SPUG: not quite random thoughts on the current crop of user groups

[James Moore]

I suspect your dissatisfaction may mean that your goals for a user group
aren't necessarily shared by other people.

For example, it never would have occurred to me to think that a user group
should be "fun."  I don't object to that, but "interesting" and "useful" are
far more important to me than "fun" (at least in this context).

As for transparency - it's never occurred to me that it was lacking.  It's
not like SPUG is a multi-million-dollar operation shrouded in secrecy that's
sucking money out of my pockets.  If a small group of people want to take on
the responsibility of organizing something like SPUG, I say YES!  Please!
Do all the scutwork for something that's useful for me!  Thank you!  Do that
again!

So what if that means the projects close to what the organizers are working
on get more attention?  It's not like they're trying to shut out something
else.  I'll bet you dollars to donuts that if you offer to organize the
speakers for a meeting on something near and dear to your heart you'd be
welcomed with open arms.

Chances of me organizing something like the Damien Conway talk last month:
close to zero.  Chances of it, or something like it, happening again with
the current system: likely.  That pretty much tells me everything I need to
know.

  - James