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The Linux distillery Lovable LUGgable: support your Linux user group
The Linux distillery Lovable LUGgable: support your Linux user group | Lovable LUGgable: support your Linux user group |
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| Written by David M Williams | |
| Thursday, 10 January 2008 | |
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Page 3 of 3 It sure is; that's dead right. After all, why did the original LUGgers meet? It was because they shared a common passion. Yes, newcomers could come and receive expert help – but this only worked because there were people present who were rabid and infectious with their obvious affection for the work of Torvalds, Stallman, Raymond and others.Yet, even Google would be nothing if all people did with the web was search; it’s the fact people produce content which makes a search engine valuable. Similarly, the LUG is where smart, like-minded people can go to discuss Linux with others – to impart their technical knowledge and their viewpoints, and to give – not receive – assistance to those who need it. If you enjoy talking about Linux, if you want to see people converted, if you want to help others get up-and-running on their hardware, then you need to join your nearest LUG. If you enjoy a technical challenge – maybe you want to hack the built-in WiFi card on your laptop and get it working under Linux – then you need to join your nearest LUG and enlist the raw curiosity and skill of your counterparts. And if you want to network, you need to join your LUG. I’m not talking about TCP/IP here but just good old fashion letting people meet new people and become friends. This is the heart of the LUG and this is where the Internet can’t compete: each time a good LUG has a meeting, “LUG buddies” get together and talk amongst themselves. People can sit down and have a drink with real life friends who talk about things that matter to you, be it DRM, eeking out performance, finding a great open source app, or more. This isn’t peculiar to Linux, or even computing. User groups are an integral part of the world. Hot rod car groups and sports clubs are good examples. Social companionship is greatly enhanced when there’s a primary subject of focus and fans come together to bond, no matter what it might be. It’s true: LUGs aren’t the same. Linux isn’t brand spanking new anymore. There’s no need for meetings which merely introduce the technology over and over. This doesn’t mean LUGs aren’t relevant, but merely they have evolved. Again, this is not dissimilar to other groups; membership of the local hot rod car club originally mandated mechanical prowess simply because the projects were still new and home-grown; now car club members will still get together and talk; sure, there’s less dirty work under the hood as the vehicles have become more complex and less penetrable, but at the same time the barrier to entry has decreased allowing a greater spread of car enthusiasts to take part. In the same way, the modern-day LUG talks about new technology and more importantly what can be actually done with this technology. My local LUG finished last year talking on virtualisation technologies. The collective knowledge was greater than what an individual working alone would have uncovered, and those in the audience who were unfamiliar with virtualisation got a lot out of it, being introduced to a topic they would not have ordinarily thought to Google on. So, yes, the LUG still matters, and is still a great bastion of knowledge, of sharing, of activism and of socialising. The development of technology has necessitated LUGs evolve, but join in – you’ll find members are still as avid and cultish as ever. Here’s where you can find your nearest LUG – whether in the U.S.A., the U.K., Australia or the rest of the world.
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