[ed note: Below when it says to contact "me", please get a hold of John Buono or me, and we'll pass along your suggestion to the right person.]
1 - Thanks to groups renewing membership for 2005
2 - What to expect in Las Vegas during the 2005 annual APCUG conference and CES
3 - Special CompUSA PC holiday event - December 16
4 - Does your group already have an alliance with CompUSA?
5 - Free advertising for your group on the "radio"
1 - Thanks to the following groups that have renewed their membership for 2005. We're up to 23 groups out of 32 renewing -- outstanding!!
Arizona Alliance of Computer Club, Arizona Society for Computer Information, Inc., Armory Park Senior Computer Group, Colorado River Computer Club, Colorado Senior Network User's Group, Computer Booters of Sun Lakes, Computer Club of Green Valley, Front Range PC Users Group, Grand Computers, Islander Computer User Group, Little Blue PC Club, Mile High Computer Resource Organization (MICRO), Mt. View Computer Users Group, New Mexico Computer Society, Phoenix PC Users Group, Pikes Peak Computer Appliation Society, Sierra Vista IBM PC Users Group, Sunflower Computer Club, Sunland Village Community Assn. Computer Club, Sunland Village East Computer Club, Tucson IBM PC Club, Utah Computer Society, Windows on the Rockies User Group.
2 - What to expect in Las Vegas during the 2005 annual APCUG conference and CES
January in Las Vegas can be windy, cold and wet as well as warm and sunny. Come prepared for rain, cold and even a balmy 60 degrees. Just because we are in a desert, do not assume it is shorts and short sleeve weather. When the sun goes down, it can be very cool, if not downright cold. Bring good walking shoes and buy water while you are here. The sodium content in the Las Vegas water is the highest in the nation. If you have high blood pressure or any other health issues that require you to limit your sodium, stay away from the local water.
The conference details can be seen on the APCUG webpage at http://www.apcug.net/Events/Fall2004/2005ConfSched_post.htm. Note that these may change as vendors are added and roundtables are confirmed. Please check often and be sure to register. Bring a sweater or light jacket to the event since the meeting rooms can often be cool.
There are many activities in Las Vegas and our city changes very quickly. If you are interested in what is going on and what you can see, check out this webpage for everything Las Vegas, www.lasvegas.com.
The news is out that the editors of our groups are not considered "editors" for the purposes of a media pass at the CES show. Sign up for the regular pass which is free for exhibits. Get registered before you come. Go to http://www.cesweb.org to register for the January 2005 show.
Transportation is good from the airport. You can get a cab for about $20, take a shuttle to the hotel for about $4 or take a limousine for 6 for $60 to $80 an hour. The limousine services can be found at http://www.lasvegas.com/guidebook/explore_las_vegas/getting_around/limos.htm so you can give them a call and make a reservation if there are a number of people coming in your party. I highly recommend you do not rent a car. The number of accidents here are astounding and we have the highest auto insurance rates in the nation due to accidents.
If you have not been in Las Vegas during a CES show, you will truly be surprised at the congestion and mass of people. Be prepared to wait for taxis, restaurants and bathrooms.
Come and enjoy. If you have any questions email me and I will get back to you as soon as possible.
Donna Sword, dsword@apcug.net
President, Las Vegas PC Users Group
APCUG Advisor, Region
3 - Special CompUSA PC holiday event - December 16
Don't forget to let your members know about the special PC User Group event sponsored by CompUSA, an APCUG annual sponsor. On December 16, PC group members are invited to their local CompUSA store to participate in savings throughout the store. The hours are 7:00 - 9:00 am and refreshments will be served.
4 - Does your group already have an alliance with CompUSA?
Please let me know if your group already has an alliance with CompUSA such as discounts for members, use of training rooms for SIG meetings, etc.
5 - Free advertising for your group on the "radio"
John Iasiuolo (eye a sue low) from Computer Outlook has offered his show as a sounding board for user groups around the world. You can hear some of his previous shows at www.computeroutlook.com/audiostudio.html and can listen to his show on the web via streaming media on Monday, Wednesday and Fridays from 6 to 7 pm PDT. If you are interested in being on the air to share a tip or trick in working with your user group or an upcoming special event, please let me (or Donna Sword, dsword@apcug.net) know if your group would like to participate so we can get you scheduled. This is just another benefit of membership in APCUG -- free advertising for your group.
That's all for this NOOZ. Please let me know if you find it useful information to share with your group - it's a benefit of your membership in APCUG. Do you have a great fund raising idea, membership contest that really brings in the members, or innovative program idea - send me the information so it can be shared with other user groups in the region.