Linux . Conf . Au MEDIA STATEMENT FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE Perth, Western Australia (December 23rd, 2002) - It's almost Christmas, and Linux.Conf.Au is only four weeks away! * Buy a Christmas Present ------------------------- If you've been looking for the perfect present for your computer literate geeky hacker friends, then why not give them the gift of knowledge with a ticket to Linux.Conf.Au 2003? Sign them up with your email address, get the payment code, pay for it using your Visa, Mastercard, Bankcard or Amex, and then get us to update the registration records to their address! Won't they be pleased when they see they have just four weeks to get themselves to Perth in time for all the fun and games! * Draft Programme Available --------------------------- Linux.Conf.au has just published a first draft of its programme of presentations on its web site, with links to the abstracts and speakers. Why not check it out to see what you're going to be attending? * About Perth Linux Users' Group Inc. ------------------------------------- PLUG is a non-profit association for the Linux and Open Source community and aims to promote and assist this community through fortnightly seminars and workshops providing the opportunity to connect face-to-face with industry speakers and other Linux users. In addition to the free email discussion list, PLUG provides news, technical support, resources and forums on the web site (http://www.plug.linux.org.au). * About Linux.conf.au --------------------- Linux.conf.au is a national 'roaming' conference under the auspices of Linux Australia Inc (http://www.linux.org.au/). Its original incarnation was under the name "Conference of Australian Linux Users" (CALU), held in Melbourne at Monash University in 1999. In January 2001 it was renamed to "Linux.conf.au", and held in Sydney at the University of New South Wales under the direction of the Sydney Linux User Group (SLUG). In February 2002 it was held in Brisbane at the University of Queensland under the direction of the Home Unix Machine Brisbane User Group (HUMBUG). LCA has a very high standing in the international community for having a very technically focused, yet relaxed conference schedule. All presenters are selected from the community are of the highest calibre. * About Linux ------------- Linux is a core part of a modern multi-user computer operating system developed by a world-wide network of enthusiasts and professionals, and is available for free under the terms of the GNU General Public License (GPL). This license is special in that it specifically permits the end user access to the underlying source code that creates the Linux kernel, and permits them rights to modify it and redistribute it. The GPL is available from the Free Software Foundation (http://www.fsf.org). It is this model of license that leads to a "peer review" model of software development, since no part of the program remains undisclosed to any interested party. Many organisations including IBM, Hewlett-Packard, Dell Computer and Sun Microsystems are adopting Linux kernel based operating systems for a variety of tasks, from network servers to personal desktop machines and palm-sized devices. The Linux kernel, in combination with a large selection of "user space" tools and utility programs are combined to create complete computer operating systems, for example, Debian, Red Hat, SuSE, and MandrakeSoft. As well as operating on commodity Intel based personal computers, Linux also runs on a number of other types of computers, such as large mainframes and commercial network servers, down to pocket organisers and wrist watches. More information on Linux is available from http://www.linux.com/. Linux(R) is a registered trademark of Linus Torvalds. Other trademarks are property of their respective owners. Sun, Sun Microsystems, the Sun logo are trademarks or registered trademarks in the United States and in other countries. IBM is a registered trade mark of International Business Machines. Computer Associates is a trade mark of Computer Associates. MEDIA RELEASE CONTACTS: Perth Linux Users' Group Inc James Bromberger +61 417 772 286 (GMT +0800) james@rcpt.to Linux Australia Inc Anand Kumria akumria@linux.org.au PUBLICITY CONTACT: LCA 2003, Perth Linux Users' Group Inc Bernard Blackham +61 402 291 684 (GMT +0800) bernard@blackham.com.au