President's Message

What if they had an election and no one came?

I've been with DACS for about nine years, and after nine board elections, I can't remember a time when the number of candidates was equal to the number of seats. Wally David, our one-person nominating committee, has been searching unsuccessfully for volunteers to run at this year's annual business meeting, which will be part of our general meeting on December 15th. Although ballots printed in this newsletter reflect the lack of any opposition, members will have an opportunity during the proceedings to nominate other candidates or volunteer themselves.

Of course, it's not unusual for volunteer boards to run for reelection unopposed; in fact, many simply nominate their rank for reelection, or nominate their successors for affirmation by the membership at the annual meeting. In some cases, a lack of opposition candidates reflects waning membership commitment to the organization or pessimism over whether anything will be accomplished; in others it might indicate a consensus on the way things are run and an unwillingness to "rock the boat." We'd like to think that the latter case applies to DACS, but it would be gratifying to see some new faces on the board to head off the inevitable burnout that many of us are beginning to experience.

A maxim I have always held to be true is that no one should be indispensable. In fact, some business, managers make it a point to replace or reassign any employee who has learned so much and become so good at their job that no one could replace them. But you can't hire and fire volunteers at will, so as jobs open up and the same people keep taking them on, a few become so involved that they become "irreplaceable." Then, when it finally comes time to move on, no one is left with the skills or motivation to take over.

While it may be asking much for people to run against someone who is doing a good job or to likely lose in the process, it is still a good way to get involved. I ran for the board two months after joining DACS, and lost two successive elections. But I stayed involved by coming to meetings, volunteering for responsibilities, and participating in debates. Most board members would love to retire and let others take over; but they want to see a track record and a commitment to keeping DACS a success.

So when the call for nominations is sounded, stand up to volunteer. Or, come to a board meeting and find out what needs to be done. In April, we'll be choosing officers and appointing committees, so there will be plenty of time to get involved.

Just a Click away

Are you looking for great deals? Many companies offer special services or discounts to user groups and their membership. But it can be hard to keep track of these deals, which can change from month to month and may be too numerous to list in our newsletter or Web page.

Bob Click of the Greater Orlando (Florida) Computer User Group has taken the time to research these deals and has been reporting them in a monthly Deals column widely reprinted in the UG press through a service of the Association of PC User Groups. Now, thanks to APCUG, Bob's Deals column is regularly posted on the Web at http://member.apcug.org/benefits/deals/. Once you've bookmarked the URL, you should eat it, since these great deals are only for user group members.

The December deals include a Windows tips book at 20% off, long-distance service for 3.9 cents a minute, sheet music that plays itself, and a PC add-in card that lets you make long-distance calls at local rates over the Internet.

--Allan Ostergren
dacsprez@aol.com