[Announce] What to do at meetings?

[Val Henson]

[Note: The discussion is occurring on the chapters mailing list.  Cc'd
to announce in case people who have input aren't currently subscribed
to chapters.  If you're not sure if you should be subscribed to
chapters, subscribe anyway!]

A number of chapters have recently (re)started, and I'm personally
about to restart the Bay area LinuxChix chapter.  I have some
questions:

What do we do at meetings?
What should the purpose of a LinuxChix chapter be?

I'll offer some of my own ideas, but I'd love to hear from other
chapter organizers about what has (and hasn't) worked for them.

What to do:

Well, food and drink and talking are always good elements for any
meeting.  How successful is the meet-at-a-restaurant model?  Where
else are people meeting?  Schools, coffee shops, someone's house?

Install fests don't seem like such a hot idea for several reasons.
Perhaps a get-started-using-Linux-fest, providing a friendly
environment for women who are too embarrassed to ask questions
otherwise?

I read Rick Moen's "Recipe for a Successful Linux User Group" and it
seems to have a lot of good ideas:

http://www.linuxmafia.com/~rick/essays/newlug.html

Most important seems to be establishing a regular meeting schedule.

Why have a chapter?

Well, in my view, Linuxchix is about introducing and supporting women
in using and writing Linux.  So that seems like a good general basis
for a chapter's activities.  I like to expand that to include
encouraging women in computers in general.  So I think a chapter is
useful for:

Discussion of gender and computing
Support for thinking this stuff is important
Being around other women who don't think you're crazy
Getting advice and ideas on how to help women in CS
Encouraging members to stay in CS and Linux

Really, I think it's vital that any chapter have a very strong
commitment to helping women, or else you might as well just be another
LUG.  Without the premise that women are being actively discouraged
from both Linux and computers, LinuxChix itself really doesn't have a
purpose.  The chapters should reflect that.

Comments?  Suggestions?  Criticisms?

-VAL