I went to see the Red Hat Tour bus when it went to Northern Virginia. Like you, I came away realizing I'd benefit if I joined a Linux Users Group.
I joined the local LUG and then when reading messages related to beta testing, I joined up for the Phoebe test lists. I have found that these lists expose a person to a wealth of information on Linux in general and gently steer users in the right direction. As a list with many different personalities and with so many different methods for resolving issues, there are bound to be personality conflicts and opinions that one should know more than what another expects a person longer exposed to Liux to think.Yes I agree. One good thing about the current list membership makeup is that I believe it is showing a heavy influx of new users. This is a welcome change, because it means acceptance of Linux is spreading. The older mailing lists seemed to have very few active users posting. I had always thought Linux needs to be more GUI driven in order to attract a larger base of users and thereby achieve broader consumer and political support. The important people really are the new users who try out Linux and decide the OS is good enough for them.
Basically, I think the list is a great help to others and has taught me a quite a lot about the Lnux computer environment. Hopefully, new users and ling time users can take these factors for people in their general thoughts and avoid conflicts with each other that can degrade one for asking a question for guidance.
Many of the people posting to this list have experience and know-how I consider enviable. I try hard to learn from them. I'm sure many others sift the list messages for useful stuff just as I do. Helping the new users is very, very, very important to expanding acceptance of Linux in general. You never know -- the post you are reading might be from your neighbor next door, your significant other, or a family member without your realizing it. Using the Golden Rule really helps here.
Bob
