Free Ubuntu CDs are given out along with brochures and any information about FOSS. This event is commonly held on the third Saturday of September. Not all online Linux support groups refer to themselves as "a LUG", and the use of the word is sometimes (as in the Linux User Group HOWTO) intended to specifically refer to groups of Linux users that organize regular meetings. However, the LUG indexes list groups with members over a large geographical area, and, over time, organizations like the EU LUG, for Linux users throughout the European Union (, apparently defunct) use the term LUG to refer to themselves. Online LUGs use mailing lists, bulletin boards, and IRC as their primary method of communication, with members meeting physically seldom or not at all. As with local LUGs, some groups are limited to technical discussions and others seek to form social bonds between Linux users by having "chat" or "off topic" forums. Reasons for forming or joining an online LUG differ: Some members of online LUGs may be relatively isolated without a local LUG accessible, or with only a few other Linux users in their area. The online group LinuxChix is a worldwide LUG and social group that was founded to provide technical and social support for women Linux users. An EC-funded study (2006) summarized in the Flosspols report, indicates that about 1.5% of FLOSS community members were female, compared with 28% in proprietary software. The Ubuntu Census Survey (June 2006) also reflects a similar female ratio with 2.4% women actively volunteering in the Ubuntu community. Other *-women communities are :