[Linux-aus] lca ghosts program

[Tim Bowden]

Thanks Michael, just the input I was looking for.

Regards,
Tim Bowden

On Tue, 2007-03-27 at 14:23 +0930, Michael Davies wrote:
> On 27/03/07, Tim Bowden <tim.bowden at westnet.com.au> wrote:
> > Hi,
> >
> > I'm looking at giving some input to the conf committee of the Open
> > Source Geospatial Foundation, and I'd like to get some feedback on the
> > lca ghosts program.  Specifically, how beneficial has it been and what
> > sort of costs (ballpark) has it involved?
> 
> Hi Tim,
> 
> The "linux.conf.au Ghosts of Conference Past" program has been in
> place for a while now, and it serves a number of purposes:
> 
> a) provides a debrief opportunity for last conference's team to tell
> LA and next year's conference organisers things they need to be aware
> of, do both a physical and virtual handover, including sponsorship
> arrangements etc etc etc;
> 
> b) provides an opportunity for the next conference to bounce ideas off
> Linux Australia and previous conference organisers, to validate their
> thinking;
> 
> c) provides continuity for LCA by allowing input into the planning of
> the next conference by those who have been there and have sweated
> blood before (to maintain the flavour of the conference);
> 
> d) provides an avenue for Linux Australia to audit where the next
> conference's planning is at, and what intervention (if any) it needs
> to make to ensure the next conference rocks (especially financially
> since LA "underwrites" the conference);
> 
> e) allows support structures to be put in place to support the
> organising committee of the next conference.
> 
> As someone who has benefited from "ghosts" and has also been involved
> in supporting LCA in this capacity over the past 4 years, I think it's
> very beneficial to a roaming conference like LCA with a different
> organising committee every year.
> 
> Cost wise, we're looking at domestic airfares and accommodation for
> approx 6 people over a weekend.  I think it's a small investment
> considering the size of the budget for LCA these days.
> 
> Hope this helps,