Re: User groups in decline?

There are several web sites of AS/400 trade publications & such like that 
have sections containing directories of AS/400 user groups around the USA, 
Canada, and Europe, and perhaps more nations if I looked.

Some user groups have web pages that link to other user groups by actually 
linking to a trade press connection, while some have their own page of 
significant numbers of direct links.

Cincinnati OH www.tsmug.org for example

Several professional computer associations outside of AS/400 specific have 
chapters in various cities, and some of those chapters have links to a page 
showing other computer associations in that community ... I have seen those 
kinds of pages for Cincinnati OH, Memphis TN, Indianapolis IN

M user group list @ http://www.midrange.com - click on Midrange Resources 
then from there on User Groups.   This directory is not as large as some of 
the competition, with perhaps only 20 AS/400 user groups in the USA listed 
here, but I suggest you use this to get to the Houston TX group which has a 
pull down menu to link from there to perhaps 50 other AS/400 user groups.

MC user group list @ http://www.midrangecomputing.com/usergrp/default.cfm - 
if you print out the directory, it runs to 11 pages with up to 3 lines of 
listing for each group, by US state & Canadian province.  

AJ4 user group list - http://www.as400journal.com/ - select Features list on 
upper left corner of the main page - 4th option is AS/400 User Groups. 

AM4 user group list = http://as400magazine.com/ click on User Groups - just 
over 40 groups listed & each group that joins can have our own discussion 
area with no charge for this service. 

AN4 user group list = 
http://www.as400network.com/events/usergroups/nwusergroups.cfm - runs to 
18 pages with up to 5 lines per listing by US state -  Evansville *BASE is 
listed under IN-SE IL-SW KY-W

I assigned a few letters for my convenience by each source, to help me back 
track where I got some link from.

The Evansville AS/400 User Group just had its annual debate on "Do we still 
need this group" on the eve of elections & we now have a slate of new 
officers elected & one of the topics of discussion is the idea of getting our 
own web site & can we learn from other user groups of similar scope to ours.  
I suspect the size of the community has something to do with attendance, but 
I have been visiting some User Group Web sites & asking "When this is 
promoting a meeting that occurred 1 year ago" (e.g. the Indianapolis IN site) 
"Is this group still functioning?"

The Owensboro KY AS/400 User Group had an organizational meeting & 25 people 
showed up.

The Lexington KY AS/400 User Group folded, so the Louisviille KY AS/400 User 
Group is trying to pick up some of their old members ... Louisville KY last 
meeting had 38 people show up.

I suspect that there may come a day when certain types of computing 
environments are so ubiquitous that there is no need for a user group.  Like 
when microwave ovens were first invented there might have been a consumer 
club for people learning what recipes work well when microwaved, but today we 
would be embarrassed to admit we are such a klutz in this area that we need a 
MUG (microwave user group).

Now some people who NEED what a computer user group has to offer may feel 
that same embarrassment ... in an age when everyone claims to be a computer 
expert, there is a need for a group to serve as the on ramp to the 
information super highway for some people, and peer group for people trying 
some techniques that are new to them but old hat to others, because a lot of 
us are not the experts we aspire to be.

Al Macintyre  ©¿©
MIS Manager Green Screen Programmer & Computer Janitor of BPCS 405 CD Rel-02 
running on AS/400 V4R3 http://www.cen-elec.com Central Industries of 
Indiana--->Quality manufacturer of wire harnesses and electrical 
sub-assemblies
+---
| This is the BPCS Users Mailing List!
| To submit a new message, send your mail to BPCS-L@midrange.com.
| To subscribe to this list send email to BPCS-L-SUB@midrange.com.
| To unsubscribe from this list send email to BPCS-L-UNSUB@midrange.com.
| Questions should be directed to the list owner: dasmussen@aol.com
+---