Slashdot Mirror

Last week, The Bazaar, an Open Source meeting and exhibition, was held for the first time in New York City. It was not a well-attended event, with fewer than 3000 registered visitors, and the view from the show's main floor was downright dismal because most of the people there spent most of their time in tutorial sessions, not cruising the (sparse) display booths. But it was still an event many found valuable. Here are some "show tales" from Slashdot readers who were there. (click below)

From Jordan Greenberg:

The Bazaar was my first real chance to meet any of the big names of the Linux community. Though I missed all of the daytime events due to work, I showed up just in time to be bored by Ralph Nader and retreat to the Andover.net party before things got too crazy. Once there I was able to chat with such legends as ESR, Bruce Perens, Maddog Hall, Jeff and Robin, and was even able to make RMS laugh about the whole to GNU or not to GNU Linux naming debate. Personally, I was never a big fan of saying GNU/Linux - I think it sounds awkward and confusing and I did not like RMS demanding that people in his presence use the GNU (right Chris?).

With almighty tequila coursing through my veins, I found myself in the midst of a sermon by RMS on why he believes we need GNU terminology - and coming from his mouth it suddenly made sense (or perhaps that was the tequila too). Linux, or GNU/Linux as RMS would have it, depends not only on the quality of the software but about the freedom within, granted by the GPL. By using the GNU prefix we remind ourselves and others of this. GNU/Linux is not just about the software, but about the ideals behind that software.

But it still sounds awkward. "The problem is," I said to RMS and the others that were still listening, "that you need a catchier name for it. How about calling yourself an "impaladin?"

"Impaladin?" asked RMS

"Yes, impaladin - Have GNU will travel"

RMS laughed - he approved

So feel free to use this new name - maybe even create an impaladin distribution or just laugh at it - but enjoy.

-------------

Isaac Salpeter's take:

The heart of this conference was not to be found on the exhibition floor, nor in the (repetitive axe-grinding of the) keynotes, but in the classes and general sessions. Suggestion for the future: more open discussions and cooperation, less Ralph Nader yammering about how much Microsoft sucks.

Best conversation overheard:

"So, will the Andover party have a cash bar?"

"No, there's free beer."

"Uh-oh, Stallman's gonna be pissed..."

--------------------

Annelise Anderson, representing FreeBSD, says:

Whatever its raw edges, The Bazaar conference was worthwhile for the usual networking reasons. The best of the networking went on at the reception hosted by andover.net and the follow-on reception at the FAO Schwarz toy store, an inspired location for this crowd. This one was thanks to FAO Schwartz and IBM.

The BSDs could -- should -- have had a stronger presence here, perhaps with a combined exhibit booth in addition to the volunteers demo-ing on their own computers. Patrick Lynch of the NY users' group organized a pan-BSD BOF; Bob Bruce showed up there and said we might see an IPO with FreeBSD's name on it before the middle of next year. My little Sony picturebook was a source of some amazement -- FreeBSD -current running on such a little thing, with a couple of those stunning Eterms. The publishers in attendance were generally unaware that along with the multiple Linux distros, FreeBSD and the other BSDs exist and transfer an enormous amount of the traffic on the Internet.

---------------

Adam Matos, Systems Administrator and Student, The Beacon School, writes:

While attending The Bazaar here in Manhattan, I found it to be fascinating that so many people support the Linux community. I came with a colleague and teacher of mine, Chris Lehmann, Technology coordinator for The Beacon School. Chris was the one who first showed me Linux and how useful it can be. At Beacon we use Linux on our primary servers and wanted to let others know that schools, too, use Linux.

I attended a tuturial Wednesday morning, Enterprise System Management, that was suposed to teach me about running Linux servers. I walked out 10 minutes into the tuturial. I took a quick look at what was planned for the session and noticed I knew a majority of it. Not because I think I know it all, but because we've done most of it at Beacon. Such things as configuring Samba and writing shell scripts were something I learned under Chris Lehmanns's coordination at school. With less than two years Linux experience, I've been given the title Systems Administrator.

As I leave The Bazaar, I feel more comfortable about how many other Linux enthusiasts are out there. Linux is something everyone I feel can start adapting to. People can change.

---------------

From Nopalzin Torrres, Systems & Network Administrator, IllusionFusion!:

I was nervous when I first arrived, but the Open Source community welcomed my desire to learn and contribute. I walked out of the Building Firewalls with Open BSD tutorial saying "Damn, I can really make this work". I also picked up some great info on Samba and Linux system admin. I had a great time and met some great guys.

