More on Data Administration newsgroup and DAMA - Anyone else interested?

Wow, I have been amazed at the response to my posting on starting a newsgroup for data administrators. I have had over 80 responses from all over the world. There have been some questions too. Let me answer some of them. Let me first ask that if you have an interest in DAMA or the proposed news group that you reply to this message and do not post to the news group you are reading. Since I am posting to multiple newsgroups, your messages get replicated to each newsgroup where I have made the initial posting. Send a simple message to me to let me know you are interested. Also please do not copy this whole message in your response. My mailbox will overflow. I will not be contacting you via the news groups again. I will only send information to those on the mailing list so please reply to this posting so I can put you on the list. First let me introduce myself. I am Diana Stobart. I am the Vice President of the Greater Boston Chapter of DAMA International. I work as the Configuration Manager on the BEACON Project. This is a project in Boston to rewrite the public welfare system for the state of Massachusetts. I am also Encyclopedia Manager for the CASE tool we use KEY for Enterprise. We have been working on analysis for 2 years. You can imgine the data required to run the welfare system. Enough of that back to DAMA. DAMA stands for Data Administration Management Association. DAMA is an international non-profit organization with 27 chapters around the world at last count. The Boston Chapter meets monthly. We generally have a speaker from the data world explaining some adpect of data administration such as Data Quality, Data Analysis for Distributed Data, Steps required for a Data Warehouse etc. The DAMA Mission Statement The Boston Chapter of the Data Administration Management Association (DAMA) is a non-profit organization providing members with a forum for innovation in managing their data as a corporate resource, in addition to providing an impetus for advancement of the Data Administration field as an integral business function in today's global and competitive marketplace. On Novermber 8 the Boston Chapter is hosting a DAMA DAY conference. I will send information out to whomever is interested. I intend to give the final mailing list to the Vice President of Communications for DAMA International so that he can send you more information about the organization. If anyone has a problem with that let me know. I will also be working with him to set up the news group. Thank you all for your enthusiasm, interest and tips. Diana.