[Newark] Two things...

[Khismett Riddle]

My current plans see September fifteenth this year passing without me
wandering around on the streets in what passes for British autumn handing
out cardboard sleeves with free coasters inside to uninterested pedestrians
and desperately shouting my ill-planned self-important free-software
aphorisms at the passers-by who will almost certainly upgrade to by-passers
at the very sight my liberal grin and long, unkempt hair. But by all means,
strap on the sandwich-board of hope and rev up the adages, just make sure
you point out that there's some software on the disks that the prospective
LUGger might like to try before they turn it into a coaster. Ah, how I wish
I could see their sinking expressions as they realise they're being
out-smarted and patronised at the same time by software that has seemingly
taken over their computer - oh how they long to be back in that comforting,
familiar glare of Windows. Sure, it's not as clever and it costs more and -
Hell - you've got to pay McAffee or Symantec if you want to stay in control
of it, but you just can't replace that hilarious little paper-clip and its
indefatigable antics.

Seriously, though, I'm all for humiliating the public in front of their
computer-savvy toddlers, but don't you think it's a little more effort than
it's worth? Generation Jones' Windozers have enough on their plates without
you saying "ubuntu" is no longer a bond 'twixt all members of humanity but
it's now a yardstick for their technosavvy. Savvy? Of course you savvy 'cus
y'all have savvy, kapish? Just wear a T-shirt that proclaims "PEBKAC" to all
who care to gaze upon it and you'll get the flickers of confusion and
concern that you're after along with the occasional spark of recognition as
someone dusts off the acronym and wonders if ThinkGeek is getting too
popular to still be cool (yeah, it is. Sorry.).

Maybe we have to put up with some ambivalence lest we succumb to amarulence
at such an amalgam. Or maybe I've been away from my computer too long and
should STFU.

On the other point, I'm too bitter to have a weblog for the aggregation of
and too paranoid to flaunt my real identity widely on so public an Internet
but I don't mind my name making an appearance amidst so prestigious a
presentation of digital-prestidigitators-- sorry! Sorry, I'm going. I've had
this allergic reaction to a bug-bite on my arm and it all swelled up so I
couldn't type and I've been off my computer for days watching movies and
eating poppadoms and- and... ETX

On 01/08/07, Chris Burton <Chris at 7of9b.org> wrote:
>
> > There's just a couple of things I'd like to bring up. Firstly, are we
> > planning to do anything for Software Freedom Day 2007? I think we should
> -
> > partly because our website says that we are - and partly because I think
> > that we are a small LUG, and this is perhaps the only real opportunity
> for
> > an advocacy drive (until next year) - which actually has a nice reason
> to
> > prop it up.
>
> SFD isn't something that currently interests me, but others might feel
> more
> positive.
>
> > Anyhow - the second thing is we have a members page - does anyone want
> to
> > have their name/website/picture/anything put on there? So far it's just
> > got
> > me, and it looks a little silly to be honest. Any views towards this
> would
> > be great. One idea I had was to put a planet site up there to aggregate
> > our
> > blogs - but, as with the member page itself, currently that'd just be my
> > blog.
>
> You can stick my name (Chris Burton) on there if you want and a pic
> http://gallery.7of9b.org/gallery2/d/1266-1/forum-pic.jpg which was taken
> many years ago when I was setting up the network for the Tyneside LUG
> bring
> a box day ;). I'd prefer a link to a wiki page so I can edit up some
> content
> specific to the LUG and explain what I do with Linux rather than link to a
> personal website which doesn't really exist anymore...
>
> ChrisB.
>
>
> _______________________________________________
> Newark mailing list
> Newark at mailman.lug.org.uk
> https://mailman.lug.org.uk/mailman/listinfo/newark
>
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