Barcamp Mobile

Pre-Conference Dinner Info

Sara O'Flaherty — Tue, 08 Nov 2011 03:53:07 +0000

Hi everyone!

Just a reminder in case you didn’t catch it on Twitter, the pre-conference dinner will be held Friday night from 7-9pm at Dreamland BBQ on Old Shell Road. We’ll be in the big caged in area at the back of the restuarant, just look to your right when you walk in the door.

Dinner is free for attendees, you will only have to cover your own beer tab.

For those from out of town, set your GPS to 3314 Old Shell Road, Mobile, AL 36607. The parking lot is not huge, but you can use the lots of other businesses right there as they all close at 5pm.

Looking forward to seeing everyone friday night!

No, Really, WHAT is Barcamp??

Sara O'Flaherty — Sat, 08 Oct 2011 00:11:08 +0000

When I posted the last blog post, I thought I was giving a pretty good idea of the spirit of Barcamp and what the event is about. Turns out people don’t care what it’s about, they want to know what it is. Like the actual, nitty-gritty, what happens when I get there, and what do people talk about?? kind of details.

Fair enough.

What happens at Barcamp?

When you first get to Barcamp you’ll want to grab and fill out a name tag, because you can expect to meet a lot of people. Once everyone has arrived, those presenting will write down their topic, and the organizers will quickly work out a schedule for the day based on those proposed topics, organizing them into several tracts. People then check the schedule and decide what topics they want to attend, and off everyone goes to those rooms. There will be short breaks in between sessions, and an hour-long break for lunch(we mentioned free lunch, right?), followed by the afternoon sessions. All sessions should wrap up around 5pm, and then volunteers will help clean up. There will be a place designated for the dinner afterwards, and those who want to continue the good times go and much enjoyment is had.

What are the topics about?

This is by far the hardest thing to answer, because there is no limit to what a session can be about. Here are just a few of the proposed session topics from registrants so far-

Pen and Paper Role Playing Games
Cyber Operations
Healthy Living/Weight Loss
Casino Gambling
Cryptography
WordPress Custom Post Types
Mac OS
Ghost Hunting

Understand now why I say there is no limit? The point of Barcamp is to share your interest and your passion, and at the end of the day, maybe learn something new. Everyone knows something about something, and sharing what you know is what it’s really all about.

What if I get bored in a topic? I hate being stuck in a room for 30 minutes to an hour feeling like I have to be there.

Barcamp is governed by the “Law of Two Feet”, which means you have two feet, so use them! If the session is not your thing, get up and go to another one, just be sure to move quietly and be respectful to other attendees. There are usually several great sessions going on at once, so everyone understands wanting to catch bits of more than one. It’s ok to move about.

Who will be there?

We currently have people registered from Pensacola, Mobile, Biloxi, and even as far away as Birmingham. Barcamps draw geeks of all kinds, from the noob to the expert, and are a great way of meeting new people and networking.

What should I bring?

Laptops are never a bad thing to have, Barcamps are often live-blogged and/or streamed. If you are handy with a camera, we’d love to get lots and lots of pictures! Comfortable clothes since you’ll be sitting all day, and clean socks since shoes are pretty much optional. (Did you know Barcamp New York makes that a rule to help keep the atmosphere casual?) Business cards are recommended for exchanging contact info, even if you are not a professional. (Vistaprint usually offers free ones that you can slap on your name, email, phone number, and Twitter handle, you just pay shipping.) Beyond that, just bring yourself and your friends, and be prepared to participate! The best sessions are always a balance of presentation and discussion.

I really want to go, but I don’t know what to talk about.

Here are some session list from other Barcamps that might give you some inspiration.

Barcamp Penang 2011 Sessions

Barcamp Nashville 2011 Sessions

Barcamp Portland 2011 Sessions

Barcamp Portland 2010 Sessions

Barcamp Milwaukee 2011 Sessions

If you are still having trouble, shoot me an email at sara@barcampmobile.org and I’ll do my best to help you figure something out!

Barcamp Mobile 2011 Registration is Now Open!

Sara O'Flaherty — Fri, 16 Sep 2011 14:00:32 +0000

What is Barcamp? Let’s get the biggest question out of the way -
No, it’s got nothing to do with bartending, and it’s not actually a camp.

What Barcamp actually is is a user-led technology conference, made up of people who come together for the sole purpose of sharing knowledge. One of the few conferences where there are no ‘experts’, no keynotes, and no one is paid, it sets itself apart from the typical for-profit technology events. Barcamp users come because they have a deep desire to learn, and to share with others the skills, the ideas, and the philosophies that drive them.

