[Linux-aus] Nominations and their spiels for the LA election

[James Purser]

On Wed, 2007-01-03 at 00:33 +1000, Anthony Towns wrote:
> 
> I'd like to note in advance that I've been drinking, just in case I want
> to disavow the following later. :)
> 
> Towards the end of the AUUG thread [0] there were some off-list
> discussions about the possibility of not so much changing lca as adding to
> it -- not just having some miniconfs as part of lca, but encouraging other
> free software people to run a separate conference in conjunction with lca;
> so in 2008 you could go to Melbourne for a week or so, and not just have
> the opportunity to go to linux.conf.au and a Debian or virtualisation
> miniconf, but to go to an OpenSolaris conference, or a Mozilla conference,
> or a free Java conference, or see stuff about free accounting programs for
> Windows, or hear about the latest Fink and Darwin stuff if you own a Mac,
> or what's up with ReactOS, or whatever. In effect, it could be a festival
> of free software conferences, happening in the same city at the same time,
> with aims that are similar and complimentary, but not exactly the same.
> 
> By the sounds of things Sydney's probably going to max out the current
> way of doing lca's -- with the number of papers they've had to say no to,
> the number (and quality) of the miniconfs they've managed to accept, and
> the number of attendees they're going to have, so working out new ways
> to have lca grow is probably worthwhile -- and with lca going back to its
> birthplace in 2008, it might be the right time for that sort of change.
> 
> I dunno, maybe it's too big an idea, or not the right time and I guess
> ultimately it's up to the mel8ourne team, and the candidates for the
> 2009 lca to tell us what they thing. But I'd love to see it happen.
> 
> Cheers,
> a "the Australian Festival of Free Software -- www.fosstival.conf.au" j

Hmm how about this instead.

Instead of one huge fosstival, we have nine smaller ones. Instead of
trying to turn linux.conf.au into this be all things to all people type
event, we run one or two day FOSStivals in each capital city. Run them
say six months before linux.conf.au.

Something like this gives potential linux.conf.au organisers a good look
at what could be required to run the big conferences, as well as
allowing those parts of the FOSS community who may not be comfortable
with partaking in linux.conf.au the opportunity to get out there and
show the rest of the country what they've been doing.

I know there are issues with this approach, the main one being the old
"who's going to run it" problem, however this is something that any
expansion is going to face.

* I haven't been drinking, I'm just naturally this nuts ;)
-- 
James Purser
Ordinary Committee Member
Linux Australia
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