[wlug_org] What is WLUG?

[Tony Wills]

At 10:22 22/05/04 +1200, Sam Sargeant wrote:
>On Fri, May 21, 2004 at 03:00:36PM -0700, Wood Brent wrote:

...
>On the other hand, we also want to work on Open Source advocacy. I have 
>nothing
>against the idea, but I feel that an formal group would be more 
>appropriate for
>that. It give us a Catch-22, providing you agree with me. :)

I've never seen advocacy of Open Source as the primary role, there are 
after all dedicated groups with that as their main purpose.  I have simply 
seen it as a corollary to advocating the use of Linux as a great operating 
system.

It's a bit like learning a second language, you could possibly learn a new 
language without taking any interest in the culture that language came from 
or is used in, but you'd surely be missing something important.  Open 
Source is part of the culture of Linux and using Linux (let alone 
advocating it) is going to be seen as 'political' act until the revolution 
comes ;-).
At this point of history it is pointless to try to divorce the two.

I suppose that the opposing view is: you can just use Linux and encourage 
others to use it - it's a free market 'choice' like buying free-range eggs 
or organics because they taste better but you don't want to have anything 
to do the animal rights or a sustainable environment.  My reply is that 
your decisions have wider implications and effects beyond the transaction 
itself, eating at McDiddlysquat or buying furniture made from rainforest 
timber supports a particular set of values - they *are* political 
acts.  Maybe you don't notice because that is the 'norm', it's only when 
making the opposite choice that you run into the wider implications.

So I think it's fine to have members who just want to use Linux, but they 
are going to notice there's a parallel religion that advocates it.  And 
it's fine for people to be Linux and Open-Source zealots, but they are 
going to notice that there are secular users who have no problems with that 
other operating system and don't want to be foot soldiers in that crusade.

</end of sermon>

--- Tony