BarCamps are great. This isn't a BarCamp

BarCamps are great. This isn't a BarCamp: 2010-02-14: A BarCamp is a conference with some key differences. What excited me about the idea, realised at BarCamp Bradford, is that it's a user generated conference. It's the delegates who present. It's a sharing of ideas.; The key moment around which a BarCamp pivots is when the empty framework for the day is posted on the wall, a call to action is given, and the delegates, armed with marker pens, volunteer their presentations into empty slots. Ten minutes later, you have a completely planned conference.; Typically that free sense of giving and sharing is complemented by free coffee and pizza (cake, too, at Bradford) and the whole event is free. Also, in moving between tracks (BarCamp Bradford had four) and from presentation to presentation there's plenty of opportunity for networking and meeting great people. This is aided by the fact that these are more or less amateur presentations which sometimes finish early (in one case for me at Bradford, so early that as I sat down the presenter said "so, any questions?"); Because a BarCamp is created by the people attending, they are free to give presentations on whatever they like. So you can have a public transport BarCamp and you'll have a taxi driver, the local councillor responsible, someone from the Green Party talking about emissions, and someone from a traffic planning organisation saying how they could fix it given the chance. In other words, it's a real mix of people with enough gumption to get up and talk about it. Cool, engaged people, in other words. Where else would they mix?; But also it comes from the open source community, the sort of people who brought you Firefox, Linux, Blender, Audacity and pretty much all of the Internet by sharing ideas and working together freely. A BarCamp open-sources its organisation, providing the bare bones of a structure and trusting the delegates to make the conference their own. Good people, people who would share their food and look out for you, like BarCamps.; Other stuff makes it a BarCamp too, here's Wikipedia on the subject, but here's a central place where BarCamps get registered, I mean it's a bloody awful site but if you're into BarCamps (and hey, there's one in Newcastle .. yip, might see you there :-) ), that's how you find out where and when the next one is.; As part of Digital Scarborough, there's (this link has now been amended, see discussion below) BarCamp Scarborough except .. it isn't. It's 'loosely based' on the principles of BarCamp. Well .. which principles? It's free to attend, but that's about it.; There's only one track, so there are fewer mixing opportunities. But crucially, it's no more a user generated conference than any other conference. Eight presentation slots which you have to apply for ahead of time, which implies someone will decide who gets to present. That's the opposite of a BarCamp.; At Bradford Barcamp for most delegates it was their first ever BarCamp. What I'm upset about with the Scarborough BarCamp is that it's not a BarCamp, but whoever has organised it has used the word. Perhaps they thought it was cool. Maybe they don't really get what the point of a BarCamp is. There are plenty of people around who for whom open source hasn't clicked yet. Possibly they didn't think it mattered that much .. whatever it takes to make the event a success. I don't know, I'm just guessing, that's what it feels like, reading the material on the website. Perhaps whoever's behind it has laudable motives that I haven't discerned, if I hear anything I'll let you know.; But I think it takes from the idea, the brand, of BarCamp, without giving. Scarborough BarCamp isn't a BarCamp. So delegates might come away with the idea that a BarCamp is just a mini conference. It's not. Well, Scarborough's is. A BarCamp is a people-led help-each-other mindshare, and that's a beautiful thing. This isn't that.; I'm not saying I'm going to boycott it or anything. I am just very upset that the Scarborough BarCamp organisers seem to have taken the good bit (the name, the buzz and the kudos) without respecting what it stands for that gives it the buzz in the first place. It pollutes the water for those who follow. It has upset me. But, hey, worse things happen in Withernsea.; Update: there's been discussion on Twitter as a result of this:; thejawline: @JohnAllsoppIM talk to Richard Askew, he'll explain more about Digital Scarborough 2010 Barcamp http://richardaskew.co.uk/ :); thejawline: @JohnAllsoppIM his twitter is @richaskew 2:51 PM Feb 14th from web in reply to JohnAllsoppIM; richaskew: @JohnAllsoppIM @sfrost2004 it is loosely based on the principles of a BarCamp (i've never been to one) with a little more planning 5:07 PM Feb 14th from web; richaskew: @JohnAllsoppIM @sfrost2004 There is no budget - at all. anyone can present, on any topic, its free, its going in the right direction 5:13 PM Feb 14th from web; richaskew: @JohnAllsoppIM If we get enough interest then it can run as a normal BarCamp. Numbers are crucial and Scarborough isn't a large city 6:18 PM Feb 14th from web; richaskew: @JohnAllsoppIM @sfrost2004 I take your concerns on board and I will put it to the other organisers. 