[ALUG] Minutes of the 2nd meeting

[Richard]

This was the second meeting of the Arusha Technical Forum and was held at 
the Conservation Resource 
Center, Arusha, on Saturday August 17, 2013. 

The meeting started at 03:30PM.

*The attendees were:*

   1. Ismail
   2. Erik
   3. Mustapha
   4. Noel
   5. Hamisi
   6. James
   7. Richard


* Agenda:*

   1. Further discussion of ideas raised in meeting 1.
   2. Deciding on the next step.
   3. Any other business.


*Proceedings:*

   1. Discussion on ideas raised in meeting 1:
      - We reviewed the first of our 2 main ideas: presentation and idea 
      sharing sessions. Given our <br /> shared enthusiasm and passion in 
      the industry, having meet-ups to share ideas can be both <br /> 
      enlightening and entertaining. We envision a typical session involving one 
      or two speakers <br /> who would present a short talk or interactive 
      session on a topic of general interest. This might <br />be something very 
      technical like certain design patterns in your favourite language or a new 
      <br /> interesting library, or business-related say "Where the internet 
      industry in the country is headed", <br /> or even something on the 
      technical margins like how IT policy or tax structures are affecting <br /> 
      the industry.
   

   - The second of our 2 main ideas is having a computer lab / workspace 
      that we could potentially use for hands-on learning, training, and or 
      collaboration. In comparison to the first idea this is something that will 
      require significant thought, research, and resources to get off the ground. 
      Part of the thinking here is to help each other grow and tackle problems by 
      having a space for collaboration but also providing room to nurture and 
      entice young people from upper secondary school and university. Part of the 
      inspiration is similar initiatives such as Kinu (kinu.co.tz) in Dar and 
      iHub (ihub.co.ke) in Nairobi. While being inspired by them, the goal is not 
      at all to imitate them but to see how something of the sort can benefit us 
      and the community at large. There is already potential sources of resources 
      including internet bandwidth.
   

   - 
      - The current name of our group as it appears on our online group is 
      the Arusha Technical Forum. While meaningful, it does not necessarily grasp 
      the essence of what we are trying to do. So we would like some ideas on a 
      name, preferably a Kiswahili one. As we begin to refine our vision and be 
      clear about what it is we want to do we expect to naturally settle on a 
      fitting name.
   


   1. In moving forward, it is important to get some more input and 
   thoughts from the from the wider group and to conduct some basic 
   need/feasibility research. With that in mind we have created 2 working 
   groups to spearhead the two ideas. The groups will do some research and 
   compile online feedback and thoughts. Ideas should be contributed to the 
   online group as they come up for everyone to follow. Working group 1 
   comprises of James, Mustapha, and Richard and will spearhead the first 
   idea. Working group 2 comprises of Erik, Hamisi and Noel.



   1. Our next meeting will be at 5:30PM on Thursday September 5th on the 
   4th floor of the Arusha City Complex, next to St. Thomas hospital. The 
   agenda of the meeting will be to review the ideas collected and refined by 
   our 2 working groups and considering their feasibility moving forward.
   

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