 The magazine of the Melbourne PC User Group CPU (Club President's Update) Stan Johnstone stanj@melbpc.org.au |
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At the August monthly meeting I did one of our quick "hands-up" type surveys to ask about Windows 98. Although we appreciate these surveys do not necessarily represent the true picture of our total membership, it is important that we have some indication of what our members are thinking and doing so we can get a guide of where we should be heading.
For your interest, we found that about 20-25 per cent had already tried Windows 98, but we also found that about a quarter of those had reverted to Windows 95! It's early days yet, but it was interesting to get this information.
At the same time, about 10 per cent indicated that they are continuing to use Windows 3.x! I didn't think to extend it further and check on DOS or other operating systems as the main intent was to try and gauge the interest in Windows 98.
At the August meeting, CyberMedia offered for sale FirstAid 97 and Uninstaller for a give-away price, with the option to buy or upgrade to the recently released versions at greatly reduced prices. Because of the success on the night, I subsequently contacted CyberMedia and arranged for the offer to be extended to all Melb PC members. You should have received details in the mail, and I hope those who were interested took up the offer.
The cheapest method for those who did not have the earlier version already was to buy it from the office just as members were able to at the meeting. Unfortunately we could not offer to mail out copies of the earlier versions as the rock bottom price was as provided to Melb PC, and we could only handle it as a cash sale.
John Swale
I am very pleased to announce that John Swale has taken over the role of Secretary and Public Officer of Melb PC. John has been around for a very long time (he is member number 16), and has been an active member in one role or another continuously since he joined.
You will always find John sitting in the front row at each monthly meeting recording the Random access questions, a regular column in PC Update that often provides the answer to a nagging problem drawn from someone else's experience.
The Committee will miss Gary Taig who has always been a valuable source of information and ideas over the years. Famed for his working most irregular hours due to business commitments, Gary is currently also contracted to work during normal daytime hours. For those who know him, the sight of Gary wearing a collar and tie is something rarely seen.
John has already introduced action charts to help the Committee keep up with the work on hand, and we know he will be a valuable asset to the Committee and Melb PC generally in this role. At the same time Gary will continue to help in a number of activities.
The Melbourne Atari Computer Enthusiasts group (MACE)
The MACE group has closed, and its remaining 40 members have transferred to Melb PC.
We welcome them as members of Melb PC, and I have no doubt that some of our members who still have or use the Atari equipment will join then at one of their meetings.
Bulletin Board Service (BBS)
After discussing the matter with Phil Lew, we have decided to discontinue one of the rotary phone groups, and so now there is only one phone number available for access to the BBS - 9699 6611 with 16 lines.
From what I have read, almost 75 per cent of BBSs that were in existence two years ago have now closed. Melb PC decided to keep ours going for its important service to members, however it is disheartening to see so few of the members using it. In the past 12 months it cost us more than $31,000.
At the same time, new files are being added constantly and, if you haven't visited it for a while, I do recommend you visit and see what is there. Unfortunately there has not been a Dial Help volunteer available for more than two years to assist new users and answer questions.
Lynn Pollock has run classes and seminars on using the BBS, but usage has continued to decline.
I am sure many like myself who enjoyed the banter and cheeky ripostes in the message areas will look back with affection for those days when the BBS was at its peak. Many of those same contributors can now be found on the Internet in the melbpc.general newsgroup continuing the humour they developed earlier on the BBS.
Internet
While reducing the lines for the BBS, we are increasing the number of dial-up lines for the Internet by 60. It is possible that these lines will be installed by the time you read this. However the availability of the ISDN lines necessary for the digital 56K access is limited, and we await the installation by Telstra.
(By the way, let me refer you to the excellent article, on page 20, by Alan Fowler who explains why 56K modems do not connect at 56K!)
Naturally the additional lines we install will all be 56K capacity, and the timing is very close to the expected release of the V.90 protocol. As we have mentioned before, the existing K56flex lines will be changed to this new standard just as soon as it is available and practical to change over. Beta testing is already being conducted in Australia.
The change over to the V.90 protocol of the existing equipment at our end is purely a software flash upgrade and so can be carried out very simply. For the last ten months I have warned users to ensure that any modems they purchase are also capable of a simple flash upgrade to the V.90 standard. Keep a watchful eye on your modem manufacturer's Web site ready to download at the appropriate time. Likewise, keep a watchful eye on our Message of the Day for up-to-date information on what is happening. We will try to give you as much warning as possible.
Currently we are looking at doubling our Internet feed, while still maintaining all the benefits of the Intranet access. Depending on the source of the increased feed, additional cabling may be required, which may cause a delay.
Orientation day
My apologies for those who booked for the July orientation day, which had to be cancelled due to illness. However the usual invitation stands for new and established members, friends and family, to attend the next one. This will be held on Saturday 12 September starting at 10 am and running to about midday. In past months I am not sure who learns more from these days, as it is the input from members that helps our planning, as well as my trying to explain what we are doing and where we are going.
Please make a booking with the office on 9699 6222 for this free course as numbers can be a problem. I'll look forward to seeing some of you then.
Reprinted from the September 1998 issue of PC Update, the magazine of Melbourne PC User Group, Australia
