The candidates that have been nominated thus far are:

For President:

Steve Schiffman - I am running for the position of President of the Southern California OS/2 User Group. During the past year I have served as a Director, Vice-President and Network SIG Leader. In previous years I have held the positions of Vice-President and Treasurer.

The focus of SCOUG is to provide support to our members and the community at large for the OS/2 operating system. User groups are a vital resource for individual and small office/home office users as IBM has shifted its focus to a Corporate Network Computing and e-Business Internet stratgey. It is the challenge of SCOUG to meet this new direction of IBM's and contine to be a relevant resource for our members, doing for members what is not being done elsewhere.

SCOUG has had an interesting and exciting year in 1999. We held Warp Expo West. We supported Warpstock Atlanta '99. We have had excellent program presentations at our monthly meetings. We have held monthly Installation and Help Desk workshops, including an on-line internet IRC Help Desk. We hold 5 SIG meetings each month and we publish the OS/2 For You newsletter monthly. I would like to thank all of the SCOUG members that have contributed so greatly to the success of all our activities this past year.

As a President of SCOUG, I hope to meet the challenge to keep the user group relevant to our membership and lead SCOUG into the future. As an organization, we need to continue to provide the activities and social environment that satisfy our current members' needs and also attract new members. We need to maintain SCOUG as an information resource for beginners and experienced users alike. And finally, SCOUG must continue to increase awareness of OS/2 in the computing community.

Please support our user group through active participation. Let your Board members know what you would like. Is there a new SIG you would like to have? Would you be willing to lead a SIG? What other activities would you like? Would you be willing to chair a committee to carry out an activity? The success of the User Group is what you and your leaders make it.

I look forward to your vote and support.

Mark Abramowitz - It's been another year, and time for another election statement. This year, I've decided to run for President. I think that it's important each position have at least two candidates running to offer members options for the future. I also believe that I have the vision and leadership skills necessary to enhance the organization, and better use the resources that we have at our disposal.

This will be an important year for the organization. With a stable, but somewhat declining membership base, we need to ensure that our membership will continue to be served effectively. And with the upcoming release of a new OS/2 client, we must make use of this opportunity to build our organization, and further its goals.

Last year, we had the finest and most successful OS/2 event anywhere, which enhanced the visibility of both the organization, and its member's chosen operating system. We also had the world premier of a new OS/2 application at a monthly meeting. We must continue to build upon this success, and I know that I can deliver to members a year that will do so.

Further, the new President must ensure that organizational needs that threaten our very existence are met. This includes taking seriously and addressing problems with failures to submit corporate documents to appropriate agencies. Having run or directed non-profit agencies for twenty years, I understand what needs to be done, and the importance of acting in a timely manner. And as an elected official in the County, I understand the importance of focusing on the needs of the membership, both short and long-term. Lastly, as a small business owner, I understand the critical need to prioritize organizational activity on those things that most impact the mission of the group.

During a time when it's been increasingly difficult to schedule new, interesting and relevant programs at our monthly meetings, I think that I've been creative, with interesting and informative topics and presenters. Meanwhile I've also provided our members with icing on the cake - nice raffle prizes.

I know that I can provide the membership with the same quality job as President, and I ask for your support.

For Vice President:

Gary Wong - I thank all of you, the members of SCOUG, for having elected me as Secretary last year. It has been a great privilege to serve you these past 3 years in this capacity.

This year, I am setting my sights a bit higher; to be Vice-President of SCOUG. I would appreciate your support.

As Vice President, I would, as the need arises, conduct the SCOUG general meetings and the Board of Directors meetings whenever the President is not available. Hopefully, that need should be few and far between. But I sure do not plan on being bored as Vice President!

This past year has seen a number of highlights for SCOUG, such as:

1. A hugely successful Warp Expo West (thanks to Steve S., Rollin, Terry, Carla, & Peter, plus the many volunteers and presenters)
2. SCOUG's participation in Warpstock 99
3. The birth of the Sundial SIG
4. The SCOUG CD of the Month as an evolution from the old Diskette of the Month
5. The new and improved computer lab at Eastside Christian Schools (Heritage Campus) for our weeknight SIG meetings and OS/2 Help Desk.

We see some challenges in the coming year:

1. Sustaining our membership and meeting attendance levels, while looking for ways to increase both levels (via electronic advertising, etc.). It is now made even more of a challenge due to the fact that as of the February meeting, we no longer meet at the IBM facility. Another reason is due to OS/2's low profile while Linux, Win 2000, & other OS's grab the spotlight. Also, if you read the trade publications, the computing paradigms are shifting from the desktop to the Internet.

