From: CRDGW2::CRDGW2::MRGATE::"SMTP::CRVAX.SRI.COM::RELAY-INFO-VAX" 20-JUN-1991 23:37:49.64 To: ARISIA::EVERHART CC: Subj: DECUS Questions Answered (last modified 20-Jun-91) From: RELAY-INFO-VAX@CRVAX.SRI.COM@SMTP@CRDGW2 To: Everhart@Arisia@MRGATE Received: by crdgw1.ge.com (5.57/GE 1.100) id AA01312; Thu, 20 Jun 91 15:41:55 EDT Received: From UCBVAX.BERKELEY.EDU by CRVAX.SRI.COM with TCP; Thu, 20 JUN 91 09:09:31 PDT Received: by ucbvax.Berkeley.EDU (5.63/1.42) id AA27744; Thu, 20 Jun 91 09:00:16 -0700 Received: from USENET by ucbvax.Berkeley.EDU with netnews for info-vax@kl.sri.com (info-vax@kl.sri.com) (contact usenet@ucbvax.Berkeley.EDU if you have questions) Date: 20 Jun 91 15:58:46 GMT From: cis.ohio-state.edu!zaphod.mps.ohio-state.edu!swrinde!cs.utexas.edu!ctp@ucbvax.Berkeley.EDU (Clyde T. Poole) Organization: Univ. of Texas at Austin Subject: DECUS Questions Answered (last modified 20-Jun-91) Message-Id: <43@gobi.cs.utexas.edu> Sender: info-vax-request@kl.sri.com To: info-vax@kl.sri.com *****Last modified 20-Jun-1991***** There are a few basic questions that get asked from time to time that indicate that people don't know much about DECUS and how to use its services. Monthly I post a list of answers to DECUS related questions that may be of interest to the net. If you have something to add or a correction to this posting, please let me know. Text changed since the last posting is indicated by a "|" at the beginning of the line. ----- Some basic answers to DECUS questions: 1) What does DECUS stand for and how do you pronounce it? Digital Equipment Computer Users Society The pronunciation is open for discussion. My belief is that the correct way is DEE-CUS as opposed to DECK-US. 2) How can I contact DECUS? DECUS is made up of several "chapters." People wishing to join DECUS may do so based upon their place of residence. U.S. residents join the U.S. Chapter: DECUS U.S. Chapter 333 South Street, SHR1-4/D30 Shrewsbury, MA 01545-4195 +1-508-841-3259 The U.S. Chapter currently has over 51,000 members. Canadian residents join DECUS Canada: DECUS Canada 15th Floor 505 University Avenue Toronto, Ontario M5G 2H2 +1-416-597-3437 | All DECUS leaders and staff may now be reached via electronic mail. | In general their addresses are of the form @decus.org. 3) What services does DECUS provide its members? DECUS offers many services to its members. Some of the more notable are: a) The DECUS U.S. Chapter Symposia, held twice each year. The next few Symposia will be: Atlanta, GA, May 6-10, 1991 Anaheim, CA, December 9-13, 1991 Atlanta, GA, May 4-8, 1992 If you can not attend, proceedings are available for these meetings (usually $15 per meeting). For more information on the U.S. Chapter Symposia, call +1-508-841-3302. Other chapters of DECUS also hold symposia. DECUS Canada holds | an annual symposium. The next one will be held February | 10-14, 1992 in Calgary. Contact DECUS Canada or call the | Symposium Coordinator, Ann Murakami, +1-416-597-3462, for more | information. b) The DECUS Program Library, a VERY large collection of software for almost every computer DEC has ever made, which is available for essentially the cost of reproduction and distribution. The current issue of the library catalog is the 1990/1991 edition. The hardcopy catalog is available free of charge to DECUS members. An online version of the catalog is now available as a pilot project of the Library Committee from acfcluster.nyu.edu (anonymous FTP in the directory [.DECUS]) and on BITNET from VMSSERV@NYUACF (use VMSSERV messages). More information can be | obtained by calling +1-508-841-2940 or by sending e-mail to | DECUSLIBRARY@DECUS.ORG. Information on preparing a submission | for the library can be obtained by calling +1-508-841-3514. c) The DECUS U.S. Chapter Newsletter, a monthly collection of Newsletters from the Special Interest Groups, DECUServe and the Library which is available on a yearly subscription basis (currently $40 annually). Subscription information is available by calling +1-508-841-3502. d) Regional Conferences, local users groups from time to time host DECUS mini-symposia focused on some subset of Digital products. e) DECUSCOPE, a quarterly information publication sent free to all DECUS U.S. Chapter members. f) DECUS Merit Scholarship Program, a Merit Scholarship has been established