IRC agenda

Finances

1. Regular council meetings on IRC. I think the AGM went well, and our
previous IRC meetings also have been good. As the logs make them self
documenting I think that this should be the primary decision making
venue. Next one will be sometime next week.

2. Decide on some short term goals. To date we have been big on long
term goals. That didn't translate into short term goals or serious
action. When we did decide on short term goals (Patent action, web site,
SSC document) we succeeded. Here are some ideas:

- Hold a business seminar that costs ($30), and give away free CD's.

- Prepare a mailout to 200 Primary Schools with Free Software. Follow
up with questionare after a month or two to see how the software is
being used. Mailout must include a 'sales' booklet which describes each
software package, and how they can install it on all their school
computers.

- Gain Sponsorship of two Major Vendors for above $1000 each. This
involves making contact will all major vendors, putting together a
sponsorship agreement, meeting with them, and selling them on the
benefits.

- Begin letter writing campaign to put pressure on Government to add
restrictions around software patents in the new patent bill.

- Contact all LUG's in NZ and provide them with information about what
the NZOSS is, what kind of funding we offer for Installfests (I suggest
a blanket $200 for any installfest), the work we are doing in the policy
and patent arena, and how to support us and become a member.

- Prepare a mailout (not software) to software companies inviting them
to become members, and appealing to their desire not to let software
patents kill innovation in the software industry.

- Contact the NZCS and Software Association and have them publish
details of what we are doing against software patents.

- Provide links to organisations which proide open source on the web
site (copyleft.co.nz etc).

- Clean up the membership database, and deploy a membership control
system to the web site.

- Create another newsletter to members, in preference we should perhaps
send a PDF newsletter by email, but we should also be prepared to send a
paper version to postal addresses.

- Once the membership database is cleaned up we should create and send
the next set of invoices to members. We should make them aware of the
new membership level. The invoice will also have the newsletter in it.

3. Once we decide what out short term goals are we should set definite
timetables and give spcific people sole responsbility and authority to
execute on those tasks, along with budget approval.