[Ubuntu-US-CA] Installfest / tutorial in University Village, Albany

[Michael Paric]

> Hello,
>
> As a newcomer, I wanted to introduce myself and briefly summarize a  
> project that Grant Bowman, Jack Deslippe, and I have been planning.
>
> I work with Cathy Malmrose to run Partimus, a non-profit that uses  
> FOSS and repurposed hardware to provide technology to disadvantaged  
> children and schools.  I have a background in mathematics and  
> programming, but I am still learning my way around Ubuntu; my more  
> valuable skill set lies in organizational planning.  I currently  
> live in and work closely with University Village, Albany, the main  
> campus for UC Berkeley's student family housing.  I am deeply  
> involved in affordable housing issues and in building programs  
> beneficial to student families.
>
> Grant, Jack, I have been working to plan an installfest / Ubuntu  
> tutorial in the University Village computer lab.  The demographics  
> of University Village make it a prime population for potential new  
> Ubuntu users.  We have nearly 2,000 highly-educated, financially  
> impoverished, widely international adults in the Village--many of  
> whom are likely to be interested in Ubuntu, but nervous about making  
> the jump on their own.  Our tentative plan is to create an  
> Introduction to Ubuntu tutorial extending over two or three  
> sessions, where students install Ubuntu the first week and learn  
> basic skills, then come back again for the next class to resolve  
> issues, ask questions, learn slightly more complicated skills, and  
> learn where to go in the future when they have problems.  We are  
> planning to hold it in late January or early February, after UCB's  
> spring semester begins.
>
> Thank you for your enthusiasm and support,
>
> Maile Urbanic
> maile.urbancic at gmail.com
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Maile,
We spoke briefly at a past Berkeley LUG meeting where I mentioned my  
thin client-based system that I believe would be perfect for the  
University Village. Setting up a Ubuntu-based Linux Terminal Server  
Project (LTSP) lab would provide several benefits: 1) An open lab  
where people without their own computers would have access to the  
technology; 2) A training facility for the proposed tutorial sessions;  
3) Reduced maintenance and down-time due to the LTSP architecture. I  
believe you'll have a greater success with Ubuntu adoption if the  
residents can get some hands-on experience and practice in the lab  
before committing to an installfest (which can be done in parallel but  
as a separate project from the lab). I have an LTSP demo system (using  
ZaReason equipment, of course :) I'd be more than happy to bring to  
Berkeley to show you and the residents. Let me know how I can help.

----------------------------------------------------------
Michael Paric
mparic at compbizsolutions.com

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