This is the SLUUG Frequently Asked Questions list, with answers to some commonly asked questions.

[TODO: Is there an existing SLUUG FAQ somewhere?]

[TODO: Not sure how to index this properly. DokuWiki needs to add some markup for FAQs.]

• What is SLUUG's purpose?

Our stated purpose is to promote UNIX and Open Systems.

• What do I need to do to become a member?

To be a voting member, you must have attended 2 meetings in the

previous calendar year. All SLUUG meetings count -- UNIX meetings,
LUG meetings, SIGs, Steering Committee. Please sign the attendance
sheets so we can track your status. (Not to mention that there are
often attendance prizes.)

• What does it cost?

Nothing. All SLUUG meetings are free and open to the public.

• How can I contribute?

There are several good ways you can contribute:

• Attend meetings.
• Give a presentation, tutorial, or demo at one of our meetings.
• Enlist someone else to give a presentation at one of our meetings.
• Attend a Steering Committe meeting to help us run the group.
• Contribute to our mailing lists.
• Get a BBS account to support and sustain our infrastructure.

• What is the relationship between the St. Louis Linux Users Group and the St. Louis UNIX Users Group?

The St. Louis Linux Users Group and the St. Louis UNIX Users Group are

the same legal entity. The LUG was originally a SIG of SLUUG. Now that
Linux is more popular/familiar than UNIX, we want to brand the Linux side
as a LUG to gain the advantages of such name recognition.

• Users Group or User's Group?

Users Group. We are a group of users, so there is no apostrophe.

• Do I have to be a member to attend a meeting?

No. All SLUUG meetings are free and open to the public.

• What is the difference between the STLLUG meetings and SLUUG meetings?

LUG meetings tend more toward Linux-oriented topics, whereas the UNIX

meetings tend to be more general topics.

• There sure are a lot of meetings!

That's not a question, but we have to agree. You could probably attend 20

local user group meetings a month, and still miss a couple. There are
meetings addressing a variety of topics, formats/activities, and localities.

Your best bet is to figure out which meeting formats, topics, people,
and locations fit you best. Also, keep an eye out for presentation topics, 
and try to attend the ones that appeal to you.

• What's the deal with the "meetings" after the meetings?

A lot of us like to get together for dinner, drinks, and conversation

after the official meetings. These are not SLUUG events, but can be 
a lot of fun -- you can get to know people better and talk on all 
different kinds of topics.

• What resources are available?

Web sites, mailing lists, books sales, meetings, InstallFests,

monthly newsletter, archives, BBS.

• Why isn't there a separate mailing list for Linux questions?

Because most Linux questions are really UNIX questions. Or in other words,

so you can get the wisdom of the long-time UNIX readers. Otherwise, the 
long-time UNIX users might not read the Linux list and see the question.

• What mailing lists exist?

• How do I sign up for a mailing list?

• How do I remove myself from a mailing list?

• What are the mailing list rules?

Pretty much just follow the generally accepted rules of Netiquette.

• Which groups are official SLUUG groups?

• Why are there so many LUGs in Saint Louis?

• Is there a BSD group?

There's a group called STLBSD, but they have

not held any meetings recently, and their website has been inactive as well.

BSD topics and users are welcome at SLUUG meetings, even the "Linux" meetings.
We consider the BSD variants to be part of the UNIX/Linux family.

• Who owns UNIX?

That's a long story! SCO currently owns the original copyright (maybe).

The Open Group owns the trademark.

• UNIX or Unix?

UNIX. This is according to the Open Group, the organization that

owns the UNIX trademark. However, UNIX is not an acronym -- it 
doesn't stand for anything. The name was originally a pun on MULTICS, 
a predecessor operating system.

• What is Linux?

That's a long story, and is better answered elsewhere on the Internet.

• What is GNU/Linux?

The GNU project was around before the Linux kernel, and Linux users adopted

most of the GNU system, which was close to complete, except for a kernel. 
So the GNU folks insist that the combination of the 2 (and other software) 
be called "GNU/Linux". That's generally held to be a //somewhat// reasonable 
request. Our group tries to adhere to that request in writing; but in speaking,
it's generally easier to just say "Linux", with the implicit thought that we 
really mean the "GNU/Linux" operating system.

• Which Linux distro should I use?

It's recommended to start out with a run-from-CD version of Linux

to try it out without having to worry about installing it, or making 
it co-exist with Windows. Knoppix is the most popular run-from-CD 
version of Linux.

If you want to install Linux to your hard drive, start with a 
desktop-oriented version such as Xandros, Ubuntu, Linspire, 
Mandrake, etc.

If you are building a server, it is recommended to use Debian or 
Red Hat Enterprise Linux.

• I can't program; how can I contribute to Open Source projects?

Someone asked that on our DISCUSS list a few years back. Craig Buchek

answered with an extensive list of ideas. That list is currently located
[[http://granneman.com/techinfo/linux/contributewithoutcoding.htm | here]].