What is a barcamp?
everything you need to run your own!
March 04 2008

Open
• Open Source
• Open Formats
• Open Sharing

Participatory
• Do-cracy
• Anyone and Everyone Presents
• Law of two feet
• only requirement - enthusiasm to do and
discuss

Open Spaces
• Whoever comes is the right people
• Whatever happens is the only thing that
could have
• Whenever it starts is the right time
• When it's over, it's over

Law of two feet
• If at any time during our time together you
find yourself in any situation where you are
neither learning nor contributing, use your
two feet. Go to some other place where
you may learn and contribute.

Before the event...

Why
• Theme!
• tags
• keywords

Tagging
• short
• unique
• date?
• easy to spell/remember

Location
• will typically be your largest limiting factor!

Spaces aka Zones
• many little ones
• a few or one big Space
• can be rooms but doesn’t have to be
• best is if chairs can move!

WIFI
• get a real volunteer to set it up and be in
charge
• test it!

Wiki
• The TAG
• Who’s going
• planning on presenting
• sponsors

Who is coming
• Get Contact info - how many is crucial!
• Recruit Special planners
• food
• sponsors
• locale
• wifi

To Bring
• Huge postits or whiteboards
• Tape
• Markers

prep - optional
• Food and drinks
• if no sponsorships available ask community
to bring food and drinks on WIKI
• Signage (or let community create at event)
• projectors are nice

Sponsorships
• First is hardest
• Chunk into functionality(lunch, breakfast,
supplies)
• Give credit
• post to wiki, blog, signs at event
• stickers, t-shirts, flyers?

marketing
• blogs, event calendars, prewritten email
prewritten tweet
• logo?
• highlight any famous people in additional
posts
• good tags!

At the event

Intro - set the tone!
• go over basics of a barcamp for newbies
• pimp the tag for the event!
• wifi password
• location of grid

Intros
• aka Human Search Engine
• everyone goes around the room and says
• Your name
• Title
• 3 TAGS ONLY - self tagging

The prezo
• prep a ton
• or don’t prep at all
• do a panel
• make the entire room a panel (aka
discussion!)
• create a workgroup that continues after
event

The grid
• Time and location - let people fill in title
and speaker
• Needs to be centrally located
• Needs to be editable
• Presentations
• Time slots - do not have to be structured
15 mins - 3 hours (see law of two feet)
• Spaces need names (theme?)

Default mode
• is to SHARE
• but people can request off the record - but
be explicit!

Tourists
• don’t be one
• participate
• if scared - say I’m new. Everyone was new
once. Saying you are new is about setting
expectations!

After the event

Tagging = sharing
• Blogging ie Twitter
• Photosharing ie Flickr
• Videosharing ie youtube, blip.tv
• Presentationsharing ie slideshare.net
• Social bookmarking ie del.icio.us
• Social site annotation - Diigo

Wiki
• get people to update the Grid on wiki w
links to presentation materials and links

Viral - world wide
• Formula can be changed
• Codeathon
• startup weekends
• dev camps

Sponsors
• be sure to thank them... for free food next
time.

key to good Barcamp
• YOU
• recruit nifty people to come and signup on
wiki
• they recruit more nifty people
• and so on and so on

Credits...
• http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/
Open_Space_Technology
• http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/BarCamp
• http://www.barcamp.org/
• http://kaliyasblogs.net/unconference/?p=21
• http://www.unconference.net/

How to contact me?
Silona.com
silona@silona.com
(512) 750-9220
Silona_bonewald on Skype
silona on gtalk

This Prezo is
listed under
http://www.slideshare.net/Silona

Silly Name...
• a nod to Foocamp inspired by Oreilly’s
original version
• created by geeks
• Foobar
• http://www.tantek.com/log/
2006/07.html#d10t0805

references
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Open_Space_Technology
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/BarCamp
http://www.tantek.com/log/2006/07.html#d10t0805
http://www.barcamp.org/TheRulesOfBarCamp
http://www.cleverclevergirl.com/?p=10
http://www.barcamp.org/BarCampTemplate
http://chimprawk.blogspot.com/2006/07/advice-for-planning-
bar-camp.html