6:23 PM Feb 14th from web; nipclaw: @JohnAllsoppIM @rah_rah @Charonqc @nooption @LightbulbDesign @Little_Lawyer Many thanks for your good wishes.; electric_angel: @richaskew @sfrost2004 for what it's worth, i think @JohnAllsoppIM is right. a 'bar camp' needs to be a bar camp; electric_angel: richaskew @sfrost2004 @JohnAllsoppIM don't want to be critical though - i'm excited at all the stuff happening and glad to help promote it; richaskew: @electric_angel @richaskew @sfrost2004 @JohnAllsoppIM Agreed and it will be if people show - no registratnts from Scarborough yet; sfrost2004: @JohnAllsoppIM I wanted a true BarCamp originally, but some on the DS10 cttee thought no-one would come. Hence prebooked guests compromise about 9 hours ago from Echofon; richaskew: @sfrost2004 @JohnAllsoppIM changed wording on the site. It can't be relaxed anymore people need to register like at Bradford; sfrost2004: @JohnAllsoppIM I'd love to comment on your last blog post (but can't on your blog)...you seem to make a lot of unfounded assumptions; sfrost2004: @richaskew @JohnAllsoppIM @electric_angel Just to correct a few misunderstandings: #BarCampScarb is totally free #digiscarb; sfrost2004: @JohnAllsoppIM #BarCampScarb is open source. All presentations should be made available afterwards, as per #BarCamp philosophy #digiscarb; I sent:; sfrost2004 richaskew electric_angel since it's free and scarborough's nice, small attendance isn't death, just finish at 2pm and go beach 8:12 AM Feb 16th from web; sfrost2004 email me a reply john@johnallsopp.co.uk if you like and I'll add it to the blog, I've appended all the Twitter comments 8:14 AM Feb 16th from web; sfrost2004 richaskew electric_angel but I think it's because it's not a BarCamp that people aren't showing interest 8:13 AM Feb 16th from web; sfrost2004 by 'totally free' are you providing food too? 8:15 AM Feb 16th from web in reply to sfrost2004; sfrost2004 #BarCampScarb it's the organisation that isn't open source, that's the crucial part. "Places will be allocated" .. by who? 8:17 AM Feb 16th from web in reply to sfrost2004; sfrost2004 richaskew electric_angel #BarCampScarb an open list of delegates and a threshold? "will run if >30 book, top limit 100?" 8:19 AM Feb 16th from web; sfrost2004 richaskew electric_angel #BarCampScarb It's partly a publicity job, I hope u haven't killed it by putting off the early adopts 8:20 AM Feb 16th from web; richaskew where are you making these changes, I see none here 9:40 AM Feb 16th from web in reply to richaskew; richaskew OK, I see the changes and appreciate the dialogue. about 24 hours ago from web in reply to richaskew; and, slightly out of synch, here's what I got back yesterday:; richaskew: @JohnAllsoppIM Due to funds (none) we have room for 35 people, some refreshments. We need sponsors to do what you want, not enough time. 8:52 AM Feb 16th from web; richaskew: @JohnAllsoppIM text has been changed re allocation. Twitter isn't the medium for this discussion. It would have been simpler to email us. 8:53 AM Feb 16th from web; richaskew: @JohnAllsoppIM allocation enabled us to ensure we have a full program. People to stand up and be counted or loose out to leeds etc yet again 8:56 AM Feb 16th from web; richaskew: @JohnAllsoppIM so now it is a BarCamp apart from we can't provide free food - I reckon that is close enough for the first run. agreed? 9:01 AM Feb 16th from web; richaskew: @JohnAllsoppIM Well they are there - no mention of allocation now - Refresh Cache? It is how it is now. Either get behind it or don't 10:06 AM Feb 16th from web; So where are we now? I have to say that last Bushian ("you're either with us or against us") comment doesn't sit well, but looking at the amended text I expected it not to address my main concern which is: who decides who is presenting .. it has to be the delegates themselves.; Well now it doesn't mention selection, they just want an idea of numbers so maybe it is close enough. I need to let this settle, but I'm a lot happier with the way it's presented now. I'm making a presentation next week so if that works I'll make a decision.

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