:-)

I don't know of any, but I have to say I'm kind of a heads-down 
developer most of the time.  I've not even been to the local Java user's 
group -- as it is quite a ways across town for me.

--
Jess Holle
[working for PTC out of their Blaine, MN, office]

Hashbrown wrote:
> Ha, guess I should be a bit more specific.  Twin cities area in
> Minnesota, USA.
>
> On Oct 14, 2:00 pm, Kerry Sainsbury <[email protected]> wrote:
>   
>> Nothing much around Napier and Hastings that I'm aware of. There *might* be
>> something in Palmerston North, but realistically you need to head to
>> Wellington.
>>
>> Hope this helps!
>>
>> Cheers
>> Kerry
>>
>> On Thu, Oct 15, 2009 at 5:36 AM, Hashbrown <[email protected]> wrote:
>>
>>     
>>> Anyone know of any developer organized conferences in the twin cities?
>>>       
>>> On Oct 1, 7:56 pm, Dianne Marsh <[email protected]> wrote:
>>>       
>>>> There's a trend toward some really cool conferences that are developer
>>>> organized.  I haven't been to the Silicon Valley Code Camp (THIS
>>>> WEEKEND!), but would love to attend.  I'm an organizer of CodeMash and
>>>> so I'm biased.  And I would argue that the Java Posse Roundup is a
>>>> developer organized conference as well (and it ROCKS!).  PyCon is one
>>>> of the oldest and largest developer-organized conferences.  And, of
>>>> course, there are others.  So why?  And what does it take?
>>>>         
>>>> The "what does it take" is simple.  It takes someone who is dedicated
>>>> enough to volunteer time (and often front cash) to organize the
>>>> event.  It takes someone who can take the heat, because people WILL
>>>> complain, no matter how hard you work to make things fair, accessible,
>>>> and interesting.  And it takes a lot of promotion.  In my experience,
>>>> it also takes a group of individuals that are dedicated toward
>>>> promoting the event and soliciting sponsorships in some cases,
>>>> choosing talks in others. Open spaces conferences are the coolest to
>>>> organize because much of the organization is left to the attendees,
>>>> but there's still work to do: a venue to secure, promotion, at least
>>>> some simple logistics.
>>>>         
>>>> In the past, companies were hired to "run" the event.  They did
>>>> everything from the event registration to venue management to choosing
>>>> the meals.  But with the ease of putting up a registration site
>>>> online, that piece becomes easier.  And once you establish a
>>>> relationship with a venue, the venue management eases a bit (but MAN
>>>> that first year is rough).  Food ... well, that's always rough.
>>>>         
>>>> But why?  Well, we're a picky lot.  By doing much of this work
>>>> ourselves, we can keep the registration price low (mainly because we
>>>> don't consider the volunteer time as a COST).  And we can control the
>>>> other aspects as well.
>>>>         
>>>> So, why am I writing this? I just want to encourage all of you to
>>>> check out some user-organized conferences and compare them to the "big
>>>> ones" that you have traditionally attended.  What was it that you
>>>> liked about each?  What didn't you like?  Where can improvements be
>>>> made?
>>>>         
>>>> At conferences like CodeMash and the Roundup and PyCon (and I suspect
>>>> the SVCC), the organizers are always looking for suggestions about
>>>> what could make the conference better.  So instead of complaining,
>>>> PLEASE pitch in with ideas and suggestions.  Make these conferences
>>>> YOUR conferences.  The developer community will thank you.
>>>>         
>>>> (And keep those CodeMash submissions coming!  The deadline is at
>>>> midnight eastern time TONIGHT and we have a record number of
>>>> submissions.  I'm gonna start going through them tomorrow, and I'm
>>>> looking forward to seeing what people from this group have submitted!)
>>>>         
>>>> -- Dianne
>>>>         
> >
>
>   


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