[SGVLUG] BBC documentary

[Don Gibbs]

>      I dunno, John, whether it's a good idea or not.  Depends on the 
>specific content of the documentary, which is why I want to get a 
>look at it.  I think the typical school board member has no idea 
>what free

School Board member?  You might be surprised how many experienced 
engineers casually think of OSS as "freeware" along with the negative 
baggage you might imagine (viz., trivial/over specialized, quirky, 
hobby, unsupported, unreliable, etc.)  Unless they have a compelling 
reason to dig into the issues, most folks are just too overworked 
with their normal daily commitments to make the effort to understand 
what OSS is.  You might call this an itch that needs scratching.

A BBC documentary would carry credibility and not smack of gear head 
zealotry.  But like you say, it finally depends on the specific 
content.  No free lunches and no silver bullets, but it is good to 
get an other perspective.

All that said, I wish I got BBC.  Sorry I can't help.

   --Don

>software is about, or even that it exists.  So any reasonably fair 
>presentation that could get their attention and hold it on subject 
>for a couple of hours could be a valuable resource.
>
>John
>
<snip>
-- 
========================================================================
Don Gibbs		| "Somehow it seems to fill my head with ideas
dgibbs at jpl.nasa.gov	| -- only I don't know exactly what they are!"
818 354-2990 - office	|
818 653-9531 - cell	|       Alice, after reading JABBERWOCKY

Sec 316, Flight S/W & Data Systems - Group B, GN&C and FSW Testing
Opinions expressed are not necessarily those of JPL/Caltech or NASA