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by Claude Lecoeuvre
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F
irst let me thank all of you for having given me the privilege of being
your president in an exciting time of many changes. It was more work
than expected, but both the duties and the friends were enjoyable.
Just before the Fall 1996 Charlotte meeting, however, I had the sad task of sending a condolence letter on behalf of the Cray User Group (CUG) to the family, colleagues, and friends of Seymour Cray. I must say that it was not an easy thing to do; but I must confess also that I was proud to send a testimony of how important Seymour was in my mind--and I believe, in yours. I thank Les Davis for reading CUG's message to the participants of the memorial ceremony in Chippewa, Wisconsin. And thank you again, Seymour. I would like to thank our friends at the North Carolina Supercomputing Center, who set up for us a well organized conference in an unusual region of the United States (at least for the non-American attendees). Everything was so well planned and staffed that it seemed effortless. I know it was not, and the committee was kept very busy in planning and running the event. * * * I want also to thank the kind and hard-working friends who participated in the past years in making the CUG a truly efficient user group. I enjoyed very much working with the past Board of Directors, and I think we made some progress in reenvisioning CUG. My specials thanks go to Sally Haerer, who was in charge of the programs for Barcelona and Charlotte (I received many comments about their quality), and who was so clear in providing explanations to the audience in an Amer-english far better than mine! I also thank Jean Shuler, an active companion of CUG for many years (not ended!), who has occupied several positions: Special Interest Committee chair, newsletter editor, vice president, and director of the Americas. In addition, I would like to thank Robert Bell, past director of Asia and the Pacific, who was so efficient in using e-mail to obtain suggestions and comments on the life of CUG. We are grateful for his specific action in his region. All those remaining on the board also deserve many thanks for their actions during the past year; they still have much more to do. It will be my pleasure to help. Thanks also to Cray Research, Inc. for its support and help in setting up quality conferences. Note that the "Inc." is now replaced by "A Silicon Graphics Company." That simple change could lead to a big difference in the activities of CUG. During my term, I had the privilege to give a special thank to Joan Palm, who had served many years in helping CUG on the Cray side, and since a few years in running the office of the Cray User Group. Thanks Joan. * * * While I was member of the Board of Directors, I tried to lead CUG in some new directions. Being elected president in Fairbanks, Alaska, and serving during the time of the SGI/CRI merger, I had the opportunity to switch those intentions to actions. This led to setting up the Future of CUG Committee, headed by Laney Kulsrud (who took over after the resignation of Margaret Simmons). I thank Laney and her colleagues for their input. After the first step, which was to change the bylaws, their job will continue: finding ideas to improve CUG in the new context. Additionally, I thank the CUG membership for approving the three major bylaws changes in Charlotte. This will provide CUG with the legal ability to evolve in the high-performance computing world. During the past year, we also set up a new CUG Office, run by Bob Winget; provided a brand-new set of Internet services, installed on a new server by Walter Wehinger; found a new newsletter editor, Lynda Lester, from the National Center for Atmospheric Research; and did many other small things that gave CUG its unique flavor for Cray users. However, the work is not through. Much has yet to be done to keep CUG dynamic and progressive. I did not mention my friend Gary "Guido" Jensen in my acknowledgments paragraph above; he was the past president during my term, and my opponent for election in Charlotte (both of us used the same cartoonist in our election campaign!). Both of us were on the board while taking actions. I know that we have the same goals, and that we will work to keep CUG in good health, with the help of the other friends still on the board, and with the new blood injected. Welcome on board Sam Milosevich and Barry Sharp; we have plenty to do! Thanks to those who provide me with personal help. And thank all of you for your support, I will do my best to deserve it. |
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That simple change could lead to a big difference in the activities of CUG. |
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We have the same goals and we will work to keep CUG in good health. |
Comments to: lester@ucar.edu