to be awarded annually to a DECUS member or member's child. The DECUS member must have had membership in DECUS for at least three (3) years as of January 1 of the award year in order to be considered. The annual Merit Scholarship competition is conducted by the National Merit Scholarship Corp., whose purposes are to identify and honor talented high school students and to award college undergraduate scholarships to the most outstanding of them. For more information contact Ms. Paula Morin, +1-508-480-3255. g) DECUServe, a teleconferencing system using VAX Notes. It is available to all U.S. Chapter DECUS members for a $60 per year subscription charge. Subscribers also pay their own long distance telephone charges. It is the intent of this system to allow members of DECUS to interact with each other concerning technical topics, on a day-to-day basis. A subscription form is available in the January 1988 issue of DECUSCOPE and in the back of the combined Newsletters. You can also obtain | information on-line by calling +1-800-521-8950 or by TELNETing | to DECUSERVE.DECUS.ORG and logging in as INFORMATION or by calling | +1-508-841-3511. You can receive a copy of a DECUServe | application by sending mail to APPLICATION@DECUSERVE.DECUS.ORG. | If you include ps or postscript in the mail title you will | receive a postscript version of the application, ln3 or ln03 | will result in an application suitable for printing on an LN03, | otherwise you will receive flat text. h) Seminars, a program of seminars on topics of interest to DECUS members, presented at various times and locations around the U.S. and immediately preceding symposia. Call Diane Spirio at +1-508-841-3307 for more information. i) DECUShare, a new service which will allow subscribers to access the SIG Symposia Distribution Tapes and a subset of the DECUS Library on-line. This service is not yet available but funding has been approved. Watch for the announcement of availability. 4) What is a SIG and a UIG? SIGs are Special Interest Groups. There are many SIGs in DECUS. | Some are: Artificial Intelligence, Business and Office Application, | Integrationa and Management, Business Applications, DAARC, Data | Management, 4GL, EDUSIG, Electronic Publishing, Graphics, Micro, | Languages and Tools, MUMPS, Networks, Personal Computer, RSTS, | Security, Site Management & Training, Technology Hardware & | Engineering, UNISIG (UNIX, ULTRIX), and VAX Systems. UIGs are User Interest Groups. These are really either new SIGs in the making or old SIGs going out of business. They provide the same kinds of services that SIGs provide but are short of volunteer leadership. Business Practices, Third Party Providers and User Interfaces are examples of current UIGs. SIGs and UIGs sponsor sessions at symposia, publish newsletters and in other ways provide services to DECUS members interested in particular subsets of problems and applications of DEC computers and software. 5) What is a LUG? A LUG is a Local Users Group. There are many LUGs throughout the U.S., Canada and the rest of the world (the current count is 158 in the U.S. alone). LUGs usually are associated with one or more SIGs. For example many LUGs deal with the problems of VAX systems only. To find a LUG near you, call +1-508-841-3289. 6) How much does it cost to join DECUS and where can I get a membership form? Membership in DECUS is open to anyone and is FREE. Membership forms may be obtained from the DECUS office, LUGs and the back of the Combined Newsletters. To check your membership status or to notify DECUS of a change of address call +1-508-841-3418, +1-508-841-3446 or +1-508-841-3659. ----- DATATRIEVE, DECUS, DECUSCOPE, IAS, RSTS, RSX, RT, ULTRIX and VAX are all trademarks of Digital Equipment Corp. UNIX is a trademark of Unix System Laboratories, Inc. MUMPS is a registered trademark of Massachusetts General Hospital ----- Clyde T. Poole - Technical Coordinator, Facilities and Equipment (in real life) DECUS U. S. Chapter, Communications Committee Chairman and Member of the Management Council (in my spare time) Univ. of Texas at Austin Internet: ctp@cs.utexas.edu DCS: POOLE Dept. of Computer Sciences UUCP: {uunet,harvard}!cs.utexas.edu!ctp Taylor Hall 2.124 BITNET: ctp@UTXVMS SPAN: UTSPAN::UTADNX::ctp Austin, TX 78712-1188 DECUServe: POOLE VOICE: +1-512-471-9551