CPU (Club President's Report)

We finally made it - the removalists started at Albert Road as planned at 7.30 am on Saturday 4 October 1997, and by midday everything had been moved to our new offices at Dorcas Street. Mind you a lot of work in packing up and labelling boxes had been carried out by staff and volunteers in the previous weeks, and my grateful thanks go to all who helped in this.

Confusion reigned supreme as everything was delivered at once, and at one stage it appeared that we needed an office twice the size! However, as cupboards were filled the mess on the floor became less and less, until finally the office started to appear as it should.

That's where we are - the corner of Dorcas and Wells Streets

Everything went to plan except for our friend Murphy who apparently lives at Telstra! Our phones and BBS lines were to be disconnected at 5.00 pm on the Friday, and reconnected on the Monday. Immediately on moving we found we had the new lines as promised, however the fun began when Telstra started changing these new lines over to the old numbers.

Phil Lew and his BBS team moved the BBS equipment and it was up and running on the Saturday afternoon - a great effort! But like the office, no-one could contact them because the phone numbers were temporarily changed. It was late on the following Friday that the office phones were finally correctly connected although they had been working intermittently during the previous days. As I write the last of the BBS lines have finally been connected.

The new office at 27 Dorcas Street, South Melbourne

To all those members who tried to ring or fax the office, or tried to use the BBS without success, please accept our apologies - it was simply beyond our control. We trust that during the next step when we transfer the Internet lines, Murphy will no longer be assisting Telstra.

The advantage of a street-front office has already been made apparent by the number of new members who have joined after seeing where we are located. The Open Day on Saturday 11 October 1997 was well attended, and we were pleased that so many members came and saw what had been achieved. I had hoped that the external works being carried out for the landlord would have been finished, but these will probably be complete by the time you read this.

My thanks go out to all who worked on all stages of this project-the planning, dealing with supply authorities, the network and security design, the builder and his contractors who did all we asked of them, and especially to our volunteers who gave of their time in many ways.

I must make special mention of the work done by Tracy Swan. She was involved from the very start - after all, who knows better about how the office operates than the one who works there all the time! She spent long hours at planning sessions, dealt with the suppliers, learnt how to use the new equipment, and so on. Although working tirelessly, I was shocked to subsequently find that she had been hiding an illness that required surgery. Determined to see the work through completely she left it until after we had moved before seeking medical attention. However I am sure you will all be pleased that the surgery was successful with a short recovery time. Trish - full marks for bravery and your resolve.

Litigation

At the October monthly meeting, Bill Ford, our Secretary and Public Officer, announced that a writ originating in the UK had been served on him on the preceding day. A version of this announcement was published in the Herald-Sun a couple of days later.

Please understand that this case is sub-judice, and I must be extremely careful not to compromise our position in any way. However I want to provide you with as much information as I am able at this time, and continue to advise you as the matter progresses.

The plaintiff in the writ says that the matter relates back to October 1996 when a member of Melb PC allegedly posted a message adding to an ongoing thread in an international newsgroup. The litigant who lives in the UK took exception to the comments made by our member, and has commenced legal action against him too.

It would appear that Melb PC's total involvement in this case is that we were the conduit through which the Melb PC member allegedly posted his message to the newsgroup. At no time did this message reside on our equipment, nor did we have any knowledge of the posting-but that is where the law must decide our alleged involvement and responsibility, and that of the member concerned.

This case will have international implications and could become a land-mark case for future cases on matters similar to this one. The committee has made a commitment to fight the case, and our solicitor has made direct contact with a firm of solicitors in the UK. This firm has successfully represented international ISPs in Internet and electronic mail matters. The case comes under UK law and must be defended in that country. Like so many legal issues there is a lag of some years as emerging technology opens new areas for legal deliberation.

I would encourage all users to again read the Internet agreement carefully and clearly understand their own legal position and responsibilities when using the Internet.

Internet

As I mentioned previously we have not actively promoted our Internet service over the past months and maintained the number of users at a constant level while we awaited the arrival of additional new and faster equipment.

By the time you read this I hope we will have 120 new 56 kbps modems available, which together with reusing the Dataplex modems upgraded to 33.6 kbps will bring the total number of lines up to 216. We will now have the lines and equipment to successfully serve a greater number of users, and required expansion can be quickly introduced.

Users should keep reading the Message of the Day (MOTD) for changes as they occur. We will have the 120 new 56 kbps lines available (phone number to be announced), 9690 5644 will continue with 16 lines providing 30-minute access, and the remainder will be accessed through 9685 4506 as before. Please note that the 56 kbps lines accept "k56flex" protocol only-not "x2". Beware when buying!

Announcements will be made as this work progresses, so please remember to continue to check the MOTD at http://hww.melbpc.org.au/motd/ - Note: This site is accessible to Melb PC Internet subscribers only.

Many members who have tried to obtain this address from other providers have usually received a message such as "Error 403 - Access Forbidden". This sounds all rather rude and dismissive, however that message is generated by your browser and not by us, and is due to the proxy server settings on your machine. Sorry about that!

CEO

Allan Smith has recently joined us as CEO bringing with him a sound management background especially in strategic management and financial planning.

Allan has spent almost half his working life in the technical field with Telstra, and then, seeking to move to a management role, studied for a Diploma in Industrial Management, a Master of Business Administration and a Company Director's Diploma. He has a high level of computer literacy, and is a member of several professional associations.

During the past year most of the duties and responsibilities of the CEO position have been filled by myself, with assistance from the office staff. This has been possible only because I have been able to spend the time necessary for the task, and I trust you have not found me wanting in my presidental role as a result.

Perhaps our recent problems with Telstra might have been reduced with Allan's knowledge and contacts in that organisation. We wish Allan every success working in Melb PC.

1800, and all that

Following last month's CPU, a couple of members asked if we were looking at a Freecall phone number to provide cheaper access for the BBS and the Internet for those living in outer areas.

We look at this system from time to time to see whether the situation has changed or costs reduced. Unfortunately this has not happened, and the latest figures provided to me show that it is still not feasible. To connect to the BBS or the Internet would cost Melb PC between $9.00 and $16.80 an hour depending on the source of the call. On top of this would be an annual rental charge in excess of $5,000.

As an extreme case a member from suburban Melbourne could use the 1800 number and save himself the call charge of 25c, but then Melb PC would incur a call charge of $6.60 an hour. It is inevitable someone would try this!

I trust you will agree that BBS access incurring charges like this would soon use up your membership fee, and likewise, Internet charges would have to be increased enormously to allow for the normal long connection times.

Unfortunately remote access is not practical at this time, and I can only suggest that Internet users continue to seek out a local ISP. We do have members from as far afield as King Island who regularly use our Internet service - I would hate to see their phone bills!

Orientation days

We haven't had an Orientation day for the past couple of months as we prepared for the move, however the next one will be on Saturday 8 November 1997 from 10.00 am to 12.00 noon.

There has been a great response to these sessions in the past and it is an opportunity for you to see what we have to offer, as well as giving me an opportunity to meet you. You don't have to be a new member, and if you have never shared some of our activities here is the opportunity to come and see what is available.

Please ring the office at (03) 9699 6222 to make a booking.

Onwards to next month

While still in a catch-up mode after a very hectic three months involvement in the new premises and the move, there is still much to be done. Now to prepare to move the Internet service - the mind boggles!

Reprinted from the November 1997 issue of PC Update, the magazine of Melbourne PC User Group, Australia