About Us

The Linux Users Group at the University of California, Los Angeles is an organization dedicated to the GNU/Linux Operating System. We aim to promote Linux via advocacy, support, and education. Although our LUG is primarily composed of UCLA students, anyone from the general public is welcome to join our group. In addition to regular meetings, the LUG occasionally has events such as Linux Install-fests and presentations on Unix-related topics.

Joining the LUG entails nothing more than showing up at a meeting or subscribing to our mailing list. There are no fees, dues, or pledges. We will gladly accept voluntary donations.

The LUG@UCLA's purpose is to facilitate learning, creativity, and the advancement of computer science.

The LUG@UCLA accomplishes this goal by promoting the use of the Linux operating system at UCLA and encouraging its use among students, faculty, staff, and University departments. The LUG@UCLA promotes Linux use by providing a support network for Linux users and by building a library of Linux-related materials, as well as various versions of Linux on multiple platforms.

These publicly available resources are stored and used in the LUG@UCLA lounge, which also serves as a meeting room and classroom.

For organizational structure, read our constitution, and see our contact page.

In promoting the use of Linux, LUG@UCLA also encourages programming under this operating system in the form of student-coordinated projects. LUG@UCLA student projects benefit the UCLA community and the Linux community, with emphasis on the intersection of the two. All software produced under the auspices of LUG@UCLA is distributed under an Open Source approved license.

The LUG@UCLA facilitates certain activities that benefit the UCLA and/or Linux community. These events include:

These installfests average between 35 to 45 installs. They directly benefit students and faculty involved with the CS35L (Linux Software Lab) and CS111 (Operating Systems) series of classes. They also provide the LUG@UCLA with our greatest in-person exposure to the community and give the organization an excellent opportunity to recruit new members.

Some of the topics presented include:

• UNIX Basics (as discussed in CS 111)
• Mail Filtering with MUTT/Procmail
• Java (as discussed in CS 131, CS 118, PIC 20A, PIC 20B)
• OpenGL (as discussed in CS 174)
• Security in Linux
• GTK+/GNOME programming
• Python programming
• Hosting technical talks from several individuals including
  • Joseph Arruda (VA Linux Systems)
  • Manish Singh (Lead Developer on the GNU Image Manipulation Program)
  • Several of the developers from Loki Games

Such events include talks on Open Source software by anthropologist Eric Raymond (a popular Open Source Advocate), a 'LUGFest' event in the Simi Valley (hosted by Nortel Networks), and an upcoming event hosted by Linux Mandrake.

In addition to events, the LUG@UCLA provides several resources to UCLA students. These resources include:

Operation of several servers with the explicit goals of providing shell access to students and unlimited web and e-mail space. The maintenance of these machines has given the students who run them valuable System Administration experience. Student Administrators regularly deal with real issues such as network security, account administration, network policy, and hardware maintenance/troubleshooting.

Also, operation of other development resources (such as whiteboards, programming/design books, etc). Several free software projects have been developed by LUG@UCLA members, ranging from CPU Emulation software (Phaethon's Hack For CUSP;), interactive 3-D games (Hover Carnage, Weapons Factory Arena), Printing Software (GNU Lpr), and a multitude of small utilities, shell and perl scripts.

A lab and accompanying computing resources that students use for hands-on learning of UNIX systems, including system administration of such services as FTP, SMTP, HTTP, DNS, NFS, SSH, POP3, Relational Databases (MySQL), DHCP, CVS, basic account management, and security auditing.

Study sessions, including tutoring sessions, study group sessions, and most importantly, overflow space for when other HSSEAS computer labs are full (students in CS130, CS174, and CS152A/B have especially found the extra resources useful).

LUG@UCLA adds significant value to the UCLA community. The hands-on experiences, training, and practice that are availible to LUG@UCLA members – especially when coupled with the top-tier theoretical training in Computer Science available from HSSEAS – provide an academic setting which is unmatched in most university environments.