[vox] Few topics from a new fellow..

[Bill Kendrick]

On Tue, Feb 10, 2009 at 03:13:08PM -0800, Baptiste wrote:
>    Thanx to Bill 'kendrick', I might have found how to write emails to a
>    mailing list of linux users..

Yes, you have!  (And you're welcome! :) )


<snip>
>    I'd like to start with few questions about the way it works over here:
> 
>    - what is this mailling list all about?

LUGOD's 'vox' list is for general discussions.  Most LUGs have a list
like this.  LUGOD also has a separate list, 'vox-tech', for technical Q&A.
This lets people who only wish to ask (or help answer) technical questions
see only those, and not general discussions.  And it lets non-technical
members see only the general discussions, and ignore the technical stuff.


>    - is it the right place for the kind of message I'm writing right now?

I think so.


>    - Do I reach most of the community of the bay area through this mailling
>    list or should I suscribe to few others?

LUGOD is focused on the group here in Davis.  So you'll get mostly
Davis people, some from Sacramento.  A few from other places (even very
far away -- people who were in Davis but now live elsewhere).

Other bay area LUGs that I am (or have been) part of, at least in temrs of
subscribing to their lists, include:

  NBLUG.org  (north of San Francisco)
  BALUG.org  (San Fran, which you tried)
  SF-LUG.org (another San Fran one)
  SVLUG.org  (south of San Francisco)
  PENLUG.org (also south of San Francisco)


>    Then, since I came as light as I could, one of the first thing I need to
>    do is to buy a laptop - to take notes in class and use extensively
>    internet and skype, mainly.
>    I'd like it small, light, cheap (rather with hardware driver though), and
>    with ubuntu (yes, I don't want to spend my days with debian..) and windows
>    xp (pirat).

I wouldn't go around saying "I'm going to pirate software". :^(


>    - do you know the best places around to find that kind of thing? Maybe on
>    internet. Maybe a place where they sell hardware without operating
>    system.. Or a good way to get used pc, but in shape.

Netbooks are pretty popular here in the US.  Many come with Linux.
Ubuntu can be installed on at least a few of them.  Some come with XP.
It might be possible to dual-boot.  I don't know much about any of this,
though.


>    - do you know where I could meet you guys - e.g. to get this windows xp,
>    and other issues that will come with this new machine.

Noone around here would be able to provide XP for you, sorry.

LUGOD (as well as a number of the other LUGs mentioned above) hold
regular or semi-regular Installfest workshops, where volunteers can help
you get Linux up and running, though.

LUGOD's next Installfest ( http://www.lugod.org/if/ ) is still not
scheduled.  (We're looking for a new venue.)  I don't know, offhand, which
of the other LUGs hold IFs, and what their schedules are.

You might want to check Rick Moen's "Bay Area Linux Events" site:

http://linuxmafia.com/bale/

-bill!