2. Will the rumored Aurora-based OS/2 client (as reported in Sm@rt Reseller on Feb. 7) cause any renewed interest in OS/2? Depending on the features included, we may be able to seize the opportunity to remind people that OS/2 "ain't dead yet"!

3. Do we do another Warp Expo West? (Especially since Warpstock 2000 is in Philadelphia.)

4. As you see by who's running and not running, the leadership of SCOUG will change due to various factors (work, personal life, family, etc). The new officers and Board will need your help in various ways, such as:
   1. What presentations would you like to see in the main meetings and SIG's?
   2. The officers and Board need members like you to volunteer for various duties (a special thank-you to volunteers such as Dave Winter & Bob Strader with regards to the coffee preparation and video projector, for example). Without people like them, our jobs would be much harder.
   3. Any other input you can provide to the officers and Board.

Again, I would welcome your support at the ballot box come March 18. Thank you.

For Secretary:

There are no candidates for this position at this time.

For Treasurer:

Steven Levine - Hello fellow SCOUG'ers.

As you might know, I was asked to join the board to fill the seat left vacant by Paul Wirtz. Now, I'd like to opportunity to continue this work.

SCOUG has always been a well regarded influence in the OS/2 community and I will do all that I can to ensure that this tradition continues.

Thank you.

For the Five Non-Officer Positions:

Melanie Chernoy - Hi, my name is Melanie Chernoy and I am running for a non-officer position on the Board of Directors for SCOUG.

Last year, I served as Treasurer, Membership Administrator, and "Door Opener." (Now that we are no longer at the IBM facility, we may be able to retire that job!). This year, I have offered to continue as Membership Administrator and would like to tackle the challenging job of Newsletter Editor.

I know that we are all willing to put in a little extra effort for what we believe in, or we wouldn't still be using OS/2. And like OS/2, without your continued support, our club will lose its strength. We have the luxury of a sound financial position, but we need people to volunteer a little of their time and ideas to help keep the club alive.

You don't have to do much. Just speaking up will be a big help. Let the board know what you would like to see at a meeting. Send an email about how you use OS/2. If everyone contributes a little, we'll have more than enough energy to keep us going. You can't always depend on someone else to keep things running for you. We need to give our leaders a chance to rest or they will get burned out and then where will our club be?

In summary, I ask for your vote, but more importantly, I ask for your help in keeping SCOUG "alive and kicking."

Sheridan George (incumbent) - OK here's the low-down. Even though I have been elected to the Board of Directors for two years running there is no term limit to affect my running for a third term. Now that we have that rules stuff out of the way we can get on with the political stuff.

Folks! we (the club) are at a critical juncture in our existence. We have several problems with which we (the Board of Directors) are now confronted. We must reinvigorate our newsletter, OS/2 for You. Due to circumstances beyond our control at IBM, we have to nail down a permanent place to meet that will meet our several needs. We need to continue to fine tune our mix of SIGs. We must look forward and plan for the future of the club while the existence of OS/2 is uncertain. Most of all we need continuity on the board. My election will bring that continuity.

Now that the political nonsense is out of the way let me share how I really feel. I have enjoyed being your choice for director-at-large. I would like to continue serving in that capacity for one more year. Kindly consider electing me for a "three-peat."

John Hlavac

Terry Warren (currently president)

Be Sure to Vote

The election process is straightforward. The offices are voted on in order - first President, then Vice President, Secretary, and Treasurer. Then the five non-officer positions are voted on all together. Before the voting begins for each position, additional nominations are entertained and the candidates are asked to give brief talks about their reasons for running and goals for SCOUG. If a candidate is not elected to a position, he can be nominated for a subsequent position.

If You Can't Be at the Meeting, Vote by Proxy

There's really no excuse not to vote, because you can do so whether you're at the meeting or not.

If you aren't voting in person, be sure to let Gary Wong, SCOUG's current Secretary, know before the meeting. He'll want a signed and dated statement of either who should cast your votes or who you are voting for. So, either send it to Gary in advance or have the person who'll be voting for you give it to Gary before the meeting starts.

Want to know more about managing SCOUG?

SCOUG's bylaws spell out how SCOUG should operate. They are on the web site at:

And while you are on the web site, take a look at SCOUG's ethical guidelines: