Dominick Fiorentino, HUG PRESIDENT
Howdy! The HUG Board is in the process of breaking the last few horses for the 17th Annual International HUG Education Conference June 6-10, 2005 at Bally’s in
Las Vegas
.
The full 2005 HUG Conference brochure has been sent out in the mail and it also has been posted on the HUG website under the Conference page in a PDF format for you to download. Please be reminded that April 29, 2005 is the cutoff date for registration using the advanced payment rate. After that date the registration rate increases so if you are not already registered please make an effort to register soon.
If the current trend in hotel registrations continues we expect to sell out the special HUG room rate so if you have not made hotel reservations at Bally’s by now it would be best to get that completed very soon. If you want to extend your stay for a personal vacation, Bally’s will honor the special HUG rate of $115 per night from June 2nd through June 14th as long as the special HUG room rate has not been sold out.
“All The Horses You Need” are waiting for you in
Las Vegas
so get ready to saddle-up for an exciting HUG Conference ride. I hope to see y’all there. Cowboy Up!
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Steve Jones, HUG Secretary
The HUG Board of Directors have added considerable content to this web site and made a significant number of changes. There are changes that are obvious and many that are not. Some of the not so apparent changes are improving the security of the database, improving the spamming capabilities of the discussion boards, adding a lot of information about the upcoming conference, improving the ER Process, and stream-lining our Board information flow processes.
Some of the future plans we have are to use the same tools we use for the Annual HUG conference for the seven RUG conferences – such as on-line registration and payment of fees. Some additional goals are: continue to improve the ER process, continue to improve the database information, and introduce additional technologies for the conferences – such as CPE and session attendance tracking.
If there is something that you think we are missing or could do better – please pass that suggestion on to any of the HUG Board of Directors. Our goal is to make this web site work for you, the HUG members.
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Well folks as we head down the final trail to our conference we the membership will be asked to review with SunGard HTE the top voted enhancements requests. This is an important role that we the membership must be up and ready for. During the past few months the membership has entered enhancement requests, our
Application Coordinators
have reviewed these same requests, the SunGard HTE Product Managers have had their input , the membership has voted, (hopefully there will be no recounts) and now we must finish the task of processing the ER’s by discussing the top voted requests at conference.
The HUG board and SunGard HTE would like you all to take advantage of this, the final step in the enhancement request process for the membership. All of us have a potential voice in this process and SunGard HTE is open and willing to listen.
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Yahoo!!! As of March 21 we have rounded up twenty-eight different HUG members to present fifty-six sessions. If you miss the first session, there will be a repeat session later in the conference.
Here is a partial list of the line-up for User Led and User Experience Sessions for the 2005 International HUG Education Conference to be held Sunday, June 5 through Friday, June10, 2005 in
Las Vegas
,
Nevada
.
- Developing new Bill Format Design
- Auditing Payroll with Impromptu Reports and Payroll Best Practices
- Payroll Budgeting
- C2G products CX, BP with all fess and inspection, BP wireless
- Using i-Navigator to import spooled reports to MS Office applications
- Mobile Data Browser Advanced Configuration and Administration
- Planning & Zoning – create project text documents to process a new application
- LookingGlass applications
- Work Orders – defining business operations using the software and getting meaningful reports
- Code Enforcement Roundtable
- Transitioning from Green Screen to Naviline
- Using Microsoft Access in place of Query/400
- Invoice Review in PI and EFT through Accounts Payable
- CAD 400 Update for Long Time Customers
- And more!
This great line-up will afford you an opportunity to learn from your fellow users what their experiences have been, tips on useful shortcuts, ideas on “what if’s” and lots more.
You can check out the preliminary schedule of sessions at the HUG website, www.huginc.org Click on the Annual Conference tab, then click on “Agenda”.
If you have any questions, please contact Candy Retamoza at candy.retamoza@ci.stockton.ca.us. or (209) 937-7403.
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Robert Girndt, There is still time left to volunteer at the 2005 HUG Conference in
Las Vegas
. The HUG Board is seeking volunteers who are willing to devote a small portion of their time during the conference to ensure the conference is as well-organized and meaningful for everyone. The HUG Board relies on volunteers to help us with registration and other tasks during the annual conference. Also again this year we will be using volunteers to serve as lab monitors. If you will be signing up for a lab or labs think about also signing up to be a lab monitor. We will be sure and schedule you so that you can serve as the monitor for the lab that you have signed up for.
If you are interested in serving as a volunteer, please go to the HUG web site at http://www.huginc.org/. Click on Annual Conference, and then the "Volunteers Needed" icon. After you have completed the form, click on "Submit Volunteer Form". Or, send me an e-mail advising when you would be available during the conference.
If you have any questions, please contact Robert Girndt at rgirndt@ci.mocity.tx.us or (281) 261-4326.
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Dominick Fiorentino
The HUG Board and the Presidents of the seven RUG Boards have been meeting over the past few months via teleconference. We are in the process of crafting a standardized RUG Policy and Procedures Manual. When completed all of the RUG’s will be operating under the same set of guidelines. We are all in agreement that the membership needs and deserves a document that will outline RUG Board operations for current and future Boards.
The RUG Policy and Procedures Manual will include an outline of duties for the various officers on the RUG Board much the same as we currently have for the HUG Board. There is also information on the Regional Conferences and how they are operated. There has been a good deal of free and open discussion in an attempt to accommodate special circumstances that have been brought up by the various RUG Board members.
We are in the final draft of the document and all parties hope to reach final agreement in April 2005. This is a real milestone in the HUG & RUG relationship and we hope to build on this foundation to strengthen the relationship and interaction of the Boards. Since we are all members of the same organization it is refreshing to see this cooperation for the common good of all of the HUG membership.
I congratulate all of the RUG Board Presidents and their respective Board members for taking on this challenge and seeing it to a mutually beneficial and successful conclusion.
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Teri Anticevich,
Las Vegas
has one of the finest police departments in the world. They have to deal with a continually changing crowd of people from every corner of the globe. They are trained to handle the crowds of tourists, so when you are in
Las Vegas
you can relax, you are quite safe. All of the hotels have large in-house security departments, staffed with well trained security personnel, constantly monitoring the property and its guests. Large properties have thousand of surveillance cameras, keeping an electronic eye trained on the surroundings. All of this is in place to insure that visitors and guests have a good time in the safest possible atmosphere. All in all,
Las Vegas
is a safe destination as long as you use discretion and common sense.
Due to the unusually high rate of fatal auto/pedestrian accidents, jaywalking laws are enforced. Always use crosswalks and a liberal helping of caution when crossing a roadway, never cross against the light or in the middle of the block, and assume that drivers don’t see you and may not stop.
While you are enjoying the sights, sounds, and entertainment of
Las Vegas
, you will notice many police patrols on foot, horseback, riding bicycles, cruising in cars, and flying helicopters overhead watching over and immediately responding to any problem.
Las Vegas
is dedicated to your safety, security and well being.
June in
Las Vegas
means hot, dry weather outdoors. So, if you are taking a break in the sun, don’t forget your sunscreen. High temperatures should be at 93 degrees; lows at 68 degrees (but can get up in the 100s!) Remember to drink lots of water if you are walking outside! (But, remember that our meetings will be indoors and air conditioned, so bring a sweater or jacket for indoors!)
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There are two widely held beliefs about
Las Vegas
,
Nevada
that are only partially true, and I would like to dispel those half-truths. The first is that
Las Vegas
is a gambling
Mecca
. The second is “What happens in Vegas, stays in Vegas”.
While there are ample opportunities for gaming (that is gambling in casino speak) in
Las Vegas
, attendance at the HUG conference will be no gamble. This year’s conference will provide many opportunities to learn about current SunGard HTE products, proposed product enhancements, and the future direction of SunGard HTE. The conference will also provide valuable networking opportunities. The reason this is no gamble is that the registration is inexpensive relative to the quality of experience you will share with your fellow HUG members.
Another widely held axiom is that “what happens in Vegas, stays in Vegas”. While we will not speak of any individual indiscretions you may commit during off-conference hours, we hope that you do bring home and share your conference experience with your coworkers and peers. To that end, we offer many labs that offer hands-on training that you will be able to utilize to perform your job when you return home from conference. Also, conference presentations will be available on our website so that you can refer to them after conference. The HUG Board hopes you share what you learn and experience at the annual conference with as many people as possible.
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