FLOS Caribbean 2003 Report

(Updated : March 2015  – added wayback links to FLOS Caribbean website and removed the “contact the creator” section)

Introduction

The Trinidad and Tobago Computer Society was one of the exhibitors at the Free, Libre and Open Source Software (FLOS) Conference.

The Conference and Exhibition was held at the Central Bank, Port of Spain on Thursday 26th and Friday 27th June 2003.

This page provides details about Society activities for the conference.

NOTE: Programs on the GNUWin II CD were updated by the TTCS for the FLOS Software Conference. You can get the CD for TT$20. Please email us at: ttcs at opus.co.tt and let us know if you wish to purchase a CD.

Preparations for the conference

Preparations for the Free, Libre and Open Source Software (FLOS) Conference began in early 2003 when we offered space to operate a booth in the DOT Org section of the main exhibition area by the conference organisers: the Caribbean Centre for Monetary Studies and Trinidad and Tobago Linux Users Group.

During March and April, members were asked to contribute ideas and suggestions as to what could be done at the booth; they were also kept updated on the status of the conference thanks to regular email notices and live reports from Richard J at TTCS Pizza Limes.

Work on the booth began in the middle of May. The objectives were to promote:

• the Trinidad and Tobago Computer Society.
• the GNUWin II CD: a CD-ROM containing a variety of open source software for the Windows operating system.
• Knoppix: a GNU/Linux distribution that runs completely from the CD (no hard drive installation required) and includes recent Linux software and desktop environments.

Sunday 25th May 2003: Created the initial booth layout sketch and equipment list.

Saturday 31st May 2003: Timetable for conference preparations finalised. Began planning booth activities.

Saturday 7th June 2003: Draft versions of the 3 OpenOffice.Org Impress presentations presented to members. CD label designs modified.

Saturday 14th June 2003: Finalised: the Impress presentations, the Society brochure, the one-page flyer (for use with the CD sales), tested the video splitter for the first time.

Saturday 21st June 2003: Tables, chairs and computer equipment were set-up, plugged in and tested. The initial layout was modified to accomadate a “demo” machine. This computer would be used by anyone who desired hands-on experiance with the GNUWin software or Knoppix. Everything worked smoothly. The “Booth Crew” and daily timetable were also finalised.

Monday 23rd June 2003: Informal site visit to the exhibition area at the Central Bank.

Wednesday 25th June 2003:

• installed and tested the GNUWin software on the “demo” machine.
• burned CDs for sale during the Exhibition.
• packed equipment.

The Booth

The Booth was located on the western side of the exhibition area between the TTLUG and TTAC booths.

Picture of the booth at the Central Bank

Equipment used:

• Three Athlon class machines.
• Three 17″ CRT monitors.
• One LCD monitor.
• One 15″ CRT monitor.
• One 4-port video splitter.
• One 4-port KVM switch.
• One 4-port ethernet network hub.
• Three tables.

Software on display:

• Applications and games from the GNUWin II CD-ROM.
• The Knoppix GNU/Linux distribution.
• An offline version of the Trinidad and Tobago Computer Society website.

Two of the machines were plugged into the KVM and video splitter. These were used to demonstrate the software on the GNUWin II CD and the Knoppix live Linux distro. The third machine was a “hands-on” demo machine where visitors to the booth were able to use the GNUWIN software. In the case of Knoppix, visitors could boot the machine themselves and use all the Linux software on the disk.

The Society’s FLOS Caribbean “Blog”

Thursday 26th June 2003:

There was a mix-up in the scheduling and we were unable to set up the booth on Wednesday 25th. This meant that we had to spend the first three hours of Thursday morning transporting and setting up tables and equipment. Fortunately, our staging area for the Conference was located in Port of Spain so only a little time was lost due to transportation.

The Conference was well attended on Day One, in fact so many people were present that the initial area set aside for lunch (on the 16th floor) could not accomadate everyone. The Conference organisers decided to split the group: half would take lunch immediately while the other half would go downstairs to the official launch of the Exhibition. The original schedule called for the launch to take place at 1300 hrs.

Many of the Conference attendees were curious about the Knoppix CD since many of them were of the belief that GNU/Linux could only work if it was installed on a hard drive. The GNUWin CD was very popular with visitors since many of them were unaware that there was open source software available for the Windows operating system. Others who were aware, were surprised at the variety and high quality of the available applications. Many of the visitors took the opportunity to try out both the Knoppix distro and the various applications from the GNUWin CD on the Demo machine. We had 30 CDs (19 GNUWin and 11 Knoppix) alloted for the two days of the conference. All were sold by closing time (1700 hrs) on Thursday.

