[TriLUG] [OT] What's the value of IT?

[Phillip Rhodes]

Hey guys, I'm looking for some thoughts from some of you.  But first, in 
the interest of full-disclosure, let me give you the back-story and the 
thought process that led me here:

I am no longer working for Lulu, as of last week.  So right now, I'm 
trying to decide what's next for me career wise.  I may wind up taking
another full-time job, but I'm giving a LOT of thought to going 
freelance (and if not now, very possibly in the not-too-distant future).

Anyway, thinking about something a fellow Tri-LUG'er said to me about 
the need to connect the value that I possess (in terms of skills and
knowledge) with their needs led me to spending a lot of time thinking
about what companies (small / medium companies in particular) really 
need from IT.  And that led me to backing all the way up to the 
fundamental question of what value IT brings in the first place.

I'm so fascinated with this question now, that I am actually thinking 
about writing a book on it (independent of whether or not I make a 
career change).  Or even if it doesn't turn into a full-fledged book, 
maybe a whitepaper or two.

So, all of that said... I'd appreciate any and all thoughts that you 
guys might care to share on exactly how IT (and I'm using the term in a 
*very* general sense here, basically anything that uses a computer) is
used in small/medium businesses, how it adds value, what your 
experiences (good and bad) have been, etc.

To anybody replying to this:  Can I ask you to include a note about 
whether or not you're willing to license your response under the GFDL 
and/or Creative Commons by-sa licenses?  If I do actually write a book - 
or use this stuff any otherw way, I'll release the finished product(s) 
under one or both of those licennses.

I've also got a wiki set up for keeping notes on this topic.  If anybody 
wants to get more involved and edit the wiki directly, please let me know.


-- 
Phillip Rhodes