[GTALUG] Prompting the return of In-Person events.

[Mike Holloway]

Thanks for kicking this discussion off y'all. I'm close to downtown so naturally it's less effort for me, but I'm interested of course.

Mike



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On Wednesday, July 10th, 2024 at 3:50 PM, Scott Sullivan via talk <talk at gtalug.org> wrote:

> TL;DR
> 
> I'd like to get a temperature of the room for other folks appetite for
> the return of in person meetings / events.
> Pleases chime in so that leadership can see what demand may exist that
> is being unmet.
> 
> ---
> 
> What are the barriers to returning to in-person?
> 
> How as a community can we help to make this happen?
> 
> Is this something the community still desires?
> 
> Are there supplemental events that can happen outside of the main
> talk-oriented meeting, like a pub afternoon / night?
> 
> 
> GTALUG has endured for nearly four decades now, I was privileged to be
> part of that leadership for half of it. Stepping away in the years
> before pandemic, and returning only for a year in the wake of Chris's
> passing to help the board.
> 
> For me, the value of GTALUG was the long tail of social interactions
> that came out of the in-person meetings and events. Little side bars on
> niche subjects, getting to talk with fellow folks about their choices of
> software, hardware or latest gadgets. Get into all the details and
> reaffirmations of friends and colleagues. Join a group meal ahead of
> the meetings, and staying late at a pub afterward. All activities that
> can't happen in a conference call. There were also the special events,
> like Linux in the Park. Meetups at conventions and trade shows, or even
> running a booth where it made sense.
> 
> The pandemic changed a lot. Old venues have locked down, and plenty of
> folks have legitimate reasons to remain cautious. But what hasn't
> changed is the desire and need for that in-person experience and
> affirmation of community. I've been speaking with Alan, Gord, Evan and
> others about this void that hasn't been closed yet. I'm aware it's a
> topic of discussion at the leadership level. So to the questions above,
> let's bring this out where we as a community can come together to ask
> and answer.
> 
> --
> Scott Sullivan
> 
> ---
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