[H-GEN] Vice President's report.

Robert Brockway robert at timetraveller.org
Fri Jul 22 02:32:05 EDT 2011


On Fri, 22 Jul 2011, Gary Curtis wrote:

> My reading of the situation is that installing and running Linux is just too
>
> easy these days. People don't *need* help, so just get on with their lives
> and don't seek out groups like Humbug.

I think that doesn't completely explain the issue.  Humbug was never just 
about resolving issues.  It was also about proactive collaboration and 
having fun.

The flow of undergrads spending a few hours with people to play on 
computers seems to have dried up.  Is this because of a fundamental change 
in the outlook and expectations of undergrads?  Don't people in IT degrees 
spend at least part of their free time exploring the world of computing?

I used to and so did the other Humbug members who were undergrads along 
with me.  Maybe they do but spend it playing with computers in different 
ways (perhaps they go to the various language user groups that now meet 
around the city).  Given the staggering growth of OSS *nix we should still 
have been able to keep parity or even grow a little.

For a while I felt that publicity may have been part of the problem but 
the club was publicised in UQ & QUT IT lectures and few new faces turned 
up.

I feel the answer is many-faceted but if someone knows something we don't 
then by all means tell us.

Cheers,

Rob

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