This month I am starting a series of short online interviews with our volunteers, which may possibly develop into a monthly column eventually featuring all SPCUG volunteers. To be included in Sacra Blue/eBlue, these interviews will give the members an insight into the activities of our many volunteer positions and a taste of the satisfaction in being a group volunteer.
Kathy Anderson, Question & Answer Editor...
What SPCUG position are you now most involved in?
Kathy: Although not as visible as helping the membership director at the general meeting (GM), I'm probably more involved in my Q&A Editor responsibilities. The position requires more time and, hopefully, provides greater overall benefits to our membership.
Can you give me a brief description?
Kathy: As editor, I take Q&A material—primarily from transcripts of the GM open microphone session— and turn the spoken words and inferences into readable print copy. Crystal Friedrichs does a wonderful job transcribing what's actually said, whether it makes sense or not. Unfortunately, what did make sense to the audience who heard the all-too-often half-asked questions or half-stated responses in context with visible gestures of agreement, puzzlement, etc., doesn't usually translate well in print for others to read and understand.
What do you find most enjoyable about this work?
Kathy: Making sense out of it all can be fun and a real challenge, particularly when technical names, procedures, or terms are involved, and especially if the speaker starts talking in abbreviations or cryptic incomplete sentences! I'm not a qualified technical person, so can only try to sew the pieces together into what seems logical and grammatical, then rely on the technical editor who follows me to make sure the content is correct.
What do you NOT look forward to about this job?
Kathy: Other than the frustrating times working with a transcript full of unfinished or totally out-of-context sentences (yes, I have been known to mutter a few unprintable words), the time constraints are my least favorite part of the job. The deadlines for printing usually don't fit in with the overtime requirements of my paid job, so getting an article out on time can be a real headache. But lately that hasn't been an issue, because we just haven't been getting much Q&A material. Hopefully, the lack of material means members don't have as many questions or are getting their answers from other sources, such as the GM Q&A table.
How has volunteer work been a plus for you?
Kathy: Volunteering gets me involved and interacting with people outside the work–home–friends cycle. I meet new people at each meeting. My particular volunteer position is also very educational. I may not understand most of the technical stuff, but I sure know more now than I would have had I not gotten involved.
The benefits have also overflowed into my non-PC world as well. I recently was able to list the position on an application for grandfathering into a certification program at work. I may not get the certificate, but the application sure looked more complete! I encourage anyone with the least interest to try volunteering, even if only in a short-term assignment, and even if you're not a "techie." The more you are involved, the more benefit you may get out of your SPCUG membership.
Future Interviews
If you would like to be interviewed, please let me know and I will send you an interview request. I would like to end up with about 4-6 paragraphs of total material and I hope it will only take up a few minutes of your time.
Volunteers in Action
Lori Nadelle, a new member of the group, has volunteered to be the Educational Media Librarian. Lori will be responsible for lending videotapes, books, and software to our members and visitors at the General meetings. She will be collecting deposits for the loaned materials and keeping up the books on the library’s inventory. I wish her well with this job, and I hope you will, as well, by stopping by the Media Library table at the next meeting.
Volunteer Thanks
Mary Lint will be resigning as our Educational Media Librarian after serving several years in that position. Mary’s table was right next to my Volunteer table at the meetings, so I was able to see her put a great deal of work into this job. Mary loaned many pieces of material to educationally hungry computer people. She was especially busy at the March meeting reorganizing and bringing the books up-to-date for the transition. Thank, Mary, for a job well done!
Volunteer Openings
Please take a look at the following volunteer openings. If you think you can help, contact the "contact person" for that position or e-mail me.
1. The group is in great need of transcription persons for the general meeting. That involves listening to tapes and typing up everything that was said or done at the general meeting. Terri Naleway did this for years without a complaint, at least that I heard. Dennis Solheim has been doing it for several months. Despite great dedication on both their parts, it often takes more than just a couple of volunteers to transcribe on a regular basis. This is so important to the readers of Sacra Blue and eBlue. Please help. Contact: Tom Anderson.
2. We need several volunteers who will visit as many computer stores as possible on a monthly basis, and ask them to make our membership information available to their customers. If we could get into the big stores like Frys, CompUSA, and Computer Warehouse, we would probably get a lot of coverage. Other big computer sellers include office stores like OfficeMax, Staples, and Office Depot. Also, we should include electronic stores like Good Guys, Circuit City, Best Buy, and even Radio Shack. Then we could try the other computer-specific stores like Gateway and all the mom-and-pop computer stores. Contact: Ken Hopkins.
3. An additional volunteer(s) will be needed to do the research on area computer stores for an "area guide to computer stores" booklet. We would want to know the name of the store, all of their locations in the area (and phone numbers), the product lines they carry, and any additional relevant information, including a consultant section in the guide as well. This would be updated and published periodically as a PDF. This would be a handy resource for everyone. We might sell ad space in this publication, but not require it for entry. We would create a form for the volunteer or the store to fill out. Contact: Ken Hopkins.
4. More writers are needed for Sacra Blue and eBlue. You would be writing tips for a tips column (may also be used as filler). Also would write news articles about current events. Evaluate hardware and/or software and write product reviews, and write stories on how you solved some computer problem. Contact: Ken Hopkins.
I am sure you will find this volunteer work very rewarding and it could even create some interesting opportunities for you. You may be surprised how little time is involved in some of these positions.
