International Groups and Activities

Who and Where

More than 1000 slide rule collectors are known world-wide. Looking at the number of buyers on internet (at eBay and dealers), there must be many thousands of other interested people. Some of them are organised in country- or language-focused groups, but others are more ‘lone hunters’.
At the moment, 6 groups of slide rule collectors are known, with the observation that some individuals belong to more than one group.

The Oughtred Society (OS), a formal ‘non-profit public benefit’ organisation in the USA, is since 1991 the largest group of slide rule collectors. More than 400 OS-members exist world-wide, of which about 100 in Europe. Since 2003 the Oughtred Society has extended its interest to ‘Historic Calculating Tools’.
For the brochure of the Oughtred Society click on:
and

The “Journal of the Oughtred Society” (JOS) is the publication which is known as a professional and prestigious paper. The JOS is published twice a year (the Spring and Fall issue). For more information about the JOS, Click here.
Since 2009 the Journal is in full colour. The archive of the Journal can be accessed through Rod Lovett's Literature Search.
More activities have been started from 2005 onwards:
The United Kingdom Slide Rule Circle (UKSRC) is an informal group of about 100 English and English-language members, established in 1996. The magazine for members is called “Skid Stick”.
Each year an issue of the UKSRC “Slide Rule Gazette” is published with some 100 pages of more extensive articles. The archive of the “Skid Stick” and “Gazette” can be accessed through Rod Lovett's Literature Search.
The RechenschieberSammler Treffen (RST) or “Slide Rule Collectors Meet” is an informal group of more than 80 German and German-language members, established in 1997. The magazine for members is called “RS-Brief”, and the full contents can be found on-line at the RST website.
The International Slide Rule Forum (ISRF) is an Internet discussion group, with a membership of about 1000.
The Spanish slide rule collectors are organized in the ARC.
The ‘Nederlandse Kring van Verzamelaars van Rekenlinialen’ (NKVR), or ‘Dutch Circle of Slide Rule Collectors’ is an informal group of some 60 Dutch and Dutch-language members, established in 1991.
End 2004 the scope of the Dutch Circle has been formally extended, and its name changed to ‘Dutch Circle for Historical Calculating Instruments’.
The magazine for Circle members is called “MIR”.

Collectors of calculating machines, typewriters and other office machines are organized in the Internationales Forum Historische Bürowelt.
Lots of information on calculating machines, but also slide rules, planimeters and log tables, is being collected in the Rechnerlexikon.

International Meetings

The organisers of an IM pass the “IM Challenge drum”

Since 1995, an “International Meeting for Slide Rule Collectors” (IM) has been organised every year in Europe.
Each IM is organised by collectors from one country. The programme consists as a rule of a swap fair, presentations by and to collectors, and ample opportunity for social events and talking with old and new collector friends.
Proceedings have been published during each IM, documenting all presentations given.
Old Proceedings can be accessed via Rod Lovett's Literature Search.

For most IM Proceedings, it is possible to order back-copies, for prices around € 20, excluding shipping costs. ask for more information.

The following IM's have been held until now:

Contents	Year	Location	Country	Supplementary
	2024	online meeting	Netherlands	21/22 September 2024
	2023	online meeting	USA
	2022	online meeting	USA
	2021	online meeting	Germany
contents	2020	online meeting	USA
	2019	The Hague / Scheveningen	Netherlands	Proceedings Animations
	2018	Stratford-upon-Avon	England	Proceedings Report on IM2018
	2017	Bonn	Germany	Proceedings Report on IM2017 Animation
	2016	Trento	Italy	Proceedings Animations
	2015	Burlingame, CA	USA	Proceedings
	2014	Delft	Netherlands	Proceedings
Contents pag. 1 pag. 2	2013	Berlin	Germany	Proceedings
	2012	Bletchley Park	England	Proceedings
	2011	Boston, MIT	USA	Proceedings Report on IM2011
	2010	Leiden	Netherlands	Proceedings Report on IM2010 Animations
	2009	Greifswald	Germany	Proceedings Report on IM2009
	2009	Greifswald	Germany	Proceedings Report on IM2009
	2008	Leamington Spa	England	Proceedings Report on IM2008
	2007	Lelystad, Enkhuizen	Netherlands	Proceedings Report on IM2007
	2006	Greifswald	Germany	Proceedings Report on IM2006
	2006	Greifswald	Germany	Proceedings Report on IM2006
	2005	Cambridge	England	Proceedings Report on IM2005
Contents pag.1 pag.2 pag.3	2004	Bad Driburg	Germany	Report on IM2004 Preview of the Proceedings book More lectures: see rechenschieber.org
	2003	Breukelen, Amsterdam	Netherlands	Proceedings Report on IM2003
	2002	Leamington Spa	England	Proceedings Report on IM2002
	2001	München	Germany	Proceedings Report on IM2001
	2000	Ede	Netherlands	Proceedings Report on IM2000
	1999	Cambridge	England	Proceedings
	1998	Huttwil	Switzerland	Proceedings Report on IM1998
	1997	Stein/Neurenberg	Germany	Proceedings Report on IM1997
	1996	Cambridge	England	Proceedings Report on IM1996
	1995	Utrecht	Netherlands	Proceedings Report on IM1995