[HLUG] Letter to All Saints re Venue for SFD

[info at lifespacedesign.co.uk]

Fellow HLUGers,
here is a draft text for a letter to All Saints. May I ask anyone on the ball to
convert relevant jargon and names into wikipedia links for the final version. So
fire away, deadline looks likely to be lunchtime Monday...
 
Pete H@

Dear Friends,

I am writing on behalf of Herefordshire Linux User Group to request permission
to use a space in All Saints Church on Saturday 18th of September 2010 for a
small display about Free Software, and to meet with members of the public to
talk about our interest.

The HLUG is an informal group which meets monthly to discuss Free and Open
Source Software, to help each other overcome real life computer problems, and to
share knowledge and other resources. This year we have chosen to take part in
International Software Freedom Day; a global celebration of software created by
and for communities across the globe which is shared free of charge, and fully
disclosed ( Open Source) allowing anyone to adapt or improve it. This software
is legally protected by a special lisence designed to prevent it's appropriation
by greed or power driven interests.

Open Source software is an important paradigm shift in sustainable community
development worldwide as it shows that people can share skills and knowledge to
achieve complex technical tasks without the driver of a profit motive. Some
large corporations ( Cannonical, Novell) contribute much to these projects, but
so do individuals like the founder of the Linux Operating System project, the
Finnish student Linus Torvalds. It is open to anyone willing to contribute; but
is also available for anyone to use free of charge and without legal
limitations. It is especially important in less developed areas, and for
educational uses of computers in a cash limited environment.

We would like to use International Software Freedom Day to introduce a wider
audience to software that we use every day in our normal lives, our work, our
businesses. We hold that it is important for people to understand that computers
are not tied to exploitative software models, that by sharing the contributions
of the many; high quality applications and stable operating systems can meet the
needs of any home, business, or other organisation. We believe it is important
for younger users to know that ethical alternatives exist to using pirated
copies of mainstream applications, and why they should use them !

We would need:
 a space to set up a trestle table, best against a wall where we could stand
some display panels.
Loan of a few chairs; but we could bring our own if needed.
A mains electricity supply.We can supply electrical safety cut outs to protect
out equipment. We accept all risks to our computers.
We anticipate arriving to set up between 9 and 10 am, and to pack down by 4 pm.

We would use the space for;
Displays about Free and Open Source Software.
Running computer(s)as examples of the Linux Operating System(s) and
applications, including live installation demonstrations.
Give away CD's (under the GNU Public Lisence) loaded with FOSS.

If any part of this letter is incomprehensible, please put the words into Google
or Wikipedia for possible explanations :-)
Written as a plain text file in KWrite on Mandriva Linux Free 2009

Share and Enjoy :-)