---------------

starlady (AKA Jessica Lee Sheffield) finishes off by saying:

Having been to a show every month for the past four months, I thought I had some idea of what to expect when entering the exhibit floor, but my expectations were largely confounded as this was a much smaller show than I have experienced. I wasn't surprised to see Geek Compound 3.0 greet me as I walked through the door - Andover's .org pavilion, which was comprised of Linux.com, Linuxfund.org, NetBSD, KDE, and others, in addition to Slashdot and Freshmeat, of course. As I continued on through the floor looking for the UserFriendly booth, I noticed that several of the powerhouse booths at past shows, notably Red Hat and VA Linux, had a surprisingly subdued presence at this one, while Caldera (of "E-business!" fame at COMDEX) wasn't even in attendance.

The atmosphere at The Bazaar was very community-oriented, which is why it's a shame that the attendance was so low. Without the distractions of marketing ploys, people were free to discuss projects, collaboration, or simply say "Hey, I like your work." I had very nice conversations with some of the leading names in the Open Source community, and even witnessed a random guy walk up to Bob Young, notice his red beret, and ask, "Hey, are you with Red Hat or something?"

When Mr. Young nodded with a smile, the guy proceeded to ask him support questions, while I and Paul Ferris of LinuxToday snuck off before our snickering gave the game away. To his credit, Mr Young was very gracious in answering the man's questions and making him feel comfortable.

The relaxed nature of The Bazaar made it possible for smaller organizations to catch the eye and ear of the community and publicize their own open source efforts. One such was The Beacon School, an alternative public school in New York City where the students administrate Linux servers and run projects on them. The students are very enthusiastic and eager to be involved in the community, and I believe they made a very good impression on the attendees (except perhaps the ones that kept shooting the Nerf weapons kindly provided by Copyleft). Speaking of Nerf, Copyleft's "Shoot the Star Wars action figures, win a prize" campaign was a roaring success. I took a Slashdot frisbee home with me, so I can't complain. :)

All in all, I think The Bazaar was a success for its first year. The traffic wasn't as high as anyone would have liked due to bad placement within the Javits center, but I believe that is something they can improve in the future. The show was a great chance to see old friends and make new ones in the Open Source world, and I think a lot of positive things will come of that.

---------------

There were things that could have been improved, and the timing was wrong; theBazaar was held in the middle of finals week for most area colleges, which I believe was a big factor in the low attendance. And for some reason the heat in the Jacob Javits Convention Center wasn't working properly, which gave the whole thing a (literally) chilly atmosphere. Oh, well. Maybe next year's edition will be better-timed and better-attended.

- Robin "roblimo" Miller

Jacob Javits Convention Center, Manhattan,NY Tonight the Free Software Foundation gave out its Second Annual Award for the Advancement of Free Software. The nominees were introduced by our own CmdrTaco, fetchingly clad in a light blue plaid shirt. The awards themseleves were presentd by Richard M. Stallman, who wore a wonderfully fuzzy, warm-looking red, white, grey, and blue sweater. (More below)

The awards were given out in conjunction with theBazar, a gathering of Open Source experts, boosters, and devotees featuring a number of tutorials on assorted Open Source and GNU/Linux-related topics.

Last year's Award for the Advancement of Free Software went to PERL-meister Larry Wall. This year the three finalists were Donald Knuth, John Gilmore, and Miguel de Icaza.

And the winner was (drum roll please) Miguel de Icaza!

Miguel lent the proceedings a moment of extra drama by arriving - literally - at the second his name was announced, right after RMS said he was not there and could not, therefore, be expected to make a speech. But there he was, and the speech was both brief and charming.

A surprise award was also given to Blockstackers, which has donated a significant amount of money to the Free Software Foundation. This award was accepted by a shocked - and literally blushing - Rob Malda.

We join the Free Software Foundation in congratulating Miguel de Icaza.

See pictures of the award ceromony and participants here.

Leslie Proctor writes "The Second Free Software Foundation Awards will be held in New York at theBazaar Tuesday, December 14th at 7pm. Finalists for the award, honoring advancement of free software, are: John Gilmore, Miguel de Icaza and Donald Knuth." We ought to have a short report on the ceremony (and who won) up shortly after the event; CmdrTaco, Hemos, and I are all here in NYC, laptops in hand.

