Hi All TL;DR Great first event, very hopeful for future ones in Bangalore
I know we've got quite a few people considering running their first Apache BarCamp on the list, so I thought it might be worth me writing a longer than usual report on my experiences with the Bangalore BarCamp, to help highlight some of the great bits, and some things that you might want to learn from.
We've had discussions for a while about an event in India, but beyond local meetups we haven't had any larger events. I knew I was going to be in Bangalore, so on a little short notice I reached out to see if there was interest in a BarCamp if I provided mentoring. Radhika and Ram Ganesh, who help run the Banaglore CloudStack meetup stepped forward and kindly agreed to organise. However, the timeline was very tight, so I'd suggest future events allow more time from decision to date, to avoid stress and help get the word out more.
Because of the tight timeline, announcements didn't spread that widely, so most of the people who came were CloudStack meetup regulars or students. The more time you have between announcing date+venue and the event, the more you have time to reach out, so it's worth sorting that early. (ConCom can also help with venue costs if needed to unblock that.) There were some good suggestions for ways to get the message out wider, which'll hopefully help with #2. For others, on your first event, don't worry if you don't get a huge message out, but do take note of the suggestions from those who came for #2!
We only ended up with one room, as the second one turned out not to be available, which did somewhat limit things. (Two tracks was just about possible at times, but not ideal). Do double check on multiple rooms, as not everyone will be interested in the same things, so two tracks really helps with that. Another thing was the seating was set up for lecutres, luckily we quickly fixed that with volunteer help! Seating at the start sets the tone, so make sure it's laid out to encourage participation
One thing we hadn't realises was a lot of students were going to pop in for just 30-60 minutes between their Saturday classes. With only one room, the schedule board was at the front, and we didn't often have anyone at the back by the door, so people coming in late didn't know what was happening then+later. Having someone man registration is important, as is having a schedule near the entrance, but think about having rotas so one person doesn't miss out. The person on registration can do twitter / blogs etc, so they can have things to do when no-one new needs help. (Sylwia was great doing this in Oxford, but we don't always have someone like her at every event!)
Lunch was provided, which was good as it kept everyone there, let discussions continue, and allowed a prompt re-start. Don't forget the nightmare of the first 90 minutes after lunch in Atlanta - even a cheap lunch is better than nothing by a mile!
Drinks weren't available, but there was a tea stall just outside the room. I think it was about 10 cups of tea per USD 1, so didn't break the bank, and meant less mess than when it's been provided. Not an option in all venues though!
Feedback was collected at the end, and was very positive. As with DC, lots of people who didn't know what to expect, but enjoyed it. This time, we got people to also write down what they enjoyed/liked/etc, so we have a record to put up on the website in the run up to #2 to help people understand it better. Seemed to work well as an idea, though poor Radhika has lots of typing up to do...
We had a wide variety of experience/skill levels amongst audience members. I know I miss-pitched a few explanations, so it's worth checking especially early on. Plus, checking gets people involved! Labelling sessions as beginner/advanced might have helped (some topics had an intro session, and later more details), and a 2nd track to provide somewhere for people out of their depth on a topic to go instead can help!
Very few experienced barcampers attended (we found out later about the history of barcamps in the city that explained it). General info on barcamps / unconferences + what to expect + what to get out of it on the website seem very important for that sort of group, so worth doing if possible. Related, the intro was more of a monologue than I normally like, as there wasn't others to bounce bits to as normal. Really need to ensure there's two who can give the intro, to set the collaborative scene right from the start
Overall though, a great first event, hopefully everyone there learnt a lot, those of you planning events can learn, and looking forward to hearing a report on the 2nd BarCamp in Bangalore later in the year!
Nick
