[dfs3] draft text for Community Support Centre blog

[mark]

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Hey everyone,

Trev suggested we put something about our skill-share on
durhamcsc.wordpress.com and I said I'd draft something. Please could
people chip in with corrections / improvements? Ta.


Title:

Free software for everyone: a DIY computer project in Durham


Body:

Have you ever wondered why you have to buy a new computer every few
years, even if the new one doesn't do much more than the old one?
Perhaps you've put an old computer in a cupboard because it doesn't
seem to work right any more, and you've never found the cash to get it
fixed?

What if someone showed you how to fix it yourself, and gave you the
skills to make it work how you wanted?

That's just what's happening in a new project we're supporting along
with two other local groups. The Durham Free Software Skill-Share
(dfs3 for short) aims to give everyone access to a working computer in
their own home.

The way we'll be doing this is by taking computers that are a few
years old - either the one in your cupboard or an unwanted machine
from elsewhere - and setting them up using Free Software. You'd be
surprised how well an old computer can work if you take away the
programs you don't need and use an efficient operating system like
Linux (that's a replacement for Microsoft's Windows or Apple's OSX).

Another surprise is that learning how to do this isn't all that
difficult, and can be a lot of fun if you go about it the right way.
And once you've learned the basics, you can help support other people
to get up to your level, while you take on whatever other IT challenge
is relevant to you. It's self-directed learning, supported by
volunteers from North East Linux User Group and others.

We'll also be setting up a couple of computers for visitors to the
support centre to use.

Re-using old machines has lots of social and environmental benefits,
which you can read more about here (links to skillshare proposal
document and blog). That's why we're also involving Transition Durham,
who have a lot of expertise in building community resilience as well
as promoting responsible use of resources.

Our launch event is at the Miners' Hall on July 26th 2014 and is open
to all - but please let us know to expect you by emailing
dfs3 at riseup.net or by phoning 0191 303 8968. We'd be happy to discuss
any special requirements you might have.

And by the way, some of the people who most need our help with this
won't get to hear about it from the internet if they haven't got
access to a computer. We're relying on word-of-mouth communication to
reach people, so have a think about it; do you know someone who
doesn't get to hear about good things because they're not on line?
Please give them our phone number.

(insert graphic of flier)
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