President's Message January 2009 (v2.10) Congrats to all of December’s prize winners! Thanks again to Culminis, Microsoft, and Smart Computing Magazine for the generous donations! Congratulations are also in order for the newly and reelected Directors! For this term, we are pleased to welcome a new addition, Joseph Tobin. Joseph is DACS’ youngest current Board Member and has already brought some new viewpoint to the group. Thanks also go to his mother, Mary, for encouraging and assisting his participation in the group. Thanks again to John Patrick for another stellar presentation and new insight into where the Internet at large is going. It is interesting to see which things still stick out like sore thumbs that companies simply don’t grasp when conducting business over the web. John described how different countries and municipalities embrace technology (particularly wireless) for their citizens and how the United States takes a seemingly opposite approach. Our switch from analog to digital broadcasting may change that significantly in the coming year or so. Will John’s predictions unfold as he described? We have several goals for 2009—expand and define what ‘Membership Benefits’ are and should be. There is a lot more depth we wish to add so that the organization can build upon its core asset: the Members. Sure, like any group, this one wouldn’t exist without its members. But, that’s not what I’m talking about. Our SIGs, workshops, and meetings all are driven by what we know, what we can share, what we can do, and what we can learn. And, what I’ve learned repeatedly through 2008 is that there are some interesting areas of knowledge within our membership that doesn’t bubble to the surface easily. I’m referring in large part to the niche things our members are doing with technology in which our other members may also share an interest. What I would like to see most for 2009 is that those subgroups have an opportunity to bubble to the surface. Another goal for this year is to expand our impact and/or appearance in the community. DACS is largely unknown even though it is over two decades old. A DACS license plate frame was a brilliant addition to our DACS Gear! They are available at http://www.cafepress.com/dacsgear and look sharp! I would be remiss if I didn’t point out that cutting expenses is a priority—especially in these economic times. We have concluded our experiment using a color laser printing process for the newsletter. While we have saved money over the previous printing process, the concern is still whether the current color version is of value over black and white. In February, the Board will be voting on what course of action to take. Increases in mailing costs, increase in cost per copy due to changes in volume, and lack of paid advertisements to offset production costs are the driving factors in the decisions. It’s your newsletter, so if you have a say or want to know more, then go to the website and leave comments. The January 5 board meeting is when a decision will be made that will affect future issues. We have some terrific presentations shaping up for 2009! I’m proud to say we’re already booked up through June! We still need a volunteer to step forward to coordinate and lead the scheduling for the remainder of our main monthly meetings. Speaking of the ‘General Meetings’… If anyone knows of tech events that would be suitable for listing in the ‘Upcoming Events’ section of the ‘Welcome’ slide show, please let us know so it can be included. Holiday details beckon, so I must leave you with that note. Hope everyone has a great 2009! ROB LIMBAUGH
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