dacs.doc electric

DACS is in trouble. I've been involved with one of the groups that formed DACS since 1983. I have been on the sidelines lately, with a job in New York City and a small child (I try to spend as much time with her as possible, before she knows more than I do) but I'm still involved as much as I can be. This "outside" viewpoint has given me the advantage of a unique view of DACS, and I am worried about what I see.

I am not talking about the people that run DACS. These people give 110% so you can get this newsletter, see Microsoft a couple of times a year, ask your questions to an audience of computer gurus, and maybe even meet someone with the same taste in accounting programs you have (or whatever type of software you're into) at the monthly meetings. They are the lifeblood of this group and I don't think they are the reason. If anything, you should thank anyone that you see manning the table at the next meeting, or seems to be helping others, or even speaking to the group at the next meeting. They really have thankless jobs.

The inspiration for this column came from a John C Dvorak article about user groups (PC Magazine, August 6, 2002 at www.pcmag.com). John, who occasionally annoys the heck out of most sane people, decided to look at why something so crucial to the computer business like user groups was disappearing, like the dinosaurs. He mentions the disintegration of two of the top groups in the country –- HAL PC and the Boston Computer Society (BCS). I personally saw the scope and power of the BCS when a company I worked for was a presenter, and miss this powerful learning and sharing organization.

Dvorak likens learning computer to driving. I agree with this –- I have witnessed the speed at which peer-based computer learning works vs. a book or class. I learned an amazing amount of information from people I met at user groups and from years of presentations. You need this personal interaction to take you to the next level of learning. I know I've benefited greatly from user groups.

The Internet is not the reason user groups are dying. User groups are a social club for people with similar interests and a place to learn about one of the most complex creations of man. The Internet helps user groups like DACS make meeting information, articles, and other such stuff easy to find and increases the exposure of the group.

Leeches? People who just take information and never share it? Nah, I have had my share of information junkies who never pass on or share what they learn. I still come back even though I have given out information at meetings I normally charge good money for. It's surprising, but most people at a group will share what they know, even though on the next morning you'd pay $75 to hear them say it. This is the power of user groups—sharing.

DACS is in trouble because the membership is declining. Almost all user groups are seeing this as well. Is it because there is no new software? No way! I've never seen so much new and interesting software as what I've seen in the past two years. Is it because computers are getting easier to use? I think things have become more complex with all of the different things you can do now. If anything, I go to DACS meetings to see things I'm not keeping up with and meet people with different experience.

Dvorak makes the claim that most companies have abandoned support for user groups, except for Microsoft (and claims they are successful because of user groups). I disagree with this, as we have the support of many companies for speakers, advertising in dacs.doc, and review copies of software. However, many companies don't know what to do when we call and ask about user group support. I was a software product manager for 10 years and did everything I could to help user groups. It paid off in free exposure, good word of mouth, and yes—sales!

I think that maybe the role of DACS had to change. As our users become more sophisticated, I think we might need to change into two groups —a beginner and an advanced group, to keep these two very different groups of people interested. Maybe we need to change the way our meetings are run, and instead of having a huge speaker every month maybe only once a quarter. The meetings could be more like a main presentation and then we could split into several smaller groups, or even just float between small demonstrations by members. These are just a few ideas that I've seen at user groups around the country that I've demonstrated at over the years.

I want to give you a homework assignment. DACS has a great future, but needs your feedback to make it happen. Most of you have never said a word to the leadership at DACS before. I want you to send an e-mail to anyone on the masthead of dacs.doc about what you would like to see out of DACS. If you do, copy me on the message. I'd love to hear what you have to say.

DACS is an important resource for all of us. Let's all try and do something to keep it relevant.