Friday 27th June 2003:

The traffic from Conference attendees on Friday was not as heavy as on Thursday but more members of the general public, Central Bank employees and TTCS members visited the booth. In a way, less traffic was a good thing because visitors got to use the Demo machine for a longer period of time.

A second batch of 23 CDs (11 Knoppix, 12 GNUWin) was burned overnight for the second day of the conference. All were sold out by noon. We had to purchase and burn additional CD-Rs, print new CD labels and handouts.

Closing time on Day Two was about 1715 hrs and all equipment was returned to the staging area by 1830 hrs. There was a get-together after the close of the conference at Pizza Hut Roxy Roundabout (it was not a TTCS Pizza Lime). Some of the TTCS booth crew attended along with other Conference persons such as Robin ‘Roblimo’ Miller, David Sugar and Steve Traguott. FYI: We sold a total of 30 Knoppix CDs and 40 GNUWin CDs.

Comments

• Overall there was a good level of enthusiasm for the concept and (perhaps more importantly) the products of Free, Libre and Open Source Software (FLOS). Our (TTCS) experiance with booth visitors suggests that local computer users are willing to experiment with alternatives to expensive, proprietary software. If they will continue to use it after the initial “thrill” has worn off is unknown.
• Awareness of the existance of Free, Libre and Open Source Software (FLOS) is another problem. Local user groups and individuals have been promoting FLOS concepts and products for some time now but mainstream users have yet to hear about them.
• Many mainstream users who know about Free, Libre and Open Source Software (FLOS) are reluctant to try it because they fear it is not as good as commercial, proprietary software.
• Acceptance of FLOS is less about technical merit of the software and more about the attitude some i
  
  ndividuals and comapnies have towards it.
• There was talk of a need for a “grassroots” movement to spread awareness of FLOS. While it is good to “start small but think big”, persons who are involved with such a concept or who are thinking about becoming involved with such a concept, must remember:
  • There are no short cuts to success.
  • Difficult and thankless work is required to achieve a successful “grassroots” movement.
  • The “grassroots” movement will be in direct competition with multi-million dollar advertising campaigns and other promotional efforts from financially wealthy proprietary software companies.
  • Acceptance of FLOS requires a change in attitude amongst potential users. Changing that attitude will be difficult.
• FLOS can only achieve its full potential if there is a change in the local attitude towards: self-sufficiency, computers/information technology, data security, the local economy and expenditure of local tax dollars.
• The FLOS Caribbean Conference was a first step in raising awareness of FLOS and addressing some of the issues mentioned in this list of comments. Attendess, presenters and the organisers must now capitalise on this surge of interest and show how FLOS can truly benefit this nation.

Thanks and acknowledgements

The Trinidad and Tobago Computer Society would like to say thanks to:

• The “Booth Crew”: Dev, Paul, Colin, Helen, James.
• Dev, Paul and Anil for donating equipment.
• Richard, our liason with the conference organisers.
• All members who took time out to visit us at the Conference booth.
• All members who contributed ideas, comments and suggestions via email and helped us to have the best booth possible.
• The Trinidad and Tobago Linux Users Group (TTLUG) and the Caribbean Centre for Monetary Studies (CCMS) for the invitation to take part in the Conference and for providing the exhibition space.

Links to sites mentioned in the slideshow, the brochure and at the conference booth

• TTCS Announce mailing list: http://www.groups.yahoo.com/group/ttcs_announce
• TTCS Discussion list: http://groups.yahoo.com/group/ttcs
• How to join the Trinidad and Tobago Computer Society: http://www.ttcsweb.org/about.htm
• Trinidad and Tobago Linux Users Group (TTLUG) mailing list: http://groups.yahoo.com/group/TTLUG
• The Trinidad and Tobago Apple Community (TTAC) mailing list: http://groups.yahoo.com/group/appletalk
• List of other computer groups and tech email lists in Trinidad and Tobago: http://community.wow.net/presario/list
• GNUWin II home page: http://gnuwin.epfl.ch/en/index.html
• KNOPPIX home page: http://www.knopper.net/
• GNU Generation website: http://gnugeneration.epfl.ch/
• OpenOffice.Org website: http://www.openoffice.org
• The Free Software Foundation: http://www.fsf.org
• The GNU Public Licence (GPL): http://www.fsf.org/copyleft/gpl.html
• The Open Source Initiative: http://www.opensource.org
• The Open Source definition: http://opensource.org/docs/def_print.php
• Popular search engine: http://www.google.com
• Official FLOS Caribbean conference website: (Wayback link: www.floscaribbean.org)

TTCS Official FAQ

Last updated : April 19th, 2003

Introduction

Frequently Asked Questions (FAQ) about the Trinidad and Tobago Computer Society (TTCS)

How old is the Computer Society?

