CANDIDATE FOR DIRECTOR
Clem Cole
USENIX is about our jobs, our livelihood, and (for many) our way of life! The
computer industry is beset by different groups that think they should control
us: from governments to corporations, from agencies to management. If some folks
had their way, we all would be programming in Visual Basic (if programming at
all) and the Internet would be a broadcast media like television and radio. I
believe that USENIX, as an organization, should continue to foster a place where
these deplorable, technically unsound ideas can be kept out of our day-to-day
lives!
From funding the original UUNET to the current backing of the legal issues
regarding Ed Felton, USENIX has always been at the forefront of issues that have
a real impact on us as engineers and scientists--i.e., issues that impact what
we do for a living.
USENIX is well known for the conferences and intellectual stimulation that we
provide to our members--I like to refer to this role the same way librarians
often do about libraries: as "the University at large." But just as a great
library is more than a mere collection of books, USENIX must be more than a mere
collection of conferences.
I am running for the USENIX Board of Directors, because I believe we (as
individuals and an organization) must continue our rich history of being the
thought leader in both technology and policy. I bring to the table my vision and
my skills as a good listener, organizer, and team player. Professionally, I have
the usual degrees from the usual institutions and have been working with
computers since the late 1960s, and with UNIX technology since the mid-1970s.
I've been a member of USENIX since the late 1970s and have participated in the
organization in about every way I could: from just showing up, to giving talks
and writing papers, teaching courses, being the IT coordinator, all the way to
chairing conferences. As well as anyone can, I believe I know the association
and understand its members.
That said, the one task I have never tackled is that of serving on the USENIX
Board. I believe I can help the organization stay fresh and move forward, yet
not forget the important things (like the excellent conferences) that have built
this organization. There is a place in this world for programmers who only want
VB. I believe USENIX is the place for people who want and can do more. I want to
help continue that excellent tradition.
Biography: I am an old school hacker and "Open Sourcer." I first
encountered the early "editions" of UNIX while a university student, writing a
variety of device drivers, kernel enhancements, and microprocessor support tools
for the early 4- and 8-bit microprocessors, and even working on an early
hardware description language (ISPS) using VAX serial #1. Post my undergraduate
work, I joined Tektronix's Computer Research Group. There I helped to develop
one of the earliest TCP/IP implementations, along with developing an OS (Magix)
for an engineering workstation (Magnolia). I went back to school, and upon
completion of my graduate work, I joined Masscomp. I was one of their early OS
developers and led their original data communications and distributed file
system group. Following that, I was the original OS lead for Stellar Computer
and afterwards became an independent consultant. One of my more lasting legacies
was as part of the "jump start team" at OSF. I went on to become the Chief SW
Engineer for the Boston office of Locus, where I helped to architect and develop
their distributed cluster technology, TNC. With the sale of Locus, I became a
Sr. Consulting Engineer at Digital, working on Alpha-based technology. A number
of years post the "Compaq-tion," I took my current position as VP of Engineering
for Paceline Systems.
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CANDIDATE FOR DIRECTOR