Everyone who comes to Barcamp is expected to participate. Most will present in 15 to 30 minute spots about whatever they are interested in. Photography, iOS, social media, mobile apps, cloud-based computing, gaming, wordpress, blogging, network security…it’s all there. Not to say it’s all about computers! Juggling, making a zombie apocolypse survival plan, even making the perfect cocktail are also topics that have been touched on in previous Barcamps! One of the most exciting parts of Barcamp is that you just never know what you are going to hear. Even those who don’t present share in the responsibilities by helping organize, helping to procure sponsorships, gruntwork the day of the conference, and providing great pictures and live tweets of the event. Barcamp is truly, in all senses, for and about it’s users.

There is no fee to attend Barcamp, and all facilities, internet, food, etc is provided by generous sponsors who help make this event possible.

Be sure to register, and share your plans to attend with others so we make make Barcamp Mobile 2011 the best one yet!
Have questions? Know someone who would make a great sponsor? Shoot me an email at sara@barcampmobile.org.

Online Ticketing for Barcamp Mobile 2011 powered by Eventbrite

Barcamp Mobile is Looking for Sponsors!

Sara O'Flaherty — Fri, 16 Sep 2011 01:06:44 +0000

It’s that time! Barcamp Mobile is looking for sponsors for our 2011 conference!

The University of South Alabama CIS department has agreed to host us an officially sponsored activity, giving us access to all the space we need and a great wifi connection, which is the perfect start for a user-led technology conference. Luckily Barcamp is pretty simple, so that means with classrooms, chairs, wifi, projectors, and white boards, we have the biggest part out of the way.

What else do we need? FOOD!

As the saying goes, geeks gotta eat, and we’d like to be able to provide all meals like we did for Barcamp 2009. We are looking for local businesses who don’t mind putting up a little cash for a great cause(and a bit of free promotion!) to help offset costs for a night-before meet and greet, as well as breakfast, lunch and snacks the day of the conference. All sponsors get a special place in the sidebar, mentions in every blog post, lots of twitter mentions, our eternal gratitude, and the knowledge that you have helped make the world a better place by facilitating the sharing of knowledge amongst those with a strong desire to learn.(And did we mention we’d love to be able to thank you in person for your donation at Barcamp?)

If you are interested in helping us make this the best event possible, drop me an email at sara@barcampmobile.org so we can discuss sponsorship options. If you know someone who owns a local business who would be a great addition to our sponsor group, hit me up and I’ll send you an email to forward on. It takes a community to put on a Barcamp, so lets get the ball rolling!

Barcamp Mobile 2 – Barcamp Strikes Back

Sara O'Flaherty — Wed, 10 Aug 2011 00:39:30 +0000

Good grief this has been a long time coming!

We had such huge ambitions for Barcamp Mobile 2 in 2010, and one thing after another kept throwing itself in our way. After deciding 2010 clearly wasn’t going to happen, we reset our sights on early 2011, which seemed like a great idea at the time, but didn’t quite mesh with reality.

Never ones to give up, we have committed to putting on the second annual(ha!) Barcamp, and have secured the venue. Barcamp Mobile will be returning to the University of South Alabama CIS building November 12, 2011. We’ll be opening registration shortly, and encourage everyone to register early, as space will be limited to about 100. As always, admission will be free.

We are currently looking for sponsorships to cover event costs(geeks gotta eat!) and volunteers to help pull it all together.

Want to get involved? Drop me an email at sara@barcampmobile.org .

Be sure to hit the subscribe button, follow us on Twitter, or join the Facebook page for updates!

Barcamp Mobile 2009

Sara O'Flaherty — Wed, 24 Jun 2009 18:07:23 +0000

I’ve been trying for weeks to figure out a way to do a wrap-up post for Barcamp Mobile 2009, and to be honest, I’m still having a hard time.

When I decided to volunteer a bit of time to helping plan the first Barcamp to be hosted here, I had NO idea what I was getting into. Literally, I had no idea, because I’d never been to one before. I just knew that after looking up what Barcamp was, it sounded like a great idea, and I wanted to go. (Funny bit of trivia here, I volunteered to help organize only because one of the rules of Barcamp is ‘everyone participates’, and I am terrified of public speaking!) However, once I got involved, it became so much more than just something to do. I realized the principles behind the project- the inclusiveness, the sharing of information, the creativity- really do set Barcamp apart from anything I’ve ever seen, and that it is something I truly believe in with a passion. I am thankful to have been a part of Barcamp Mobile 2009.