Some conference notes came in: NY, NJ and New England LUGs have been invited to LWCE in Feb. Click below for more details. As well, Copyleft is running a contest to send people to thebazaar. They've got the full details about the contest on their site. LWCE is Feb. 1-4, in NYC, The Bazaar is December 14-16, in NYC.

LinuxWorld Conference & Expo would like to support the New York, New Jersey and New England area LUGs at LinuxWorld Conference & Expo at the February 1 - 4, 2000 event at the Javits Center in New York City (www.linuxworldexpo.com). LUGs who would like to participate will be given a slot in our area LUGs rack in the .org pavilion. In these slots, LUGs can provide attendees with information on how to join their organization. LinuxWorld Conference & Expo will also send your LUG conference brochures and expo passes that you can give out at meetings. For more details, or if you would like to participate, please contact Kristin DeAngelis, Marketing Manager at kristin_deangelis@idg.com or 508.424.4823. Space is limited and will be on a first-come, first-serve, basis.

I've been corresponding with a gentleman recently about the various US-Linux conferences -(thebazaar, LinuxWorld, Atlanta Linux Showcase, and LinuxExpo)-what goes on? What do people want to do there? I'd like to open the discussion floor up to this-click below for more details. So, we've been talking about what types of booths there are, what sessions there are, and what Birds-of-a-Feather sessions there are, and how often the show doesn't do what you want. That begs the question of what people are looking for? What do you want from a show?

And in the way of plugs, ALS is currently seeking sponsers for a huge LUG party down there, as well as for the speakers. So, if you are willing to contribute, or your company is, please step forward and help out. LinuxWorld has also exhibit-only badges can be registered for from their web site, for the Feb. NYC show. Update: 09/14 12:01 by H : Natalie Vercauteren from LinuxWorld asks to e-mail her with BOF proposals, if you want anything in particular at LinuxWorld NYC.

Yep, it's that time again! Nghia gave us a link to some "Jedi Academy" trailers. Several folks wrote in to say that the guys at Themes.org have a new look. forehead graciously provided an "interesting" bit, based on this "Richard Stallman-as-Marx" posting. "I decided to rework the whole song". Orbitz pointed us at a web-controlled RC car with camera. Next is my favorite, as submitted by Electric Keet, Stick Figure Porn. Thyla pointed us in the general direction of Carbonated Borscht for the Evil Geek's Soul, with a thanks to Illiad. Crazy Man on Fire gave us a link to upcoming distributed.net projects coming out soon. poink threw us a link to The Cereal Page (Ok, someone has waaaay too much time on his hands...) J. Pierpont gave us a link to more info on Episode II and III. Now, from Armin Lenz submitted a link to a CPU Gurus, a new CPU site discussing various current and future processors. Finally, Mike Healy, one of The Bazaar dudes, sent us a status report. Read more for the skinny.

Mike Healy writes "Since Steve Blood, our event chairman, is out of the country - he is actually checking out a solar eclipse in Austria - i've taken it upon myself to give you all an update on the Bazaar. I'd wait for steve to get back, all bleary eyed, by i must squelch the rumors being promulgated by certain sales guys for other events, that we folded. This couldn't be further from the truth. Fact of the matter is we are scheduled, locked and loaded and PUMPED for December 14-16 at the javits NYC.

The Bazaar will be the first large scale conference on opensource software to hit the east coast and will stress program, program and program. Our Theory is that if you build it, they will .com

Not only does EarthWeb, by nature of being an IT content HUB have access to the freshest most imperative material, but we have also brought in an indstry expert, lydia Bennett of Dialogos fame, to aggregate and work closely with conference chairs and advisory board to make sure all tracks and tutorials are epic.

Check out the website for more on the program. The exhibit floor will be refreshingly unlike any you have seen in this space being made up of customed designed, turn key demo stations. This not only makes it a breeze for vendors , but also adds integity to the exhibit floor. No huge booths with revolving marquis, No loud PA systems. No freak shows. This is the wrong event to come to if you want to see Trumps daughter in a g string handing out T shirts... This is the right event if you want to meet some of the biggest brains out there and get no nonsense answers regarding opensource free software... Anyway, thats it for now.. More from Steve when he gets back"

Steve Blood sent an annoucment concerning the status of thebazaar, most especially it's changing status and re-scheduling.

