Search the FAQ Archives

3 - A - B - C - D - E - F - G - H - I - J - K - L - M
N - O - P - Q - R - S - T - U - V - W - X - Y - Z
faqs.org - Internet FAQ Archives

Convergence International, the non-Wintel user group, FAQ v2.30

(MultiPage )
[ Usenet FAQs | Web FAQs | Documents | RFC Index | Forum archive ]
Archive-name: computer-groups/convergence
Posting-Frequency: monthly
Last-modified: 11 Jun 1998
Version: 2.30
URL: http://www.convergence.org/info/faq.html

See reader questions & answers on this topic! - Help others by sharing your knowledge
     Convergence International, the non-Wintel user group, FAQ v2.30

  This FAQ contains information and answers to common questions about
 the non-Wintel computer user group Convergence International. The
 latest version of this FAQ is also available on the web in HTML format
 at http://www.convergence.org/info/faq.html


Subject: 1. Contents. 1. Contents. 2. What is Convergence International? 3. Why was Convergence International created? 4. What do you mean by "non-Wintel"? 5. Which platforms do you support? 6. How do I join Convergence International? 7. What can I do to help Convergence International? 8. What is the non-Wintel news service? 9. What is CIhoo? 10. What newsgroups are available for topics relating to Convergence? 11. Contact details and credits.
Subject: 2. What is Convergence International? Convergence International is a user group for users of all non-Wintel computers (see section 4 for a definition of non-Wintel). Convergence brings together users of many different alternative and minority computers, organises projects, and produces information to increase public awareness of these platforms.
Subject: 3. Why was Convergence International created? We believe that if a time comes when one single platform is the only one in use the computer industry will suffer. Without competition there is stagnation, and no one platform can hope to be best suited to _every_ task. While there are alternatives development is spurred on by competition, and people are free to choose the platform which best suits their needs. Unfortunately we are coming increasingly close to a single platform dominating the computing world, Microsoft Windows running on an Intel CPU. More and more people are simply unaware that there are any viable alternatives, and so use the so called industry standard platform. And so we formed Convergence, to provide information to re-educate people and show that there is more to computing than a single operating system and a single processor, and to support users of alternative platforms.
Subject: 4. What do you mean by "non-Wintel"? When we say "non-Wintel" we mean all computer platforms other than Microsoft Windows running on an Intel-type processor. This includes: Acorn, Amiga, Apple, ARM, A\Box, Be, Network Computers, PowerPC, Psion, and all types of Unix. We would rather not use the phrase "non-Wintel" to describe what we support, but short of listing all the platforms we _do_ support every time we currently say "non-Wintel", it's the only option.
Subject: 5. Which platforms do you support? We support all non-Wintel platforms, including: Acorn, Amiga, Apple, ARM, A\Box, Be, Network Computers, PowerPC, Psion, and all types of Unix. However at the moment we are concentrating on Acorn, Amiga, and Apple, because most members use these platforms, and we are short of volunteers to help with information about other platforms.
Subject: 6. How do I join Convergence International? It's very easy to join Convergence and it is totally FREE. Simply go to http://www.convergence.org/support/join.html and fill in the form, or e-mail us at join@convergence.org and tell us your name, e-mail address, and what computers you use. As a member you will receive a regular newsletter containing news relating to Convergence International and non-Wintel platforms, as well as priority access to future developments such as the non-Wintel search engine.
Subject: 7. What can I do to help Convergence International? We are always looking for volunteers to help with various projects. Once you have joined you can do as much or as little to help as you want or have time for, anything from simply displaying our logo on your web pages or our name in your sig, to running a project, to managing a section of the web site. Further details of how to help Convergence are available at http://www.convergence.org/support/helpus.html
Subject: 8. What is the non-Wintel news service? Convergence provide a non-Wintel news service which gives summaries of important events for the various platforms we support. We search the Internet for news items that are of interest, and provide a summary with links to other sites for more detailed information. There are also weekly comments by members in the Member's Opinion section. There are individual news pages for the following platforms: Acorn, Amiga, Apple, ARM, Be, Network Computers (NCs), Psion, and a section for miscellaneous news which is relevant to Convergence. Also the news summary page gives a brief rundown of the current important news for all the supported platforms. Convergence places the most relevant items there for quick reference, and the page is updated nearly every day - for the latest non-Wintel news check it often! It is also possible to register to receive an e-mail when a news page is updated. The non-Wintel news service from Convergence is totally FREE - it is part of our voluntary mission to make people aware of the advantages of non-Wintel platforms and to help users of such platforms. The non-Wintel news service is at http://www.convergence.org/news/
Subject: 9. What is CIhoo? CIhoo (pronounced See-Who) is the Convergence International non-Wintel search engine, a system comprising a hierarchy of non-Wintel related web site data and a cgi programme for finding entries. We are currently collecting links and reviewing non-Wintel web sites to create a database of quality non-Wintel links with independent descriptions. To beta test CIhoo go to http://search.convergence.org/
Subject: 10. What newsgroups are available for topics relating to Convergence? We found that there was nowhere where users of different non-Wintel platforms could come together to discuss issues relating to Convergence International, for example intercompatibility between these platforms and users working together. Existing newsgroups were platform specific and often didn't allow discussions of other platforms, so we created the newsgroup alt.comp.convergence as a neutral ground where users of all non-Wintel computers could discuss issues relating to Convergence International and our projects. If alt.comp.convergence isn't available on your local news server ask them to carry it. If all else fails alt.comp.convergence is available on the web at sites like http://www.dejanews.com/ and http://www.feedme.org/ Note: as with all alt.* newsgroups alt.comp.convergence can receive inappropriate mass postings which have nothing to do with the topic of the newsgroups (ie "spam"). As soon as the new mod.* hierarchy is available we will create a moderated newsgroup for Convergence topics.
Subject: 11. Contact details and credits. If you have have any unanswered questions or suggestions for additions to the FAQ please contact me by e-mail at js@convergence.org. Further information about Convergence can be found on our web site at the URL below. E-mail : enquiries@convergence.org Web : http://www.convergence.org/ Written and maintained by James Sears <js@convergence.org>. Copyright 1997, 1998, by Convergence International.

User Contributions:

Comment about this article, ask questions, or add new information about this topic:




MultiPage

[ Usenet FAQs | Web FAQs | Documents | RFC Index ]

Send corrections/additions to the FAQ Maintainer:
James Sears <js@convergence.eu.org>





Last Update March 27 2014 @ 02:11 PM