TMUG history

From TMUGWiki

TMUG Turns 20

Here are some stories and facts contributed by members. These are from emails on the TMUG Discussion List. Thanks to those who wrote. I really enjoyed the stories.

Member One

There are a handful of us who have been around for a while Allen.

Duane Reaugh has probably been active the longest. I've been in since maybe 1988 or 1989 and I think Duane was in it before me.

Maybe we could trade files and come up with a story.

Highlights:

Back when I joined there were like 2 factions within TMUG. The Desktop Publishing professionals and everyone else. The early TMUG officers were all heavily into the Desktop Publishing side of things. Ken Denning, Joel Leipzig, Barbara Conrad, Ellen Adelman, Harry LeBlanc, Duane Reaugh, and Joseph Zalkin come to mind as the early officers. I can't remember some of the others.

- we met at Wake medical Center on the far side of Raleigh for several years because Joseph Zalkin was a Wake County EMS. - we met at Burroughs Wellcome in RTP for a couple years because Harry LeBlanc worked for Burroughs at the time - we met at the EPA auditorium for several years because myself and several members worked for the EPA - we got evicted when the EPA changed locations - we then we ended up at the Mutual Building

- We started with a Red Ryder BBS run by Ken Denning on a 2400 bps modem. - I took over the BBS somewhere around 1990 -- we switched to an SE30 with a SCSI multiple serial port interface -- we had 3 phone lines. Our first network was FIDONet, where every night at 2 AM the BBS would exchange all the messages for the day with our FIDOnet host. - Later we added UUCP capability, which gave us USENET newsgroups and Internet mail, again the BBS would connect to the world a couple times a day and exchange mail and files. - Somewhere around here we switched to a Mac IIci and 9600 bps modems, then later 28 kbps modems. - Later we changed the software to TeleFinder and ran that for several years. Somewhere in there we switched to a PowerMac 7100. - All this time the BBS was run out of my home. - Mindspring through Charley Bratton let us host the machine at their site, where we were on the Internet 24/7 somewhere around 1996 or so. Somewhere around here Mark Handler became president. We miss Mark. - We ran it there for a while, then we moved it to David Minton's workplace (can't remember - I'm sure Dave can fill it in) - Then we moved it to Phi Sander's workplace - Somewhere around here we dropped TeleFinder and started just running a web site and email. Probably around 1999 or 2000. - You know the rest...

Member Two

(Wow, what a great application for a wiki page. Wish we'd have implemented _that_ four years ago when I suggested it! Sigh - oh well.)

I started hanging around during the TeleFinder/EPA/Mark Handler years (Yes, Paul, we still miss Mark). We had a huge collection of files (BBS in a Box) and offered Disk of the Month (floppy disks), had training tapes on various applications that members could check out to learn various apps, and had a CD ROM _burner_ that members could check out. I think at some point, we may have had a SyQuest drive (that may have been the Asheville club). We also had a ZIP drive that used - get ready - 100MB disks! Man, 100 MB on a floppy-sized unit! Wow!

We also had one of the early QuickTake cameras. It was auctioned off during the Holiday party in 2001 or 2002 at the Universalist church for, I think, $5. In 1999 or 2000, the club bought a projector, so that we wouldn't have to be dependant on the machines from the EPA. We're still using it. Then, in 2001 (I think, maybe it was 2000), we bought an iMac, in order to have a consistent presentation machine. That machine, known as Ruby, was later auctioned off to Frank Crigler (at the time, "just" a member, but later Secretary, then President, now, again, an esteemed member). If I recall correctly, tickets in the raffle were $20, and he bought two.

Speaking of raffles. Over the years, we have raffled off quite a few items: several iPods, an AnthroCart, a 17" monitor, several chunks of RAM, a CD ROM burner. What else?

TMUG always met on Mondays (second of the month), until someone at EPA decided to rent or use that room for an MBA program or something for about 18 months. This must have been in '92-'94. After that, it was back to Mondays. As far as I can remember, we have only changed meeting nights 3-4 times in the decade+ that I've been involved. Usually, it was a decision because of a holiday (meeting in a government facility on Mondays meant that sometimes it was closed) or sudden bad weather. A few times, we had speakers that either got lost, got tied up at work or didn't for whatever reason show, but usually someone at the last minute was able to pinch hit and hold forth. One thing I've enjoyed seeing (and it has not been an easy transition) is our presentations are getting back to being from members doing various things, rather than always having vendors show stuff, and there are a lot of little presentations, so that there is more variety, rather than a huge "topic" or two per meeting. I guess this has followed the way we use our Macs nowadays: we no longer use them "for graphics" or "for finances" or "for desktop publishing." We use them for many things, and our meeting topics have started to show that diversity.

We moved the server from Shea and David's facility in 2002 over to Vital Source Technologies, where it stayed until early 2006. Just before the move to VST, we were able to purchase a mirror door G4. The previous unit was a beige G3 desktop, which (I think) was in concurrent use as the email server until the switch to OS X email.

For many years (especially during the EPA years) we had an annual Swap Meet, usually in January, where folks would bring in old or no longer needed hardware and software to trade or sell. This was (and, when it happens, still is) a fun time for TMUGers, allowing us all to have a history lesson as well as a trip down memory lane. It's always amazing to see what holds it's value and what becomes the ubiquitous useless dust-gatherer.

Someone needs to recount the early history of SIGs, back when we had a lot of them. I know there was a DTP SIG and a Communications SIG back in the mid-90s, but there have also been ad hoc groups that met to learn about web graphics, Newtons, Palm handhelds, digital cameras, and command line utilities. Any others?

For many years (1993-1998, at least) we produced a monthly newsletter. This was printed and given out at meetings, and mailed to members that were not at the meetings. We also used to mail post card reminders out to members the week before meetings. (Paul, whatever happened to that old ImageWriter?) Between the increase in postage and printing costs, and the rise of email and the internet, those services have changed quite a bit.

Member Three

That move would have been in December of 2000, as Shea and David sold their interests in that business and departed from the company at that time. Before leaving, we suggested that TMUG move the server to an alternate facility, and Smythe helped the club at that point