[seul-edu] [Fwd: Re: [OS:N:] The nature of our coalition]

[Doug Loss <drloss@home.com>]

owner-seul-edu@seul.org wrote:

> From: BMan <bgray@redhat.com>
> To: Doug Loss <drloss@home.com>
> Cc: <seul-edu@seul.org>, <open-source-now-list@redhat.com>
> Subject: Re: [OS:N:] The nature of our coalition
>
> Doug,
>
> Good stuff! You can count us in, even more so me.  I've emailed a
> request to my superiors about how I think Red Hat can participate.
>  Hopefully with our interaction it will better the Linux/education
> experience, your efforts and society as a whole.  I will share what there
> response is asap.
>
> For now the things that we have already committed to are; of course the
> Red Hat Linux distro, access to the RHN updating system (for free) and
> direct and indirect support as bandwidth permits (anything else escapes me
> right this second :( ).  I do want this to go even further though.  I'll
> keep everyone posted of what additions to the list we can add.
>
> I personally thank everyone for the effort.
>
> Regards,
> Brian Gray
> BMan
>
> P.S.  Nice sig block Doug :)
>
> On Wed, 5 Dec 2001, Doug Loss wrote:
>
> > Before I start off on this, I'd like to invite everyone following
> > this discussion on the OS:N: mailing list to join the seul-edu
> > mailing list (go to http://www.seul.org/edu/; joining the list will
> > be obvious from there), as that's where the majority of the messages
> > are coming from and are addressed to.  It's getting too cumbersome
> > to try to keep both lists covered with all messages.
> >
> > OK, now on to the nature of the coalition.  David Bucknell, Roger
> > Dingledine, Paul Nelson, and I have been exchanging emails privately
> > about what to do next to further this Linux in education coalition
> > idea.  David has drafted a letter to present to all the appropriate
> > groups we can find, inviting them to join the coalition.  He'll be
> > posting that draft here for your comments later, I think.  I've
> > taken on the task of defining what we mean this coalition to be, so
> > we don't have too wildly differing expectations of what it will be
> > and will do.  That would set us up to disappoint some portion of the
> > members, almost inevitably.  This is of course a draft for your
> > comment, not the word from on high passed down on stone tablets.
> >
> > The whole idea of a coalition is a group of independent entities
> > getting together to achieve (or at least to work toward) a commonly
> > accepted goal.  The entities don't have to surrender any of their
> > local autonomy, and shouldn't.  Each member of the coalition will
> > have certain competencies and skills, most likely differing from
> > those of other members.  The individual entities can choose what
> > they wish to contribute to the coalition effort.  The coalition
> > itself may (and probably should) set requirements for membership, so
> > that entities don't join the coalition merely for some perceived
> > cachet and then contribute nothing to the common goal.
> >
> > That is a general description of a coalition.  In our specific case,
> > I believe our coalition should have the common goal of promoting the
> > use of free and open source resources (software, lesson plans,
> > curricula, etc.) in organized education.  I include home-schooling
> > as an aspect of organized education, incidentally.  This goal covers
> > Linux, but also covers things not specifically related to Linux.  We
> > don't have to realize all these things instantly as soon as we
> > declare the coalition up and running, but I think it's a good idea
> > to have them in our long-term "mission statement."
> >
> > There are many groups already working on one or another aspect of
> > this goal.  The coalition needs to extend membership to these
> > groups, particularly the ones that are the most active and the most
> > successful.  These groups would continue to operate as they
> > currently do, but as coalition members would work with other members
> > to link to and promote aspects of the common goal that they're not
> > currently working on.  If coalition members find that some of their
> > efforts significantly overlap with those of other members, they may
> > want to think about redistributing those efforts.  For example, if
> > group X is maintaining a large group of Linux in education advocacy
> > documents and is running 1-2 mailing lists about Linux in education,
> > and group Y maintains a handfull of advocacy docs but has a dozen
> > mailing lists dealing with many aspects of Linux in education, Y may
> > want to turn its docs over to X in exchange for taking on X's
> > mailing lists.  That wouldn't be required of anyone, but might be
> > best for both groups.
> >
> > The coalition itself would maintain a website that all member groups
> > would direct visitors toward as the central navigation site to all
> > things dealing with free resources for education.  That website
> > would have comprehensive lists of the various groups and of the
> > resources being provided to the internet.  The links on the
> > coalition website would show URLs having the coalition domain, but
> > would be redirects to the member groups' sites that cover those
> > areas.
> >
> > In cases where the coalition members decide that there's some
> > resource needed that isn't already being provided, one or another
> > coalition member may decide to begin providing that resource; if no
> > individual group wishes to, then the coalition as a whole might
> > decide to begin doing so.  This would be the only time I'd see the
> > coalition as becoming a content provider as opposed to a
> > navigational aide and communication fosterer (is that a real word?).
> >
> > That's about it from me.  I think that covers the nature of the
> > coalition, at least so far as I can see.  Your comments?
> >
> > --
> > Doug Loss                 Always do right.  This
> > Data Network Coordinator  will gratify some people
> > Bloomsburg University     and astonish the rest.
> > dloss@bloomu.edu                Mark Twain
> >
> >
> >
> >
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> >
>
> --
> Regards,
> BMan
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--
Doug Loss                 Always do right.  This
Data Network Coordinator  will gratify some people
Bloomsburg University     and astonish the rest.
dloss@bloomu.edu                Mark Twain