Ola, here's some news from Latin America...

Julio Cesar Gonzalez of LUGUSAC juliocgc@fisica.usac.edu.gt writes in to say that they have got "organized as a Linux Users Group, currently pursuing to be a Technological Foundation. The mail list is open and can be reached at: http://espanol.groups.yahoo.com/group/lugusac and our site is at http://www.lug-usac.org

Says Julio: "We are the forge of several projects, maybe the most interesting 'Proyecto Luciernaga', on translating FLOSS into mayan languages, (see it at http://luciernaga.berlios.de ) and "Proyecto Mayix", the very first Central American distribution based on Gentoo -- http://www.mayix.net "

In the first half of 2005, this team expects to partner the creation of a GNU/Linux Users Group in the west highlands (Quetzaltenango, native name Xelaju), their site will be at http://xelalug.linuxserver.at/

Says Julio, whose based in Gautemala: "In Central America the major interest on FLOSS is here in my country (Guatemala) and in El Salvador. Some LUGs in Belize and Honduras." He, together with several friends, formed a GNU/LUG at their university three years ago.

Their Mayan language project incidentally is an inter-institutional project, also involving groups such as the "Fundacion Rigoberta Menchu Tum" (Nobel Peace Price, 1992) and "Academia de Lenguas Mayas de Guatemala" (national autority for mayan languages)."

According to Julio, they're currently working on the translation of OpenOffice.org Writer 1.1 into the Mayan language k'iche'. He adds optimistically: "After that, we'll produce the OpenOffice.org suite in all the major Mayan languages, a web browser and, eventually, a Live-CD with a Mayan-languages GNU/Linux distribution."

We wish these big and ambitious plans all the very best. If you could support in any way, get in touch with Julio Cesar Gonzalez Cordon juliocgc@fisica.usac.edu.gt who says: "It's exciting to share, to learn, and to build another world with you!".

FN

Related URL: Fisired (http://fisica.usac.edu.gt) ---------------------------------------------------------------------------- Frederick Noronha (FN) Nr Convent Saligao 403511 GoaIndia Freelance Journalist P: 832-2409490 M: 9822122436 http://fn.swiki.net http://fn-floss.notlong.com ---------------------------------------------------------------------------- http://goabooks.swiki.net * Reviews of books on Goa... and more