The April meeting was well attended and much accomplished in short order. The dues are now $8 per year for all members, effective immediately. The dues shall be paid once a year. Current members will have dues pro-rated to the new rate. Corresponding members (non-voting) will still pay $6 per year for 10 issues of SINCUS NEWS.
AMENDMENT TO CHARTER: Article VI, Section II: Line 5 was approved to read “President may appoint to fill vacant offices. Vacancy of office to be determined by: resignation, lapse of dues or non-performance of office. Majority of Executive Committee to determine non-performance of office.”
The Tape Library was voted an allowance of 5 tapes every month from blank tape sales. Later developments during the meeting may cause this to come up for a new motion for more blank tapes at the May meeting.
The motion to purchase 7 TIMEX-Sinclair 1000 programs was approved. Titles were selected but not noted here. Jerry Knickerbocker to order from E. Arthur Brown Co.
The duties of the Recording Secretary were expanded to handle the “Mail Order Help File”. If any member has a bad deal, fraud or a problem with a mail-order business regarding TIMEX-Sinclair products, write out the problem in as few words as possible, have supporting documentation, and sign the complaint. The Recording Secretary will seek the story from the other side via certified mail/return receipt requested;reply within 30 days. The SINCUS NEWS will then carry both sides (if provided) for all to read. Also, the names and addresses of companies you are doing business with and are having good relations with will be printed in SINCUS NEWS, with your comments, on both the service and the product.
All of the above motions were passed by hand vote, unanimously, 32 members voting. Nominations were made and the ballot will be mailed to all members a week prior to the May meeting.
I nominated Gary Ennis for President for several reasons, but the top two are his enthusiasm and his enthusiasm. Gary goes all out for what he believes in, and he does it day in and day out. He does not let little things get in his way of getting the job done. Plus Gary has depth, he is “into” many different interests, pusuits, and hobbies, gardening, fishing, fish keeping, writing, sports, and oh yeah – computers! (And those are just a couple of the ones I’m aware of.) Whoever should be the next president, and the next and the next, shall have my full support come hell or high water.
With TIMEX leaving a trail of broken businesses, magazines and promises in its wake, there are a few loose ends to pick up on and see what gives. If you haven’t written someone about your concern as to what TIMEX did to you, then read Stan Veet’s editorial in COMPUTER SHOPPER, page 12, May 1984, then sharpen the quill up and write Sinclair in the USA or Britain, TIMEX, SYNC, and then wait to see what happens next. Write to the editors of computer magazines and ask them to carry a column on Sinclair machines. When the mail gets flowing the powers to be get moving. So spend a few minutes, a stamp and voice your opinion.
For as many members as we have, there are as many reasons for owning a personal computer. My main concern is to learn all I can from the machine and others to better use it. The machine opens up a new field of individual expression, whether it be graphics, math, word processing or games. Much like the moving type gave the masses the books, IC’s and micro-electronics gave the masses personal computers. We have the choice, use others’ works of programming or develop our own. We can buy the computer or build our own. When we do something ourselves we learn a bit more about the machine and ourselves. Realizing many do not want to roll their own for many reasons, there do exist the human beings who want to do it “their way”. For these indiviuals there should be a challenge to make life interesting, to see if there isn’t a better way to do the same thing in a program, so to these beings I propose the formation of a program to challenge those that wish to participate. To those interested contact me and we’ll hash out the idea and see what we can come up with. Maybe a monthly problem to solve, time the solutions to find the fastest, or fewest bytes used or most accurate or whatever. The prize, that feeling of having done something different, better, faster, and learned how others program the same thing a different way. The cost, whatever you put into it, less of course what you get out of it. Maybe we could even sell the ideas in a book form or whatever and become rich and famous, who knows?