As many of you know, the Bazaar has been going through a transition as we bring on a partner who will enable us to continue with our mission of creating a free software conference and expo that will benefit the free software development projects. That partner will be Earthweb, a company with a history of commitment to the developer community. Earthweb has been a tremendous supporter of our efforts and is excited to invest the necessary resources to bring us to a new level. Important to note: it is now definite that the dates of the Bazaar will change. We haven't settled on the new dates, but they will most likely be in July. It will still be held in New York.

Click below to read the rest of the announcement.

Unfortunately, the transition has not been as smooth as desired. The legal issues involved in teaming up with a nonprofit organization are apparently nontrivial and are still unresolved. Please bear with us, as we finalize things. I apologize for any inconveniences. If there's anything I can do please email me at sblood@thebazaar.org.

We would also like to thank all of you who have supported us throughout this entire endeavor. Those who know the history of the Bazaar are aware that this has not been an easy task, and the support from the free software community has been invaluable.

We will issue a press release as soon as everything is settled.

-steve blood

ps- speakers and developers, if you have incurred any costs due to us, please contact me and we'll make arrangements to help you cover them.

Steve Blood sent an annoucment concerning the status of thebazaar, most especially it's changing status and re-scheduling.

As many of you know, the Bazaar has been going through a transition as we bring on a partner who will enable us to continue with our mission of creating a free software conference and expo that will benefit the free software development projects. That partner will be Earthweb, a company with a history of commitment to the developer community. Earthweb has been a tremendous supporter of our efforts and is excited to invest the necessary resources to bring us to a new level. Important to note: it is now definite that the dates of the Bazaar will change. We haven't settled on the new dates, but they will most likely be in July. It will still be held in New York.

Click below to read the rest of the announcement.

Unfortunately, the transition has not been as smooth as desired. The legal issues involved in teaming up with a nonprofit organization are apparently nontrivial and are still unresolved. Please bear with us, as we finalize things. I apologize for any inconveniences. If there's anything I can do please email me at sblood@thebazaar.org.

We would also like to thank all of you who have supported us throughout this entire endeavor. Those who know the history of the Bazaar are aware that this has not been an easy task, and the support from the free software community has been invaluable.

We will issue a press release as soon as everything is settled.

-steve blood

ps- speakers and developers, if you have incurred any costs due to us, please contact me and we'll make arrangements to help you cover them.

Steve Blood sent an annoucment concerning the status of thebazaar, most especially it's changing status and re-scheduling.

As many of you know, the Bazaar has been going through a transition as we bring on a partner who will enable us to continue with our mission of creating a free software conference and expo that will benefit the free software development projects. That partner will be Earthweb, a company with a history of commitment to the developer community. Earthweb has been a tremendous supporter of our efforts and is excited to invest the necessary resources to bring us to a new level. Important to note: it is now definite that the dates of the Bazaar will change. We haven't settled on the new dates, but they will most likely be in July. It will still be held in New York.

Click below to read the rest of the announcement.

Unfortunately, the transition has not been as smooth as desired. The legal issues involved in teaming up with a nonprofit organization are apparently nontrivial and are still unresolved. Please bear with us, as we finalize things. I apologize for any inconveniences. If there's anything I can do please email me at sblood@thebazaar.org.

We would also like to thank all of you who have supported us throughout this entire endeavor. Those who know the history of the Bazaar are aware that this has not been an easy task, and the support from the free software community has been invaluable.

We will issue a press release as soon as everything is settled.

-steve blood

ps- speakers and developers, if you have incurred any costs due to us, please contact me and we'll make arrangements to help you cover them.

Steve Blood, the pivotal figure for the bazaar has sent over an update about some pretty major changes to the actual. I've posted that below-but some of the good news is that the pricing will be changing dramatically: 175$ for all conference sessions and tutorials, and 100$ for students. That's good news for everyone's pocket book. The Bazaar is going through a major transition which has been brought on by a number of factors which you can read about (if you have any desire to know more about what we've had to deal with) in a ranty, somewhat bitter, open letter I wrote, but decided not to do anything with.

To summarize what's happening: the Bazaar was conceived as a nonprofit conference and expo for free software that would benefit development groups. As it turned out, the dates which we chose specifically to not conflict with LINC Expo or Linux Expo, ended up being very close to IDG's LinuxWorld Expo -- another new show which wasn't announced until after our show was confirmed. Although this was unfortunate we didn't think it was the end of the world.

From the beginning we took a noncompetitive approach with IDG: the Bazaar was, after all, a different show in a different place. Hackers, developers, speakers and attendees liked that approach and we've had tons of support from all over the world.