The Society began operations in August 1997.

Are there any fees to join the Society?

There are no membership fees at this time.

There is a fee of TT$20 (a contribution to the food bill) if you eat at one of our “Pizza Limes”™.

The Computer Society Management reserves the right to charge fees for any and all present and future services of the society.

Note: Any and all fees, including the pizza lime “contribution”, are subject to change without further notice.

How often do you have meetings?

We try to have at least 2 meetings per month. One Pizza Lime™ (usually the second Wednesday of the month) and one tech meeting (usually the third Saturday of the month).

What is a Pizza Lime™?

Pizza lime™ is the name given to our monthly discussion forum which is held at Pizza Hut, Roxy Roundabout, Port of Spain. We eat (pizza of course) and talk/exchange ideas on a variety of issues. Take a look at the Past Meetings pages for where you will find summaries of the topics covered at previous “limes”. Meetings begin at 6:00 PM and can end as late as 10:30 PM! For those who may be wondering, “lime”, in this context, does not refer to the citrus fruit. It is a Trini slang term for an informal social gathering.

What is a tech meeting?

The tech meeting is usually held once a month and at these meetings, we have computers on site to demonstrate a particular type of software, show a system tweak, play games etc. At these meetings, members can distribute/talk about shareware, freeware and open source software which may of use to others. Take a look at the Past Meetings pages for summaries of the topics covered at previous meetings. Meetings begin at 1:00 PM and end between 4:30 and 5:00 PM.

Is there a dress code for meetings?

Officially, the dress code is informal so casual to “business wear” is acceptable for most meetings. For example, the pizza limes are held on a weekday so it is not unusual to see attendees wearing anything from T-shirts and jeans to long-sleeves and ties and even suits since they just finished work and decided to drop by. Our tech meetings are normally held on weekends so members usually dress casual. Of course, if we were to have a more formal event we would expect a certain level of formal wear 🙂

What can I expect at one of your meetings?

• Pizza Lime™: An informal gathering of folks who: work in local IT, are associated with IT or are simply interested in computers and modern technology. We discuss the details of what is going on at home and abroad and what impact those actions and new technologies would have on local computing and the local economy. Of course we also eat pizza! The meeting begins a 6:00 PM and food is ordered at 6:30 PM. We talk until the food arrives and then there is a pause as we eat. The official end of a meeting is usually between 8:00 PM and 9:00 PM. Most attendees usually stay back and chat amongst themselves, sometimes as late as 10:30 PM!
• Tech meeting: Once again, the people in attendance come from all walks of life: business professionals, high school students, folks who either work in local IT or are associated with IT, people who are interested in computers and modern technology. The discussion at this type of meeting is naturally more technical that at a pizza lime, but if you don’t understand something, just ask. Meetings begin at 1:00 PM and end between 4:30 and 5:00 PM.

Actual content varies from meeting to meeting, so take a look at the Past Meetings pages for summaries of the topics covered at previous tech meetings and pizza limes.

We strive to make these meetings as friendly and non-intimidating as possible for all attendees therefore in order that a pleasant experience can be had by all, we ask you to follow these simple rules:

• Leave your ego at the door.
• Our membership consists of a wide cross section of people who will certainly have opinions (on any number of topics) that are different to your own. Diversity of opinion is one of the strong points of these meetings. You can learn a lot from listening to an opinion that is different to your own but if your way is the only way then you may be better off elsewhere/not attending in the first place.
• Attendees of our meetings come from different social/financial/educational backgrounds so if you are one of those persons who feel they must only associate with people of similar status to themselves then do not waste your time or our time, feed your insecuity elsewhere.
• These meetings are about the exchange of information and ideas/solutions about computers and modern technology and the social issues surrounding them. This is not the forum for discussing controversial topics such as politics, religion, etc.
• Criticise the concept/idea/solution NOT the person!
• If you feel angry about something that has been said and your temper is at the point where you want to be verbally and/or physically abusive, do the wise thing: excuse yourself and leave the meeting (make sure you pay the $20 before you do!). Do not suffer needlessly.
• Constructive criticism is welcome. When you grumble about something, support your viewpoint with relevant facts and counterpoints.
• Respect the health of others. We do not advocate smoking at any of our meetings. The majority of members who attend the pizza lime do not smoke and the few smokers who do attend avoid smoking inside the building. If you attend the pizza lime and really need to smoke, please step outside. Alcohol and smoking are not permitted at any tech meeting.
• Having strong opinions about a given matter is not an excuse to throw a temper tantrum or to be verbally and/or physically abusive to anyone who offers/supports a different view at any meeting.
• Remember, you are in a public place and any type of abusive or disorderly behaviour can and will land you in trouble with the law.
• This is not the forum for raw commercial promotion of goods and services. By all means talk about it but do not give us the hard sell. Remember: anyone (not just at these meetings but from the general public as well) who feels exploited or talked-down-to is someone who will most likely avoid purchasing the very same goods and services being promoted.

