RE: Activity

At 01:38 PM 9/13/2006, you wrote:

>Hi Rick
>I have been wondering about this.
>As the new administrator I was wondering if maybe the lists were quiet
>because there was a lack of interest in MLUG.

It's probably cyclical.   Maybe it'll pick up again 
sometime...  Perhaps it's time to investigate possible optional ways 
of keeping in contact.  That might be especially beneficial for newbies.

>A couple of questions for open review.
>Is Linux easier and therefore requires less support?

Easier?  Yes, as for support, in my case, I just push my needs to a 
more complex level.  Seems I can't get away from features that 
haven't made it to the neat GUI tools yet. :)

>Has the take up of Linux slowed so there are fewer newbie's?

Hard to say, but I doubt it.

>Are the experienced guys to busy to bother now?

Well, same as always here.  Just that the targets keep moving.  Once, 
it was basic firewalls, web and Samba servers.  Nowadays, it's 
tending towards application servers, virtualization and high capacity 
(load balancers, etc) or high availability.

>(I know my Linux Server support business has been growing all year and
>doesn't look like slowing. Can't say the same for the Linux desktop)

My workload seems to be increasing also.  I do a mix of Windows and 
Linux work for a couple of clients.

>Is MLUG becoming redundant because of the ease of use these days?
>Should MLUG look at new directions?

I don't believe MLUG is redundant, but I do believe we need to keep 
our eyes open.  Maybe see what people want, look into getting people 
in touch with others who have similar interests.  Some of my interests include:

Social - coffee.mlug.org.au anyone? ;)
IPv6 networking and apps (Cya on the next Internet! ;) )
High end systems (clusters, load balancers, etc)
Professional networking (Need professional Linux help?)
Linux - Windows integration (best of both worlds)
VoIP - (inc Asterisk and friends)
Amateur Radio - (CQ Penguins ;) )

That's just a selection of the Linux related interests I have.  Note 
that not all are technical, the social element is also important.

73 de VK3JED
http://vkradio.com