[Ottawa_users] Proposal to expand Chapter

[Daniel Morissette]

Kralidis,Tom [Burlington] wrote:
> 
> What about having a Canadian chapter with branches?  This way, anyone
> across Canada can participate, and those with a critical mass can call
> themselves a branch.  The bottom line IMHO is being as inclusive as
> possible.
> 

I've been following this thread and I think this idea might be the best 
compromise so far... here are my thoughts as a former participant to the 
MapServer-meetings-in-an-Ottawa-pub that eventually led to the creation 
of the OMSUG and with the merge with the OGUG led to what is known today 
as the Ottawa chapter:

1- The main value I see in a local chapter such as the Ottawa Chapter is 
the monthly get-together. Get away from your desk for a few hours and 
chat informally with people who have similar interests to yours.

2- There are already plenty of lists to discuss OSGeo technical or 
policy questions/issues online, we don't need to replicate that at a 
local or even national level. However all that electronic communication 
lacks something that the local chapter can offer: face to face 
communication.

3- The main value I would see in a Canadian chapter would be the same 
kind of get-together once or twice a year to meet/chat face to face with 
other folks who have similar interests, but at a national level this 
time. Actually, with the main OSGeo conference moving from continent to 
continent, we may not see it again in Canada for several years, and in 
North-America for at least 2-3 years. It's not always possible for 
everyone to travel to places as far as South Africa, so a national 
chapter could be a great way to insure that we can still all get 
together at least once a year. This get-together would not need to be a 
full conference (that requires too much energy to organize), perhaps a 
more informal meeting could be organized in the days the precede or 
follow other national events.

Daniel
-- 
Daniel Morissette
http://www.mapgears.com/