 The magazine of the Melbourne PC User Group CPU (Club President's Update) Trevor Jacobs - Vice President (and acting President) |
Penning a CPU column was not in my March plans, but .... well, read on. First, the news on
people.
President
The significant news is that Colin Lovitt - aka CLaude, Chief Bossy Person, and (in various tones) lawyer, Balls, and Q.C. - has substantially reduced his commitments to voluntary organisations, including Melb PC, in order to give proper time to his private and professional lives.
Anyone close to "the action" will know of the substantial time and effort that Colin gave Melb PC. Members generally are aware that their static subscription fee has brought them increasingly more in recent years - the work of many, to be sure, but so often promoted and driven from the front; Colin has earned the right to take a bow.
The Committee is required to appoint a replacement; as I write this, we are discussing the role with an eminent member, who is sensibly looking at whether Melb PC's needs can be met without detriment to work and family. As soon as an announcement can be made, it will appear on the BBS, and SIG conveners are encouraged to pass it on.
Vice-President
Separately, and in fact prior to Colin's announcement, Peter Smith found that the need to devote more time to family and employment necessitated a reduction in time available to Melb PC. He shed the VP role, in preference to a large cut in his
PC Update role; the Committee appointed me in his place.
Peter has been a Committee strength for years, and is a past President. As with Peter Freeman who stepped down last year, we have invited Peter to continue contributing his experience and sage advice as input to Committee discussions.
Office staffing
With the resignation of Janet Henstock, we have reorganised a little and appointed
Tracy Swan as Office Administrator. Also, Alan Wilson who co-ordinated volunteer activities has "retired" from his role there.
Tracy, the part-time staff, and the volunteers are doing well with the changes. Any further appointments will, as with other modern businesses, recognise the continuing gains we are making in office administration.
PC Update
Our flagship service, "the mag," is also undergoing changes. Gary Taig, now with the demands of the Melb PC Secretary position, has relinquished his role in production - readers of the December 1994
PC Update will understand some of the work Gary has done in this area.
Editor Ash is in the process of creating a "how" manual for PC Update, and also organising the people who volunteered their services into working teams. Importantly, Dianna Walker has been appointed as Assistant Editor; she has a key role in the setup, skilling and supervision of teams. As soon as practicable, the teams will become responsible for their output, with minimal later checking made.
Empire building? Not in the the Committee's view. Melb PC is vulnerable to the loss of key people, and
PC Update equally so. We are already obliged to use external services for PC Update - these can provide stability and efficiency, but they can also be expensive if we don't manage our part of the process properly - so the competence to create PC Update from inception to production is important for us all.
Major projects
The relocation and expansion of the Melb PC access to the Internet is continuing despite supplier difficulties; by the time you read this, the server should be operating effectively. The first half of the 1000 registrations went quickly, and you should enrol soon if interested.
Got a question about Melb PC Internet? Try the Local Internet Chat message area of the BBS - or refer to the "Internet Service Status" Dial Help entry.
All BBS users know of difficulties which, with over 4300 users, we have with the current BBS software. Barry and his team are now
trialing a second potential replacement when claimed improvements to the first choice replacement didn't materialise. Also, the Committee has approved the purchase of equipment which will minimise the "ring out" problems. Both of these actions are in line with the 1994-95 plan to provide a better service to Melb PC members.
Melb PC will provide its BBS to receive online donations for the Royal Childrens Hospital Appeal at Easter. If you plan to donate, do so by calling the Melb PC BBS.
Colin's departure leaves a gap in the SIG area, but that gap will be filled. In the meantime, few indeed have responded to the request for comment on the place of SIGs in Melb PC. If you have something to say, please tell us about it; if you use a SIG, encourage input from the SIG convener or the SIG attendees.
The relationship with SIGs and the Rules approved last December are both reflections of Melb PC. With our 8000th member expected soon, this is no longer a small club, and the Committee is looking to review and reformulate longer-range plans. If you have comment to make on any of these issues, or the future of Melb PC in general, or things which you think don't work as they should, please contact me or any other Committee member - BBS message or mail to the
Officer preferred.
New SIG?
Is there a demand for a New User SIG - a meeting place for less experienced PC users to discuss PC topics - to meet daytime in the Melb PC premises? If you're potentially interested, please contact the Office and leave your name and phone number for later contact.
Felix van Lier has offered to create a "new user" agenda. Details such as day-of-week and time-of-day will be worked out when we see who is interested.
So that's the state of Melb PC as Colin and Peter leave. Plenty to be proud of, plenty happening.
Reprinted from the April 1995 issue of PC Update, the magazine of Melbourne PC User Group, Australia