Do I have to use computers to be a TTCS member? Do I have to be an IT professional to attend one of your meetings? Do I have to be a computer science student to be a member of TTCS/attend one of your meetings? Do I have to have any special academic qualifications to be a member of your group? Do I have to be employed with an IT company to be a TTCS member?

No. The Computer Society welcomes everyone interested in computers and related technologies: from the non-user now looking to get involved with computers to the person who just bought their first machine; from the novice to the hard-core power user; from the high-school student now doing computer related courses for O and A levels to the IT professional with the university degree; from the person now starting a basic computer literacy course to the office worker who is experienced with productivity suites. All we ask is that you are familiar with technology and are willing to converse with the rest of us.

Can I attend your meetings even though I am a member of another IT group?

Yes. We would appreciate it if you tell us of your intention a few days in advance so that arrangements can be made to accommodate your machine.

Can I bring my computer to a Pizza Lime™?

Only if it is a laptop. We would appreciate it if you tell us of your intention a few days in advance. There simply is no space to accommodate/time to set up a full-fledged desktop system in the eating area that we use at Pizza Hut.

What sort of storage media do you support?

We support: 1.44Mb floppy disks, 100MB Zip disks, CD-ROM, DVD-R and CD-R.

Are you a windows-only computer group?

No. We only focus on windows because most members use one or more of its many flavours (e.g. Windows 95, 98, 98SE, ME, NT, 2000, XP), however we have done meetings which focused on other operating systems (e.g. BeOS, DOS, Linux and Mac OS X).

Can I make a presentation at a tech meeting?

Yes. Please email ttcs@opus.co.tt with the relevant details. You should be well-versed in the topic of your choice and will be expected to answer non-standard questions.

Can my company promote a tech related product or service at one of your meetings?

Yes. contact us with the relevant details. We encourage companies to provide more than just the usual “public relations”/”press kit” package. Our members want real information not just a sales pitch. Your company representative should be well versed in the product line or service and will be expected to answer non-standard questions.

Can you give me a copy of your e-mail list so my company can promote products/services to your members?

NO. We do not sell/lease/give-away or in any other way disclose members’ personal information to any third party. If you really want to promote your products/services, email ttcs@opus.co.tt with the relevant details. We can then arrange for you to make your presentation at either a pizza lime or a tech meeting (whichever is more appropriate). REMEMBER: Our members want real information not just a sales pitch. Your company representative should be well versed in the product line or service and will be expected to answer non-standard questions.

Are there any other computer groups in the country?

Yes. This URL provides a list of the computer groups that are currently in operation:

http://community.wow.net/presario/list

Do you have a Discussion List?

Yes we do. It is used to discuss any TTCS matters and activities and computer related material/issues in Trinidad and Tobago.

• To join the TTCS discussion list: send a email to ttcs-subscribe@yahoogroups.com
• You can view the public message archive of this discussion list at: http://groups.yahoo.com/group/ttcs

CAUTION: This is an unmoderated list that is open to the public for two-way email (when someone posts to the list, every subscribed to the list receives it) thus there is the potential to be spammed.

Is your Announce List the same as your Discussion List?Will I be spammed if I subscribe to your e-mail Announce List?

No. Our Announce list is one-way: from us to you. It is used to inform members of upcoming Society events as well as other topics we feel may be of interest to them.

What is the purpose of this group?

• To be an informal forum where technology and related social issues can be discussed.
• To share information about computers and related technologies.
• To keep current with the events in the local IT industry.
• To bring together people from diverse backgrounds in order to foster a community where home users, business people, the general public and all classes of IT workers can share experiences and generally improve the quality of the experience they have while using modern technology.

Why should I join your group?What’s in it for me?