We had a great turnout for being the first Barcamp in this city, with around 35 people attending. Small potatoes compared to some larger cities who are on their 3rd or 4th year, but for the inaugural event, we were incredibly thrilled. With all the talk afterwards, we expect the numbers will easily triple for next year’s event.

For those who were not able to attend this year, you missed some great sessions. With such an eclectic mix of people, the topics and discussions were varied, ranging from network security to photography to social media and beyond. It was impossible to walk into a room and not end up learning something new.

Our pre-conference social mixer(sponsored by Automattic!) was held at Baumhower’s Wings the night before, and the impromptu after-party at Buffalo Wild Wings on Saturday night were both a ton of fun. After spending the day together, the Buffalo Wild Wings event was the more relaxed of the two, with the after-party being capped off with an after-after party(!) of a group of 11 heading off for a 10:40pm showing of the new Star Trek movie. We may be geeks, but we know how to have a good time!

I can’t think of any better way to wrap this up than to say thank you to everyone who made Barcamp Mobile 2009 what it was. Thank you first and foremost to my co-organizers- Michael Ivey, Gillis Jones, and Brian Wright. Thank you to Paul O’Flaherty for both your hard work on the newest incarnation of the site, and your patience in dealing with me as I worked to pull this together. Thanks to Michael Owens for the pictures and creating the Flickr pool for Barcamp.

A huge thank you to the sponsors, without whom we never could have made this happen. Thank you to Baumhower’s Wings for hosting us, and Magnolia Media for the kick-ass logo that we will continue to use on the site.

Most importantly, thank you to the participants, both local and those who traveled from as far as Birmingham to be with us for this event. It was awesome meeting everyone, and I hope you will consider joining us again for the next one.

Next one…? You heard it here first! After such a great time this year, there was no way I could walk away and not commit to doing this again! Keep an eye on this blog (subscribe here!) and we will be talking about both local events going on such as the monthly Tweetups and news from the Mobile Bay Technology Alliance, but also documenting the joys and headaches that go into planning Barcamp Mobile 2010. Be sure to follow us on Twitter as well for all the latest news.

Sara (@SaraOflaherty)

© Sara O'Flaherty for Barcamp Mobile, 2009. | Permalink | 6 comments |
Post tags: Barcamp2009, Mobile Bay Tech Alliance, participants, Planning, Satori, Sponsors, Twitter

Barcamp 2009 Projects

Sara O'Flaherty — Wed, 24 Jun 2009 18:05:27 +0000

One of the best things about Barcamp is that when you get together so many intelligent, creative people in one place, great ideas are sure to happen. Barcamp Mobile 2009 was no exception.

The Satori Project

Satori Coffee House is a local favorite here in Mobile, and we were incredibly excited when they signed on to sponsor the breakfast for this year’s Barcamp. (Barcamp Mobile 2009 trivia bit- Satori was actually our very FIRST sponsor!) What blew us away however was going to pick up the food on that Saturday morning, and finding out that not only were they providing us with free breakfast, the manager himself came in to make the scones and coffee hours before they were even open!

Everyone was so impressed with this, the idea was hatched that these incredibly nice, but maybe not the *most* internet-savvy people should be repaid in the best way a bunch of techies know how- build them a website! Previous to Barcamp, Satori Coffee House had a Myspace..and that’s it. No Twitter, no Facebook, no..anything really. In a matter of hours, we had an amazing team of talented people put together http://www.satorisoundcoffee.com as well as a full-on social media presence, most of which can be seen here, so be sure to add them! – http://www.google.com/profiles/satorisoundcoffee .

The website is still a work in progress, but we will continue to work with Satori to bring the word to the masses about their great food and amazing atmosphere.

The Mobile Bay Tech Alliance

Prior to Barcamp, ideas had been tossed around about how to make Mobile more tech-friendly to draw in new businesses and generally make life better for everyone. During the conference, this was further discussed and we realized that we had some great resources, but no way to get them together. The result is the Mobile Bay Tech Alliance. This organization’s purpose is to bring together the tech community in Mobile and the surrounding areas to foster and encourage technology-related events and networking in both professional and social capacities.

Still in the very earliest planning stages, we are nonetheless growing quickly. For updates on this exciting project, follow the Mobile Bay Tech Alliance on Twitter, and be sure to join the Google Group to become a part of the action!

© Sara O'Flaherty for Barcamp Mobile, 2009. | Permalink | No comment |
Post tags: Barcamp 2009, Mobile Bay Tech Alliance, Satori, Sponsors