However, that same approach got us no where with exhibitors and sponsors, i.e. the companies we need to support us so that we can afford to put this show on. Everyone has shut us down, given us the run-around and altogether sent the Bazaar to the brink of its life, except for a few, very excellent companies who believe in the spirit of our show (VA, Patmos, Linux HW).

Anyway, last week I appealed to a couple of leaders in the Linux business community for some help and they told me that competing with IDG was basically hopeless and wished me luck.

Well, our luck was running out, so I contacted a company that was interested in partnering up with us. It wasn't what I wanted to do with the Bazaar, but this company likes our mission and is willing to keep it as a nonprofit event with developers at the center. And they are a major company with the media and capital resources to make things happen.

So please bear with us as we go through some restructuring. If you have any suggestions -- except about the pricing which will change drastically, probably $175 for all the conference sessions and tutorials, $100 for students -- or questions please contact me or the staff.

-steve blood

Steve Blood, the pivotal figure for the bazaar has sent over an update about some pretty major changes to the actual. I've posted that below-but some of the good news is that the pricing will be changing dramatically: 175$ for all conference sessions and tutorials, and 100$ for students. That's good news for everyone's pocket book. The Bazaar is going through a major transition which has been brought on by a number of factors which you can read about (if you have any desire to know more about what we've had to deal with) in a ranty, somewhat bitter, open letter I wrote, but decided not to do anything with.

To summarize what's happening: the Bazaar was conceived as a nonprofit conference and expo for free software that would benefit development groups. As it turned out, the dates which we chose specifically to not conflict with LINC Expo or Linux Expo, ended up being very close to IDG's LinuxWorld Expo -- another new show which wasn't announced until after our show was confirmed. Although this was unfortunate we didn't think it was the end of the world.

From the beginning we took a noncompetitive approach with IDG: the Bazaar was, after all, a different show in a different place. Hackers, developers, speakers and attendees liked that approach and we've had tons of support from all over the world.

However, that same approach got us no where with exhibitors and sponsors, i.e. the companies we need to support us so that we can afford to put this show on. Everyone has shut us down, given us the run-around and altogether sent the Bazaar to the brink of its life, except for a few, very excellent companies who believe in the spirit of our show (VA, Patmos, Linux HW).

Anyway, last week I appealed to a couple of leaders in the Linux business community for some help and they told me that competing with IDG was basically hopeless and wished me luck.

Well, our luck was running out, so I contacted a company that was interested in partnering up with us. It wasn't what I wanted to do with the Bazaar, but this company likes our mission and is willing to keep it as a nonprofit event with developers at the center. And they are a major company with the media and capital resources to make things happen.

So please bear with us as we go through some restructuring. If you have any suggestions -- except about the pricing which will change drastically, probably $175 for all the conference sessions and tutorials, $100 for students -- or questions please contact me or the staff.

-steve blood

Steve Blood, the pivotal figure for the bazaar has sent over an update about some pretty major changes to the actual. I've posted that below-but some of the good news is that the pricing will be changing dramatically: 175$ for all conference sessions and tutorials, and 100$ for students. That's good news for everyone's pocket book. The Bazaar is going through a major transition which has been brought on by a number of factors which you can read about (if you have any desire to know more about what we've had to deal with) in a ranty, somewhat bitter, open letter I wrote, but decided not to do anything with.

To summarize what's happening: the Bazaar was conceived as a nonprofit conference and expo for free software that would benefit development groups. As it turned out, the dates which we chose specifically to not conflict with LINC Expo or Linux Expo, ended up being very close to IDG's LinuxWorld Expo -- another new show which wasn't announced until after our show was confirmed. Although this was unfortunate we didn't think it was the end of the world.

From the beginning we took a noncompetitive approach with IDG: the Bazaar was, after all, a different show in a different place. Hackers, developers, speakers and attendees liked that approach and we've had tons of support from all over the world.

However, that same approach got us no where with exhibitors and sponsors, i.e. the companies we need to support us so that we can afford to put this show on. Everyone has shut us down, given us the run-around and altogether sent the Bazaar to the brink of its life, except for a few, very excellent companies who believe in the spirit of our show (VA, Patmos, Linux HW).

Anyway, last week I appealed to a couple of leaders in the Linux business community for some help and they told me that competing with IDG was basically hopeless and wished me luck.

Well, our luck was running out, so I contacted a company that was interested in partnering up with us. It wasn't what I wanted to do with the Bazaar, but this company likes our mission and is willing to keep it as a nonprofit event with developers at the center. And they are a major company with the media and capital resources to make things happen.

