"What are we doing today Brain? Taking over the world like we always do."
Make sure you both register _and_ pay for your linux.conf.au 2007 tickets and accommodation soon, as places are running out fast. Every year some people are left without tickets and are turned away at the door. Register right now to avoid missing out ๐
Two weeks to go!!
I’ve been tagged by Allison with the “five things you don’t know about me” craze, so here I go ๐
I was invited to a keynote speaker at linux.conf.au. My talk will be about designing reliable operating systems. I’d like to introduce a new metric: LFs — Lifetime Failures, the number of times the software has crashed in the user’s lifetime. My TV has LF = 0. My stereo system has LF = 0. My car has LF = 0. My computer has LF > 100. I want a computer system with LF = 0 – Andy Tanenbaum
A great interview with Andy Tanenbaum, one of the keynotes speakers on the linux.conf.au 2007 programme.
Only 2 1/2 weeks to go! Last tickets are going fast so register quickly!
Pia’s passion and pizzazz produce a potent prepapration for a proactive and purposeful posse. Pia is proficient at public promotion and persuading the priviliged, without being either pliant or prone to prevarication. My proposal: purloin Pia, pint-sized prodigy and PC poster-girl, as perennial VP! – AJ Towns
Best nomination post ever! Thanks AJ ๐
Nominations for the Linux Australia election are still open, but only for a few more days. You’ll need to log in using your membership information to nominate and later to vote, so check it out!
I’ve been nominated for VP and after some serious deliberation have accepted the nomination. In 2006 I was largely unable to achieve my LA goals due to being absorbed with helping run linux.conf.au (only 3 weeks away!), however I am keen to help take LA to the next level in 2007. My pitch is below (and will show up on the LA elections page once elections open):
Linux Australia has come a long way, particularly in the last four years. I feel my efforts in jump-starting LA at linux.conf.au Perth (2003) have paid off, and with the efforts of great committees and community members, LA is now a vibrant community with many active and inspiring contributors and members. In only 4 years we have increased membership from 5 to 1200, gotten into the ears of industry and Government, brought together a largely geographically dispersed community and created a transparent and trustworthy organisation that assists its community by being a tool for community development and FOSS in Australia.
Now we need to work especially hard to take LA to the next stage. I would like to accept the nomination for VP and my aims for 2007 include: to empower our community further for growth and local representation; to get FOSS onto the agenda of Australian Government and mainstream media; to create a better relationship between the Australian FOSS industry and community; & to create a way for FOSS groups to participate freely that aren’t specifically “Linux”. This last point is really important, there are many groups out there that are part of the FOSS community, but aren’t Linux specific (eg – Perl, Python, Open Solaris), and LA needs to find a way to be more formally inclusive of non-Linux FOSS groups so we can all be stronger together.
These aims are not short term. I am committed to LA for the long haul as I see the community voice of FOSS as being especially important now and well into the future. As our entire lives become more and more digital, trustworthy and sustainable technologies are vitally important. This is an important part of my personal commitment to FOSS and LA.
I hope to serve as VP with Jon as President as I feel his well-balanced and stable leadership is complimented by my energy and connectiveness. I hope to continue to serve the Australian FOSS community, and help take us to the next stage as a strong, trusted and participatory national and community focused organisation.
This year has been _insane_, particularly being on the linux.conf.au 2007 team, but hopefully everyone will take at least a few days to relax and take a well-earned break.
For me this time is all about family, and the chance to spend quality time with my loved ones. Happy celebrations to the Christian and Pagan communities. A belated happy Eid to the Muslim community, and an early happy New Year and happy Chinese New Year (รคยฟยกรฅยนยดรฅยฟยซรคยนย!). That should cover the season, and Buddha’s birthday is in May ๐
I’ll see some of you at linux.conf.au. Be safe and happy.
More than 50 women have signed up to the traditionally male dominated event, which represents approximately 10% of the overall number of registrations. – Chris Duckett, Bulider Au
Full story here.
And that number has now risen to about 65 women, about 12% of the total registrations, awesome! It isn’t by any count the best we can do, but it is the best we have done. Hopefully this’ll encourage more female geeks to come and enjoy linux.conf.au ๐
Over the coming few weeks we are going to have several high profile interviews published at ZDNet/Builder Au and Computeworld/Linuxworld. Hopefully that should help whet everyones appetite for linux.conf.au in only 3 weeks!!
What will your main message be to attendees at linux.conf.au? – Howard Dahdah
I’ve been thinking about that a lot recently and I’m still not sure where it’s going to go. I suspect some mix of design vs. practicality, how we can compete better in free software vs Microsoft and Apple, and what it takes to do something that’s truly interesting. It’s coming up with good illustrative examples that’s hard. I guess people should just come and see! – Chris Blizzard
Get the full story.
“LCA has got a fantastic reputation globally as being the world’s best technical open source conference,” said Pia Waugh. “Every year we have people like Linus [Torvalds], Keith Packard, Bdale Garbee, Dave Miller, lots of really famous names who come to the conference and love the conference.
“It’s very much a community event where great people come together to talk about great things, and the fact that your average young hacker who’s only just started in the community can rub shoulders with the best in the world … not only keeps the community close and exciting and interesting, but also [provides] a way to grow the future of the community”
Read the entire story here.
We’ve added a Sydney page to the linux.conf.au website so you can plan your travel, eating arrangements, the closest pubs and what clothes to bring. There is also a list linked on the Sydney page called Out and About with extra activities that might be of interest outside the UNSW area.
Only 3 1/2 weeks to go!! ๐
We’ve just hit 500 registrations for linux.conf.au. This means there are only about 150 or 200 tickets left, so get in and register now to reserve your spot, or miss out on all this! ๐