2010 programme

Sat 3rd
14:30-15:00

NACAA in the On-line Age

Stephen Russell

National Australian Convention of Amateur Astronomers

2010 marks forty years since I attended my first NACAA in Wollongong. But rather than reflect on the past, this presentation will talk about the impact of the Internet on the operation of NACAA Inc, and will look to its future.
The formation of NACAA Inc in 2006 has radically changed the way NACAA is structured. The organising committees are now widely distributed across the country, rather than a group that can easily meet face-to-face. Since its inception, NACAA Inc. has relied on the use of on-line technologies, particularly mailing lists and the Web, to organise its activities. The full potential of these technologies haven't been reached yet, due to various problems. One example is the lack of contributions from the NACAA community -- I hope this presentation will encourage at least a few listeners to contribute their memorabilia. Some of the other problems will be outlined during the talk.
As well, I will present my thoughts on the impact of the on-line age on the future of NACAA: an increasing reliance on our web site for many functions, recording presentations for download to increase public awareness of what NACAA does, the need for on-line technologies (and on-line savvy people) to coordinate the event, the problems involved in web-casting the event, and other issues.

Stephen's involvement with NACAA goes back to the 1970 event hosted by the Illawarra Astronomical Society in Wollongong. With the death of Bill Ede in 1975, Stephen took over running the inaugural National Secretariat, an ill-fated attempt to improve communications between astronomical societies. Stephen has attended all but three NACAAs since his first in 1970.
Stephen is the 2008/10 General Secretary of NACAA Incorporated and runs the NACAA web site.