[FreeGeek] the question of affiliation & name

[David Repa]

Stephan,

> I don't think its a good idea to become a subsidiary of the Portland
> Freegeek -- without even looking at the Portland Freegeek.

I respect your opinion in this matter, but would like to address some
points that you have made.

First, some of us involved already have looked into or been to
Freegeek Portland(PDX).  I encourage anyone who hasn't looked into
their wiki to do so, it is rather extensive. (
http://wiki.freegeek.org/index.php/Main_Page )  The affiliation or
franchise we would like to seek with FG-PDX is not the same as a
subsidiary.  In the end, to franchise with FG-PDX is to have the
ability to use the name FreeGeek, and to make the community grow
larger.  To FG-PDX this franchise process "...ensures that new Free
Geeks actually understand what "Free Geek" means, and that they're
involved in the larger Free Geek community. We also want to help
ensure that new startups have a feasible startup plan." ( taken from
http://wiki.freegeek.org/index.php/Free_Geek_Startup_Franchise_Application
)

> For one, the more or less frequent visits to Portland bother me, and
> would likely increase.
> (See my book trafficlife.com) (Flying - even worse)

In my opinion an affiliation with FG-PDX does not require frequent
trips, or any trips to Portland.  I don't imagine FG-Chicago can
afford frequent trips out there, nor would FG in Pennsylvania.  All of
the application process is done, or can be done electronically.  I
agree that increased traffic is a bad thing, especially flying.  I
personally do not fly for similar reasons.

It is true that I am going to Portland this coming weekend.  The
reason for this trip is not out of necessity but because I have many
friends in Portland, and want to spend time with the excellent folks
at Freegeek.  I do this because I do not see my self being able to go
down to Portland for a while after things getting rolling up here.  I
still don't know how I am getting there since I don't own a car.

I think it is important to be mindful of how we go about our business,
after all reducing our impact on the environment is an important
aspect of Freegeek.  If we ever had to come to the decision of having
a company truck I would be against it.  Scott had a cool idea about
bicycle pick ups for donations, and Aaron was telling me his vision of
"bicycle stage coaches"!

> On the other hand, I'm not sure how much knowledge is transferable.
> Different populations, different geography,
> after all. How much of this is just pure work and effort. And how much
> of the information would be available
> without being actually affiliated.

I believe most of the information would be available to us without
being affiliated because that is the spirit of open source.  The
exciting nature of computers and open source is the very fact that it
brings different populations,  and people from different geography
together.

> Last, would we have a Portland society asking for local support?

In the documentation that I have read, I have not come across any
mention of a finical tie between Freegeek franchises.

> At least in my mind, the idea of Freegeek is to run a shop or two and
> recycle computers, teach something
> here and there.

In my mind, the idea of Freegeek is to design a structure that allows
for recycling and re-using computer technology, while teaching people
useful skills and promoting open source software.  I believe this
cannot be done in a here and there manner.  Recycling is an extremely
important aspect of this endeavour, and the technical end of recycling
requires a lot of thought and organising, which FG-PDX has already
done, and which we are proposing to adopt and hopefully contribute to.

I believe that using the name FreeGeek, and thus affiliating with the
original "mothership" is a way of paying respect to their work.  I
think of it this way - my favorite distro is Debian, I use it day in
and day out, and I would never want to change the name or call it
something different, as I am paying respect to the folks who
originally put it together, even though it grows now through the
contributions of other people.

--
David