our primary point of contact is our web site at
www.trilug.org. For further information including a copy of our
articles of incorporation and bylaws, please visit our web site at
www.trilug.org.
2.2. What does TriLUG do?
As an educational nonprofit, TriLUG devoted to teaching and otherwise
helping people use Linux and other free/open-source software. We have
monthly meetings, active mailing lists, and quarterly installfests.
2.3. Who can join TriLUG?
Under our current articles of incorporation, all North Carolina
residents are invited and welcome to join!
2.4. Why join TriLUG?
In addition to our mailing list (which is open to everyone, not just
members, and is an EXCELLENT source of free linux-related tech
support), membership provides voting privileges and discounts at many
local vendors. See our web pages for further details.
2.5. How do I join TriLUG?
To join, come to one of our meetings and and we'll gladly issue you an
official membership card, member number, and further details.
2.6. Who "runs" TriLUG?
Monthly meetings, our webserver, quarterly installfests, the treasury,
and other organizational and day-to-day issues are handled by an
elected Steering Committee on behalf of the members. The function of
the Steering Committee is not to "run the show" or to set policy,
rather the committee tries to bring the members requests to fruition.
Every effort is made to openly discuss and bring about the events,
talks, and other ideas that the members put forward. If there is
something that you (as a member) would like to see happen (i.e. a talk
topic, a fundraiser, a mailing list change, or any other idea) then
please feel free to propose and discuss it on our general discussion
list, on the steering committee list, or at a meeting. Essentially
everything that TriLUG now does began as an idea on one of our email
lists!
The steering committee is elected by majority vote once per year at
the May meeting of the general TriLUG membership. Though all
committee members have individual addresses, it is a good idea to send
official correspondence to the steering committee list since this
generally results in a speedier response. The Steering Committee is
comprised of a Chair, Vice Chair, Treasurer, Webmaster, and Public
Relations Officer. Steering Committee members must reside in the
state of North Carolina. For more details on the Steering Committee,
please see the Articles of Incorporation.
2.7. Where is the technical FAQ?
There isn't one yet, but we'd love to have you write one. :-) In the
meantime, you can take a look at our list archives at
http://www.trilug.org/pipermail/trilug.
3. TriLUG Mailing Lists
Questions and "Netiquette" for the mailing lists.
3.1. What are the TriLUG lists?
Currently, there are several TriLUG lists. Information about most of
them can be found at http://www.trilug.org/mailman/listinfo.
o the main TriLUG list is for open (unmoderated) discussion of all
things Linux, *BSD, Free Software, and/or Open Source related;
o the steering committee list is the place to go to contact the
current steering committee members;
o the development list is the place to discuss questions relating
scripts, programs, and development on linux and other open source
OSs.
o the education list is for the education subcommittee.
o the hosting list is for the project to setup hosting for local open
source projects.
o the security talk list was for putting together a talk about
security for TriLUG and will probably go away soon.
o the welcome list is about how to welcome new members to the LUG,
and
o trilug-announce is the low-volume list for the announcement of our
monthly meetings, installfests, and occasional events (such as
booths at local shows). It is the only list that has not been
converted to use the Mailman list software.
All the lists currently run off of Fatalpha, our one and only
server - though we are in the process of bringing up a separate
mail server. Only two lists are currently archived:
o The main list (http://www.trilug.org/pipermail/trilug)
o The dev list (http://www.trilug.org/pipermail/dev)
3.2. What is "appropriate content" for each of the TriLUG lists?
The rules for "appropriate content" on the TriLUG lists are simple:
o Be courteous to others in your postings (no personal attacks on the
list please and no profanity)
o Try to stay on topic, or at least post items that are of interest
to the group
o No advertising, and no spam.
In addition, the following guidelines are also a good starting point:
o As stated above, the main TriLUG discussion list is for the
discussion of all topics related to Linux or Free/Open Source
software. Everyone is welcome to join! Please feel free to join
the list and ask any questions you may have as either a Linux
beginner, intermediate, or expert. We currently have all levels of
experience subscribed and you are likely to find someone who can
either help out with answers or point you towards further help.
o The steering committee list is meant both as a place to contact the
steering committee and as a place for committee member discussions.
All are welcome to send messages to the list, but only current
committee members are subscribed. Please send all communication to
the steering list or one of the TriLUG "role" emails accounts
instead of the sending them directly to the personal emails of
steering committee members.
o The trilug-announce list is open to everyone (all are welcome to
subscribe) and is meant to be a very low volume channel.
3.3. If the lists aren't moderated, how can there be any rules?
Well, good question... *grin*
In practice we have had very few problems with off-topic posts,
flames, and other list annoyances. If they do become a more serious
problem, the steering committee will first remind the offenders. If
the problems persist, various defenses including moderation and
banning of abusers may be implemented. We hope that it won't be
necessary.
3.4. Are jobs-posts welcome?
In the past, jobs posts were not allowed on our lists. More recently,
the new steering committee has voted to allow posts under specific
circumstances. Thus, if the job post in question meets the following
criteria:
o the position is primarily (that is, 51%) Linux or Free Software or
Open Source related; and
o the position is advertised only *once* (absolutely no repeat
spamming will be tolerated)
then it is welcome on our main discussion list. These posts are
not welcome on the announce list. If there are any questions or if
these policies need clarification, please feel free to contact the
steering committee and we'll be glad to help.
3.5. Are other advertisements welcome?
General advertisements to the TriLUG discussion list are strongly
discouraged. Note that other kinds of "ads" are possible through
sponsoring pizza and soda for our monthly meetings.
4. TriLUG Meetings
4.1. May I request a topic for a talk?
Absolutely! If you have any ideas for a future talk, please post them
to the main discussion list. Even better, please post if you think
you might like to give a talk. We're always open to suggestions.
4.2. How do I become a sponsor?
We're always looking for sponsors! Please contact the Steering
Committee if you or your company would like to be an official pizza
sponsor for a meeting. In return for your sponsorship, we will allow
you to give a 10min talk at the beginning of the meeting. If you have
further questions or any other proposals, please contact us.
5. Miscellaneous Questions
5.1. What is the Barnes & Noble Card?
The Barnes and Noble cards used to be for discounts on O'Reilly books
ONLY at local Barnes and Nobel stores. They expired in October, 2000
and are not likely to be renewed.
5.2. May I have a shell account on the TriLUG Alpha DS10 server
(fatalpha.trilug.org)?
Any official member is welcome to an account on TriLUG's servers. To
request an account, send an email to sysadmin(at)trilug.org or to
steering(at)trilug.org.
5.3. Why don't the mailto links in the HTML version of this FAQ work?
The mailto links in the FAQ have been munged to prevent easy
collection by spam bots. Looking at the the addresses should make it
perfectly clear what needs to be modified to make them valid
addresses.
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