President's Message

The virtual flight of the virtual SST encountered the virtual snow storm of the century and came skidding to a virtual halt in front of the virtual alternative meeting place. Thus did the weather virtually wipe out DACS’ second attempt in two months to hold a meeting and put us virtually out of business. As Mother Nature gets tired throwing snow around and looks for other, less daunting obstacles to dump in our path, we hope to get back in business in April.

A foundation built with Adobe

Adobe is the acknowledged leader in desktop publishing for the rest of us, with its flagship products PhotoShop, PageMaker, GoLive and Acrobat, along with numerous other powerful graphics tools. In recent years, they have consolidated many of their applications to provide seamless integration on all levels of publishing and Web design. A prominent supporter of user groups where it counts most, Adobe has been a regular advertiser in and a supplier of discounted software for dacs.doc.

Be sure to come to the Adobe presentation at our next meeting, April 3--weather permitting, of course.

Not working? Try networking

As the much ballyhooed HiTek bubble goes belly-up, some of our members may be facing uncertain times. These are conditions reminiscent of the early years of DACS, when IBM and other new economy giants began downsizing, and many of the riffed but not ruffled technoscenti joined our ranks to network and share their skills. This month, we are extending that welcoming hand once again, with a Guide to on-line job searching in Connecticut by Brian Backman. Brian, an active member of the Internet SIG, has offered to share his experience of becoming otherwise engaged and his efforts to find new employment opportunities via the Web.

ACSS is access

Among the options Brian cites is the Association of Computer Support Specialists, a regional membership group for IT professionals. ACSS has for several years maintained a close relationship with DACS, and by agreement allows our members to take professional courses without paying the $100 membership fee. It’s like getting a $100 coupon with your $25 annual DACS membership. The courses are fully accredited, and much less than the standard fee from private training outfits. You can see the latest ACSS offering on page 13, directly opposite Brian’s article.

The write stuff

In addition to Brian, we are welcoming another new writer to dacs.doc - Matthew Greger. A recent inductee to the DACS board, and head of the Web Design SIG, Matthew partners with his wife, Nancy, in a local technical support enterprise they call The Business Helper. In a series on Web publishing, he will be offering his own and significant other unique insights into business promotion on the Internet.

We hope these new columns will enrich dacs.doc, and help give much deserved relief to some of the other tireless contributors to our banner publication.

Officers wanted

At its next meeting on April 9th, our board will nominate and elect a new slate of officers for the coming year. As we approach a new term, all of us who have served for many years would welcome new volunteers to take our places. Officers do not have to be members of the board, and we have created several vice presidential positions for those willing to contribute their time and expertise to our group. Won’t you step forward and put your name in contention?

--Allan Ostergren
dacsprez@aol.com