[Nottingham] News for Linux Format?

[LInux Format - LUGS]

Dear all

Greetings from Linux Format magazine (www.linuxformat.co.uk) in sunny Bath.

It's probably not polite to send a blanket email without explaining 
myself, so here goes: I help maintain our Linux user group section, and 
I'm hoping to start a new UK LUG spot for you (and LUG members like you) 
to fill as you wish. I'm emailing people I've spoken to before, or LUGs 
that seem to be pretty active (apologies in advance if I've emailed the 
wrong contact!).

If you've seen the magazine you'll know we have a User Group section, 
listing LUGs in the UK and occasionally running some UK LUG news. We'd 
like to expand the UK LUG news bit into a larger, regular section. We 
feature an overseas LUG every month, and we've realised LXF should be 
promoting domestic groups with the same enthusiasm.

The hope is to give UK LUGs a place where they can tell the wider FOSS 
community about what they've been up to, give readers who've never been 
to a LUG before an idea of what they're like, and hopefully generate 
more interest among our readers in your meetings and mailing lists.

So to the purpose of this email: I'd like to ask you for any news you 
might have that you'd like to publish in LXF. It could be:
- news of a recent installfest
- reports of annual social events (blurred photos included...)
- an update to your website or launch of a new wiki
- first impressions from a new member
- news of preparations of a group event in the pipeline*
- community or advocacy efforts
- a report of a presentation from a visiting FOSS VIP
and so on. Photos and LUG logos would be great, too.

We're not sure of the format yet – it depends in part on response from 
the LUGs around the country. It might be a roundup of news from several 
LUGs, or just a single report per month. I have about 200 words to play 
with.

You wouldn't have to write a perfect report, because we could edit here 
if you liked or get one of our roving reporters to craft a story from 
the bare bones.

It'd be lovely to get across some of the buzz you get from meeting other 
Linux users and to give some of the ailing or quieter LUGs some 
inspiration or community publicity. I believe that for some new LUGs, 
appearing in Linux Format has led to enquiries from LXF readers (we're 
the best-selling Linux magazine in the UK), so that might be an added 
bonus too.

I have about a week to compile the first UK LUG spot, so if you'd like 
to take part let me know in the next day or two. If you'd like any more 
detail about the magazine, let me know too.

Thanks for your time and hope to speak to you soon.

Rebecca Smalley
Operations editor
Linux Format


*We'd need your news about six weeks before the magazine will be on the 
shelves, so we couldn't report on imminent events.



This email and any files transmitted with it are confidential and intended solely for the use of the individual or entity to which they are addressed. If you have received this email in error please reply to this email and then delete it. Please note that any views or opinions presented in this email are solely those of the author and do not necessarily represent those of Future. 

The recipient should check this email and any attachments for the presence of viruses. Future accepts no liability for any damage caused by any virus transmitted by this email. 

Future may regularly and randomly monitor outgoing and incoming emails and other telecommunications on its email and telecommunications systems. By replying to this email you give your consent to such monitoring.