This is a difficult question to answer since everyone has their own reasons for joining any sort of group. The best way to answer this would be to use this phrase: “you reap what you sow”. Take a look at the Past Meetings pages. Would you like to be involved in these sorts of activities and events? Would you like to share your experiances and knowledge with fellow computer users and technology enthusiasts? If you are willing to give your time and the occasional financial contribution (i.e. money, when necessary) to help a dynamic local group, then the TTCS extends a welcome to you. We hope that you will be an active participant in our various endevours and will appreciate all that we have to offer. However, if you are one of those leech types who only do things for fame and the almighty dollar then you are out of luck: this is definitely not the group for you.

Who manages the TTCS?

There is no formal management structure to the TTCS, that is, we do not have an elected president, vice president, secretary, treasurer etc. Everyone who assists in the regular operations is a volunteer and has equal responsibility for both success and failure of all Society activities. You can think of it as an “Open Source” approach: people from diverse backgrounds coming together for a common cause with an informal command and control structure to oversee all activities.

How do I join the TTCS?

It is a 2 step process:

• First, sign up on our TTCS Announce mailing list. This list is used to inform members about upcoming meetings and other Society activities. The list archive is located at: http://www.groups.yahoo.com/group/ttcs_announce
  • To subscribe, send a blank email message to: ttcs_announce-subscribe@yahoogroups.com
  • Unsubscribe: ttcs_announce-unsubscribe@yahoogroups.com
  • This is a 1 way list (only the list-owner can send messsages).
• Second, attend as many meetings as possible and help the Society in whatever way you can.

Refer to these links for further information:

• Are there any fees to join the Society?
• How often do you have meetings?
• What is a Pizza Lime™?
• What is a tech meeting?
• Is there a dress code for meetings?
• What can I expect at one of your meetings?

Does the Society require assistance/help with anything?

YES. We need peop
le to: assist management, to make presentations at tech meetings, to organise additional venues for tech meetings, to contribute material to the “Tech Articles”, to help with website maintainence/design, etc. Please email us: ttcs@opus.co.tt if you feel you have a special skill/service which you think maybe of use to us. Have an idea that may help the TTCS? then don’t be shy, contact us with the relevant details! Please remember: if your skill/service/idea etc is accepted, you will be expected to follow through and actually “deliver the goods”. If you volunteer to do something, we expect you to pull your share of the workload and when necessary, accept responsibility for your screw-ups.

Is there an age limit/age restriction for members?

No, however:

• If you are under 18 years old and wish to sign-up on our mailing list(s): Let your parent(s), guardian or other responsible adult know that you want to subscribe to them. Parents: The TTCS Announce List is used to inform members about upcoming meetings and other Society activities. It is a one way list (from TTCS management to the subscriber) thus it should be relatively “safe” that is, no “mature content”. The TTCS Discussion List is an unmoderated list that is open to the public for two-way email (when someone posts to the list, every subscribed to the list receives it) to discuss any TTCS matters and activities and computer related material/issues in Trinidad and Tobago. Because it is not moderated, your child(ren) could be/maybe exposed to “mature content”.
• If you are under 18 years old and wish to attend a meeting: Let your parent(s), guardian or other responsible adult know that you want to go to a meeting and get them to accompany you to these meetings. Parents: The majority of members/people who attend our meetings (both the Pizza Lime™ and the tech meetings) are over the age of 18 thus if your child(ren) attend these meetings they could be/maybe exposed to “mature content”.

Is the TTCS related to the SCU (Society of Computer Users)?

Indirectly. The TTCS is an independant, new organisation created by ex-members of the defunct SCU. It is not a “recylced”, “rehashed”, “re-branded” version of the Society of Computer Users. For anyone who maybe wondering, the Society of Computer Users (SCU) ceased operations in early 1996. Further information about the SCU can be found at our Society of Computer Users

Does membership in the Computer Society entitle me to discounts at local retailers?

No.

What is your privacy policy?

We do not sell/lease/give-away or in any other way disclose members’ personal information to any third party.

Need more information about the TTCS?

There are several pages on this site that can provide you with even more info about the TTCS:

• About The TTCSpage (information about the internal structure and operations of the Society.)
• Summary of PastMeetings

Do you have questions/comments/suggestions about the TTCS?

If you have questions/comments/suggestions about the operation, structure, etc of the TTCS, here are your options for contacting the TTCS management:

• You can email the management directly: ttcs@opus.co.tt
• You can post your question(s)/comment(s) on the Discussion List located at: http://groups.yahoo.com/group/ttcs