Novice Nights are Debian-NYC's meetings for everyone. If you would like to install Debian, help with an installation, help with configuring or making Debian do what you need, come on by. If you want to hang out with Debianistas to pick up tips and tricks, come on by. We can also provide some help with the Ubuntu derivative of Debian.
Novice Nights are free-form: bring your questions, and you'll be able to talk to people to answer them. There isn't a set structure here or presentation ongoing, so you can come for whatever parts you feel like. We will be able to help with new installations or fixing/configuring existing ones. We can make installation disks or USB drives.
The next Novice Night
Where and When:
Getting there:
Resources for attendees
The Debian reference card is a one-sheet card that lists many common configuration commands.
The Debian reference is a beginning to intermediate user manual.
Objectives
- Get Debian onto machines that were previously running Windows / Mac OS X (Ubuntu?)
- Help people to use existing Debian installations (installed by us, or otherwise). Stop "I installed Debian but I can't make it do what I want" from being a problem. Also support Ubuntu wherever we can, if resources exist.
- Spread the philosophy of software freedom.
- Form communities among attendees so that they can help each other.
- Provide a support forum (and link to global support forums).
- Make Novice Nights self-replicating, in NYC and around the world.
Planning details
- We need to make sure that no one coming slips through the cracks and doesn't get the help they need. One person should be assigned to make sure that everone who comes in is greeted.
- Everyone should work to keep this a welcoming atmosphere.
- Supplies to bring
- Ethernet cables and switches
- A wireless AP
- Copies of install media and debian-live to burn onto CDs or USB drives.
- Blank CDs and USB drives for installation media.
- If we can get CDs, or USB drives to give out to people, that would be good. Otherwise we can ask people to bring.
- Richard can bring a hard disk with a Debian mirror which we can use to do installations.
- There isn't free food (yet) but we should make it where people can bring it or order it in.
Literature / Handouts for attendees ( get MrBeige to make free copies)
- Debian reference card
- "How to get help" sheet listing debian-nyc's contact info and other resources (ask.debian.net ?)
Hints on holding a welcoming event (and welcoming irc channel)
Where to outreach
If you have ideas of specific email addresses to advertise to, send them to Richard Darst (rkd zgib.net). Include: organization, contact person name, email address, if you are willing to be the interface to relay announcements to the group. This list can't be made public...
- CS at NYU
- CS at Columbia
- Various high schools
- Work with the Community Free Software Group to advertise
We need to focus on advertising to underrepresented groups, not just the status quo who always comes to our events. General ideas: non-profits, specific ethnic/religious groups, small businesses, local government, active-duty military.
Mini-presentations
Here are some ideas for quick user-oriented presentations we could give
- Explain subsystems: bash tutorial, tour of /etc, ...
- Go through parts of the reference manual
- bits from the advanced packaging system use talk.