SPUG: GSLUG December Meeting TOMORROW, Saturday, December 11th

[Ken Meyer]

The December 2004 regular meeting of the Greater Seattle Linux Users Group
(GSLUG) will be held this Saturday, December 11th, starting promptly at
10:00 AM on the North Seattle Community College campus.

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    We are confirmed to use room IB 3319.

    Parking is free on weekends.

    For directions, please visit the GSLUG monthly meetings web page at:

     	http://www.gslug.org/meeting.html

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Please feel free to forward this announcement as appropriate.

The presentation topics will be:

    * 10:00am - Issues (and solutions?) in Electronic Voting Systems

                        By Dr. Randolph Bentson

Given that elections are held to accurately determine the free-will choices
of the enfranchised population, devoid of coercion or exposure of identity,
it is therefore essential that we:

    identify the enfranchised,

    present the issues for consideration,

    capture the voters' intent,

    convey this information to the tabulation site,

    tabulate the choices in a manner that is subject to validation,

    while maintaining privacy,

    all without error.

Randy will first review the general requirements for a proper system,
offering specific scenarios wherein the requirements may not be met. Randy
will then recast some of these requirements into a different form to aid in
the solution. He will then describe a system developed at VoteHere, Inc.
(where he was a consultant) and show how it meets most of these
requirements.

[Editor's Note} Randy is addressing a very controversial area of computing
security. Recently, other highly qualified computer scientists have been
extremely critical of the implementation of dedicated electronic voting
systems, let alone voting over the public Internet.  Their analyses actually
caused the DoD to cancel existing plans for an Internet voting system for
military personnel deployed worldwide (but of course, they didn't employ the
VoteHere implementation).

	http://www.votehere.net/

	http://www.blackboxvoting.com/

	Randy Bentson's Bio:

Dr. Randolph Bentson is one of the founding members of GSLUG. He is
currently a Professor in the Math and Computer Science Department at
University of Puget Sound.  He worked as a consultant for VoteHere, a major
player in the development of systems for voting via the Internet,
implementing X-Server interface software to support touch screen displays,
and Linux kernel code to support cryptographic key storage tokens.  Dr.
Bentson is a published author on the subject of cryptography and on the
Linux kernel architecture.

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    * 11:15am - MySQL and the Open Source Way

		   By David Axmark.

David is Vice President of Open Source Relations and is a Co-founder MySQL.
He will talk to us about the history and current status of MySQL, and
probably about the open-source business model in general.

Over five million installations use MySQL to power high-volume Web sites and
other critical business systems — including industry leaders like: The
Associated Press, Google, NASA, Sabre Holdings and Suzuki.  MySQL is an
attractive alternative to higher-cost, more complex database technology. Its
award-winning speed, scalability and reliability make it the right choice
for corporate IT departments, Web developers and packaged software vendors.
MySQL's Headquarters are in Sweden; it also maintains an office here in
Seattle.

	David Axmark's Bio:

David Axmark was involved with the MySQL database well before it had a name.
David's primary focus at MySQL now is Open Source licensing and strategy, as
well as community relations. He also actively promotes Open Source software
and MySQL at conferences and other venues around the world. David has been
interested in free software since the early '80s and is committed to
developing a successful business model through Open Source software.

	http://www.mysql.com/company/management.html

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    The typical GSLUG meeting agenda is as follows:

       10:00 AM       First Presentation

       11:00 AM       Break

       11:10 AM       Key Announcements and (usually) Raffle Quiz

       11:15 AM       Second Presentation

       12:15 PM       Break

       12:30 PM       Raffle prizes giveaway, when available

       12:35 PM       GSLUG business, including discussion of potential
		        future presentation topics

                	        Announcements by attendees

                	        Requests for assistance desired during the
following
		        Workshop session, including trouble-shooting and
                            help with Linux installation (bring your
system).

       1:00 PM-ish    Formal meeting is adjourned; Workshop and
                             social networking opportunities begin,
                             including:

                * Installation and trouble-shooting assistance

                   For recommendations on preparations to maximize the
                   probability of a successful outcome, it is recommended
                   that you consult the "What to Bring" topic, way down the
                   page at:

                        http://www.gslug.org/meeting.html

                * Potential break-out discussions about interest-group
                   activities

                * Informal PGP key signing

                * Talking, chatting, blathering, etc, etc.

       4:00 PM        End of meeting

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GSLUG meetings are held regularly on the second Saturday of the month
at 10 AM, currently at North Seattle Community College and USUALLY
in room 3319.

Meeting announcements are posted to the gslug-announce mail list.
To receive reminders for future GSLUG meetings and notice of other
GSLUG activities, you are invited to join the list at:

        http://lists.gslug.org/mailman/listinfo/gslug-announce

Directions, agenda, and presenters' bios will also be posted on
the GSLUG website, on the home page and at:

        http://www.gslug.org/meeting.html

You are invited to join the gslug-general discussion list at:

        http://lists.gslug.org/mailman/listinfo/gslug-general

A message board alternative may be found at:

        http://msgboard.gslug.org/

And a new wiki site is at:

        http://wiki.gslug.org/


  -- The GSLUG Crew

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