[NTLUG:Discuss] NTLUG veterans helping Linux newbies?

[Steve Baker]

Chris Cox wrote:
> 
> And...perhaps as an ongoing thing....we set aside every 3rd
> meeting to do these kind of beginner focused settings....

> > Maybe we should plan an all-out assult to move several hundred raw
> > newbies to 'basic competent user' status?

Hmmm - it's a good idea - but to get several hundred newbies into
groups of 'several' each will require that we have ~100 machines
set up running Linux at Nokia - even spread out over several months,
that's still a pretty massive undertaking.  Also, it's likely that
some such sessions would take longer than our normal meetings allow
and that some newbies would want to learn network skills that would
be hard to do at Nokia's facility without a lot of outside phone lines.

When you stop to think about it, why do we really need to do that
all in one big session?  Why not distribute the load?

Perhaps it would be better to have beginners host 'newbie nights' at
their homes rather than dragging 50 to 100 computers to some central
location.  This would work especially well if one of the newbies
was to provide the location (and beer and such) - invite over
a couple of fellow beginners at a similar level of development who
live locally and perhaps have similar end-uses for Linux in mind.

They would then ask NTLUG to pull one of our more expert users from
a pool of volunteers to turn up to be the evening's "Guru".  If all
the volunteer has to do is show up, talk Linux for a couple of hours
in a friendly environment (and get free beer), I think you'd get
quite a few takers for that.  Of course this implies that the
beginner has Linux already installed and basically running.

Forming such small groups would also (I suspect) provide for
a measure of 'self help' as an ongoing thing - especially if
people are geographically close and have seen how they can
put away a six pack and still type 'fsck' without sniggering.

   :-)

The main contribution from NTLUG would be a database of
beginners needing help - in what part of the Metroplex
and with what needs - plus a database of guru's who would
offer to help - with some indication of what they are most
expert in and what days they can be free to help out.

Perhaps NTLUG could offer a small prize for "The Most Helpful
Guru of the Month"...or some other kind of incentive to be
a mentor.

-- 
Steve Baker                  http://web2.airmail.net/sjbaker1
sjbaker1 at airmail.net (home)  http://www.woodsoup.org/~sbaker
sjbaker at hti.com      (work)