18 April 2005 - EarthFest
Topics
Earth Day
Attendance
?
Presentation Resources
TALUG Mini Flyer (PDF)
Meeting Notes
EarthFest is the annual event at the University of Toledo to celebrate Earth Day. It is sponsored and run by the Society for Environmental Education (S.E.E.). This year it was organized differently from in years past. Whereas it used to be mostly organized presentations and panel discussions, coordinated over the course of a week so as not to overlap, this year it was a one-day event with tables set up on the mall for people to browse through. I thought it worked pretty well and I personally had a great time.
So, why was TALUG there? Well, our angle is simple... Most people use Windows (yes, sad, I know) and the requirements of Windows XP, which is the current favorite version, are quite simply beyond the capabilities of hardware more than a few years old. So, all of those people who might not have a problem using Windows itself, are pressured (if not outright forced) to upgrade their hardware. TALUG is there to encourage the use of Linux or hardware donation to give a second life to that older hardware. If the person really can't use their old hardware, we encourage them to recycle it properly and not to throw it away, since computers contain all sorts of harmful chemicals and heavy elements that need to be treated carefully lest they contaminate our water supply.
We had three laptops running Linux to demonstrate what we were pitching. It was difficult to see the screens in the sun, but once the sun passed behind us it was okay. We talked to a lot of people and handed out CDs and mini flyers (see link above). Some were very emphatic about converting to Linux and joining the group, so if even one of them joins then it was worth the time to be there.
We had a few people show up to help with the booth: Sean Harlow, Josh Locklear and Eugene C. I was glad to have them, too! During the periods between classes there could be a lot of people to size up and talk to and it was great to have multiple people to handle different questions and provide different perspectives.
One thing I noticed is that a lot of people had already heard of Linux or even knew what it was. Hopefully this is a good sign... It also means that there is a waiting audience that just needs to know about us! We need to figure out how to advertise our existence better to those people. Please send any ideas you might have to the list.
