jsq@usenix.org (John S. Quarterman) (04/21/89)
From: John S. Quarterman <jsq@usenix.org> The USENIX Association, a non-profit educational and technical organisation, sponsors a series of reports on standards activities, published in the USENIX newsgroup comp.std.unix and in ;login: The Newsletter of the USENIX Association. These appear quarterly, after each IEEE 1003 meeting. Related reports may appear in trade journals or other appropriate venues. These reports are largely derived from reports of volunteers on the USENIX Standards Watchdog Committee, who monitor each of the IEEE 1003 subcommitttees and some related committees, such as the X3J11 C Standards Committee. We are planning on expanding coverage to other groups, such as the /usr/group Technical Committee. The editor of these reports since their inception has been Shane P. McCarron. He has just begun a new job with UNIX International and his new work responsibilities make continuing editing these reports difficult. I would like to thank Shane for his excellent reports and for the large amount of time he has spent on them. A new report editor is needed. I will shortly repost a summary of the duties of this position, but essentially it involves collecting reports from the Watchdog Committee and editing them for publication as part of a set of reports giving context and information that does not appear in the minutes of committee meetings nor in other kinds of standards reports. We want to know what happened in a given meeting, but more importantly we want to know what the issues were, what history lies behind them, and what effects decisions made or not made might have. An editorial voice is also needed, and the editor is expected to raise issues that need to be voiced, even if they might be controversial. The position has a small associated stipend per report. Since the work has grown greatly with the success of the Watchdog Committee, the remuneration will increase from a pittance to a paltry sum. The exact amount is no secret, but I would prefer applicants to be willing to consider the job before knowing how much it is. I can promise that no one will get rich off of it, and this is not something to be remotely considered as a full time job. Travel and other expenses are not generally reimbursed, although the remuneration may be enough to cover attending the quarterly IEEE 1003 meetings. The basic prerequisites are literacy in writing English, technical literacy in areas related to the UNIX Operating System, and familiarity with the standards process. The last of these may require that the editor attend IEEE 1003 meetings. Access to electronic mail and intimate familiarity with its use is indispensable. Willingness to espouse controversial views in public is necessary. This does not preclude tact, which is also required. An editor who does not work for a large vendor might have an advantage, but intellectual independence is more important. All reports are subject to review by someone delegated by the USENIX Standards Policy Committee (currently me) acting as publisher. Ultimate review authority lies with the Board of Directors of the USENIX Association. But we want someone who can act without intrusive oversight. Anyone interested may please apply by electronic mail to <jsq@usenix.org> or uunet!usenix!jsq. I will not be at the Minneapolis IEEE 1003 meeting next week, but the Standards Watchdog Volunteer Coordinator, Marc Tietlebaum <marc@okeeffe.berkeley.edu>, will be there. Interested people please feel free to talk to him. He will have copies of relevant material for you to peruse. In addition to applications, we are interested in hearing from people who have opinions about these reports, either about reports that have already appeared or about possible future directions. The last reports edited by Shane will appear shortly. John S. Quarterman USENIX Standards Policy Committee <jsq@usenix.org> Volume-Number: Volume 16, Number 30
jsq@usenix.org (John S. Quarterman) (07/09/89)
From: John S. Quarterman <jsq@usenix.org> Back in May I announced that USENIX was looking for a new report editor for its series of Standards Watchdog Reports. As announced at the USENIX Conference in June in Baltimore, we've found one. He's Jeff Haemer <jsh@nimbus.ico.isc.com>. He will be at the IEEE 1003 meeting all next week in San Jose. He has the watchdog reports from the previous meeting, in Minneapolis, so the edited versions of those should appear shortly in this newsgroup and later in ;login:, to be followed by reports from the San Jose meeting. John S. Quarterman USENIX Standards Policy Committee <jsq@usenix.org> Volume-Number: Volume 16, Number 57