Hi,

I usually hate organizational issues, but I think us VAX collectors
need at least a semi-formal organizaton. Why?

- Most importantly this could help convince those that either
   decomission or scrap VAX hardware to give it away instead.
   (Yes, the last wave of decommissioned VAX 6000-600 and
   7000/10000 is coming up, plus the tail of older models that
   might occasionally still be in use.) Also think of all the
   overpriced DEC hardware suppliers who soon have to get rid
   of their stocks that no business customer needs anymore.

- Second this would give one point where we could organize trades
   and consolidate shipment issues ("VAX trecks")

- It could help us negotiate good truck rental rates. Penske has
   perhaps the best rate you can get, but not everyone gets the best
   rate (i.e. 10 cents per mile) because that's for business customers
   only, normally. But usually with an organization (and a little ad
   on the web-site) you can get good deals on vehicle rentals.

And it goes on.

- We could promote semi-public collections like little private museums
   that some of us are building.

- Finally it could help in right out fundraising for covering such
   expenses as electricity and internet connectivity for cyber-
   museums and public use VAXen.

We don't have to start all over but can take something that already
exists. (I'm also not looking to become a chairman of anything,
one of the typical incentives for people suggesting new organizations :-)
For example, I think this can start with a web site. Some of us already
have vax related domain names which we can use, like Isildur's
vaxpower.org. So, a www.vaxpower.org could be it. There's also the
VAX rescue squad, put in my several futile attempts to sign up
I realized that this project seems rather dead. I don't know if this
should be anything tightly connected with DECUS, because DECUS is
(a) too COMPAQ or whatever.com oriented, (b) too VMS oriented, and
(c) seems to have too much overhead (organizational structure,
membership fees, unrelated agenda items). But I could be wrong
about that.

Another question is if this should not be a DEC/VAX only group
but rather a vintage computer stuff group, like Sellam Ismail's
site. May be this could be it. What's important is that this site
would help accomplish above-mentioned goals, and that it would
be a showcase of our VAX collections and simply an address book
of the kind that the VAX rescue squad wanted to be. Something you
can point to when negotiating with a source. A network of friends
you can call up and ask for help in rescuing someting in an
otherwise remote area. Also a set of rules of conduct dealing with
shared hauls, (like what if: you agree to help with a haul from
a friend accross the country and agree on keeping certain things,
but suddenly a PDP-8 shows up in that lot? These are things that
could help maintain friendship and integrity and reduce grief.)

So, what do you think?

regards
-Gunther

-- 
Gunther Schadow, M.D., Ph.D.                    gschadow@regenstrief.org
Medical Information Scientist      Regenstrief Institute for Health Care
Adjunct Assistant Professor        Indiana University School of Medicine
tel:1(317)630-7960                         http://aurora.regenstrief.org