DouglasWard.net Random ramblings from an IT Director

A few months ago an e-mail hit the TriLUG mailing list advertising an open source conference in Columbia, SC.  The Palmetto Open Source Software Conference (POSSCON), now in it’s fourth year, brings together a who’s who of the open source movement.  This conference brings together these leaders to discuss the latest technology trends with local professionals, students, academics and enthusiasts.  It was very interesting to see groups of executives, developers, IT professionals and students all mingling together as a community.  This more than anything drove  home the breadth and depth of the open source community.

Having driven in from Raleigh to attend this conference I had a rather high set of expectations.  It’s a considerable investment to leave the office for three or four days and drive three and a half hours.  This conference would not disappoint!  Columbia is a wonderful place to hold a conference of this size.  The hotels are an easy walk from the conference center.  There are a lot of excellent dining establishments all within the same area.  I didn’t have to go far to attend the conference, sleep or eat.  I decided to drive this time but I would have been just as well off had I flown.  I didn’t really need a car once I got here.

The support that this conference has gathered in its four years of existence is simply amazing.  The sponsor list included companies such as Microsoft (yes, they were here), Oracle, Red Hat, Verizon, Linode.com, Google and many others.  The support from the City of Columbia was also very impressive.  Mayor Benjamin welcomed us on the first day and reinforced his excitement and support for the conference.  It’s obvious that Columbia is making a big push to become a technology center.

Since I help produce a few conferences a year I spent some time looking over the visible POSSCON operations.  I am always looking for better ways to put together our show.  Here are a few lessons that I picked up this week:

• Internet access is an issue at other conferences beside ours.  When you bring a few hundred (or a few thousand) people into one place for the day they will take down your connections.  The Internet connections here worked all day although they were a bit spotty at times.  There are just too many smart phones and laptops out there.  Overall I think it worked well.  With some patience I didn’t have any severe trouble with communicating when I needed to.
• QR codes were used to great effect during registration and on our ID badges.  It did slow down registration on the first day but once the main first day registration was over it moved fairly well.  There are clear advantages to using this technology.  The obverse side of the name tag held a QR code with all of my contact information.  I could easily pass off this electronic business card to anyone with a smart phone bar code scanner.  The reverse side of the badge held QR codes with internal ID numbers.  I assume these were used to keep track of my registration and what days I attended the conference.  I did notice that glare from the big windows played around with the bar code scanners a bit.  Once we turned the name tag away from the glare they worked without a hitch.
• We need to do a better job of getting electricity out to the floor of our conferences.  POSSCON had electricity within easy reach in every room.  I found myself having to recharge my laptop and phone multiple times during the week and this was most appreciated.
• Give aways at the end of the day was a nice touch.  It does a good job of keeping people’s attention all the way to the end of the day.  I wonder if there is a way that we could integrate this idea into our conferences?  Alas, I did not win one of the coveted Galaxy tablets but it was nice to mingle and hear the applause for all of the winners.
• One of the conference staff grabbed me at lunch on the second day and asked me to fill out a quick online survey (again tied into my QR codes).  I think this is a great idea and something we should seriously pursue.

At the end of the day I am very excited to have been able to attend this conference.  Unless something similar pops up in Raleigh I will likely add this to my annual list.  Thanks POSSCON for putting on such a great conference!  I am excited to hear about what is in store for next year!