You should go. Really. It'll be fun and informative. http://stateofthemap.org/
It's hard to explain the benefit of attending to somebody who hasn't attended a similar conference before. First, know that the presentations will be super; informative, thought-provoking, funny, challenging, moving, and inspirational, all in various measures. Here are some videos from SotM2009 http://www.vimeo.com/sotm09 But the presentations are only the start of things. There will be social events as well. Last year included several planned meetings at restaurants and pubs and a mass Chinese dinner, with haiku contest. We are not afraid to mix our metaphors before they are hatched. And there is also unscheduled time between events. None of this will have been caught on video. But all of this can be as valuable as the formal presentations and workshops. "How is that possible?" you may ask. Presentations and workshops are a chance to learn something about a topic that you select in advance. A way to learn about your current interests. The social events are an opportunity to learn about the things that you had no idea would spark your passions. They are a chance to speak one-to-one or in small groups about something that you find challenging, or inspirational. They are a change to observe the OSM community interacting with itself, up close and in person. A chance to thank the developers that write the code you most enjoy. A chance to thank the cartographers give personality, colour and width to our ground truth vectors. A chance to meet a new client, employee, colleague or employer. So make sure you can fight off some of the jet-lag and attend some of the social events as well. You will not regret it. The Call for Papers is open now if you want to submit a talk for consideration. http://stateofthemap.org/call-for-papers/ If you are not yet a member of the OSM Foundation, get your membership first, then get a discount on your SotM ticket. _______________________________________________ Talk-ca mailing list Talk-ca@openstreetmap.org http://lists.openstreetmap.org/listinfo/talk-ca
