New leadership for 2020/2021
by Steven Maddox
Hey Folks,
Notice this isn't my usual e-mail address! :)
Preamble:
StaffsLUG has been a project of Function Office since 2016, when the
final pieces were transferred over from the former LUGMaster.
Unfortunately in the 3 years prior, activity was at an extreme minimum
and so it took a further 3 years to confidently know an audience could
be found and willing to participate on the level that it does now.
As most of you will be aware we "relaunched" on 26th August 2019.
One year later:
As one of the directors of Function Office it has given me great
pleasure to see the LUG thrive again, especially as I was personally an
active member for many years in the 2000's and 2010's.
As originally intended, now is the time to devolve the project. This
means an end to the 3 temporary co-caretakers and instead appointing a
singular project leader, who can then involve whomever they determine
may be able to help them ensure continued success of the project.
Use of Function Office resources such as hosting, contacts, equipment,
banking and supplier agreements (like use of the WRS room) just continue
as they do now. You can even request that Function Office staff wear a
"second hat" and join you in *your* team to help you run the LUG if you
like, so it doesn't need to be a daunting task at all.
This will be done in the following stages...
- Stage 1: Everyone is encouraged to send nominations by e-mail to
info(a)functionoffice.org by no later than the 5th August 2020.
- Stage 2: If nominated by at least 3 people they'll be asked if they
want the role, replies needed no later than the 12th to be considered.
- Stage 3: Nominations get published on the 19th, any objections need to
be received no later than the 19th to info(a)functionoffice.org only.
- Stage 4: Nominees may be asked questions such as any relevant
experience or other supporting credentials to help us make a decision.
- Stage 5: Function Office staff discuss the subject and the board
agrees a new project leader which will be announced on the 26th.
- Stage 6: Internally within the LUG, the project leader can title
themselves however they like (e.g. Governor or LUGMaster, etc...) and
can create new roles for whomever they like to assist them internally.
Discussions over what mechanism should be used to run the LUG have
occurred ad nauseam over the years and the above is the *final* outcome.
As for myself, as Function Office continues to grow, freeing up even a
slither of time would be good and so I do not seek to be project leader.
Hope this all makes sense,
Since this is a Function Office process, I'd be grateful if any
questions surrounding this be sent directly to info(a)functionoffice.org.
Thanks
--
Steven Maddox
Director
Function Office
Registered in England & Wales number 06745059 at Apt 3454, Chynoweth
House, Trevissome Park, Truro, TR4 8UN.
2 years, 2 months
StaffsLUG - an update
by LUGMaster
Hi all,
First up, sorry to those of you who don't engage with the LUG online in
any way other than the mailing lists and perhaps were wondering what to
make of the lack of any official announcements regarding the LUG -
particularly when it comes to meetings. For those of you who are
regularly on IRC and Discord then you may know some of this already, but
keep reading as there are new bits!
As you can imagine for most of 2020, the offices up at Keele were mostly
deserted. For most of 2021 however, this was replaced with some very
strict rules. These rules, combined with other factors, effectively made
it very difficult to restart physical workshop meetings with any kind of
guarantee of success. It's been difficult to gauge exactly how we'd be
permitted to re-open things when both company and government guidance
we're being regularly updated. Additionally, there were concerns over
entry rules and privacy which just seemed too hot a topic for the LUG
politically. Ultimately out of an abundance of caution it just seemed
safer to wait a bit long.
For a lot of this time, the room we'd normally conduct our workshops has
been used for the storage of excess furniture and given how it's primary
purpose (a disaster recovery suite) didn't really apply during the
COVID-19 lock downs, there was little point in keeping it functional or
even COVID-19 secure. Additionally Keele University (who normally use
the room for fundraising, every November each year) took the view (for
both 2020/21) not to risk it with COVID-19 not completely subsided yet,
but are eager to resume using it next year.
Alongside restoring the room to it's functional state, we've been
finishing some long planned upgrades such as gigabit networking for all
desks, headsets, and other kit. Additionally, we've now got multiple
webcams and a telepresence display that are tied into our Jitsi video
conferencing so that people can now join in remotely. We also now have
a table in the middle of the room (since some cupboards have gone) which
might be great for board games.
Regarding meeting virtually, we did initially in 2020 have a fortnightly
voice chat on Discord which attracted some regulars but not many. This
eventually stopped and we started to use Jitsi for occasional video
meetings, however, there are many in the group who understandably
dislike webcams and only begrudgingly have tolerated them in the workplace.
It's been really good to see more active LUG's like WolvesLUG thrive
online and to share their activities with us, and additionally
cross-post on the mailing lists.
We plan to have in place, by Christmas, a schedule of workshops to cover
at least the first 6 months of 2022 with the first workshop to be
scheduled for late January. Please let us know if there are any topics
you would like covering or would like to present and cover yourselves,
and perhaps consider paying us a visit in 2022 as part of your New Year
resolutions!
Hopefully with 2020 and 2021 shortly behind us, we can all start a fresh
and return to a version of normal life and the LUG can thrive,
particularly in person, again :)
However, that being said if there is adequate interest, I'd be happy to
set up a social gathering around Christmas, COVID-19 permitting.
Regards
Richard
--
LUGMaster
Staffordshire Linux User Group
Part of Function Office registered in England & Wales number 06745059 at
Innovation Centre 3, University Drive, Keele, ST5 5NL.
2 years, 6 months
StreetComplete
by Robin Phillips
I posted this on Discord, then Mailman reminded me we have an email list, so I'm repeating it here.
I know we have some OpenStreetMap contributors, so I wanted to give StreetComplete a mention:
https://github.com/streetcomplete/StreetComplete
It's an Android app that asks simple questions about nearby places. It then uses the answers to update OpenStreetMap. I've been using it for a few weeks and I'm very impressed. Simple to use, but adds lots of useful detail to the map.
Robin
2 years, 6 months