So please bear with us as we go through some restructuring. If you have any suggestions -- except about the pricing which will change drastically, probably $175 for all the conference sessions and tutorials, $100 for students -- or questions please contact me or the staff.

-steve blood

Steve Blood, the pivotal figure for the bazaar has sent over an update about some pretty major changes to the actual. I've posted that below-but some of the good news is that the pricing will be changing dramatically: 175$ for all conference sessions and tutorials, and 100$ for students. That's good news for everyone's pocket book. The Bazaar is going through a major transition which has been brought on by a number of factors which you can read about (if you have any desire to know more about what we've had to deal with) in a ranty, somewhat bitter, open letter I wrote, but decided not to do anything with.

To summarize what's happening: the Bazaar was conceived as a nonprofit conference and expo for free software that would benefit development groups. As it turned out, the dates which we chose specifically to not conflict with LINC Expo or Linux Expo, ended up being very close to IDG's LinuxWorld Expo -- another new show which wasn't announced until after our show was confirmed. Although this was unfortunate we didn't think it was the end of the world.

From the beginning we took a noncompetitive approach with IDG: the Bazaar was, after all, a different show in a different place. Hackers, developers, speakers and attendees liked that approach and we've had tons of support from all over the world.

However, that same approach got us no where with exhibitors and sponsors, i.e. the companies we need to support us so that we can afford to put this show on. Everyone has shut us down, given us the run-around and altogether sent the Bazaar to the brink of its life, except for a few, very excellent companies who believe in the spirit of our show (VA, Patmos, Linux HW).

Anyway, last week I appealed to a couple of leaders in the Linux business community for some help and they told me that competing with IDG was basically hopeless and wished me luck.

Well, our luck was running out, so I contacted a company that was interested in partnering up with us. It wasn't what I wanted to do with the Bazaar, but this company likes our mission and is willing to keep it as a nonprofit event with developers at the center. And they are a major company with the media and capital resources to make things happen.

So please bear with us as we go through some restructuring. If you have any suggestions -- except about the pricing which will change drastically, probably $175 for all the conference sessions and tutorials, $100 for students -- or questions please contact me or the staff.

-steve blood

Steve Blood, the pivotal figure for the bazaar has sent over an update about some pretty major changes to the actual. I've posted that below-but some of the good news is that the pricing will be changing dramatically: 175$ for all conference sessions and tutorials, and 100$ for students. That's good news for everyone's pocket book. The Bazaar is going through a major transition which has been brought on by a number of factors which you can read about (if you have any desire to know more about what we've had to deal with) in a ranty, somewhat bitter, open letter I wrote, but decided not to do anything with.

To summarize what's happening: the Bazaar was conceived as a nonprofit conference and expo for free software that would benefit development groups. As it turned out, the dates which we chose specifically to not conflict with LINC Expo or Linux Expo, ended up being very close to IDG's LinuxWorld Expo -- another new show which wasn't announced until after our show was confirmed. Although this was unfortunate we didn't think it was the end of the world.

From the beginning we took a noncompetitive approach with IDG: the Bazaar was, after all, a different show in a different place. Hackers, developers, speakers and attendees liked that approach and we've had tons of support from all over the world.

However, that same approach got us no where with exhibitors and sponsors, i.e. the companies we need to support us so that we can afford to put this show on. Everyone has shut us down, given us the run-around and altogether sent the Bazaar to the brink of its life, except for a few, very excellent companies who believe in the spirit of our show (VA, Patmos, Linux HW).

Anyway, last week I appealed to a couple of leaders in the Linux business community for some help and they told me that competing with IDG was basically hopeless and wished me luck.

Well, our luck was running out, so I contacted a company that was interested in partnering up with us. It wasn't what I wanted to do with the Bazaar, but this company likes our mission and is willing to keep it as a nonprofit event with developers at the center. And they are a major company with the media and capital resources to make things happen.

So please bear with us as we go through some restructuring. If you have any suggestions -- except about the pricing which will change drastically, probably $175 for all the conference sessions and tutorials, $100 for students -- or questions please contact me or the staff.

-steve blood

Steve Blood, the pivotal figure for the bazaar has sent over an update about some pretty major changes to the actual. I've posted that below-but some of the good news is that the pricing will be changing dramatically: 175$ for all conference sessions and tutorials, and 100$ for students. That's good news for everyone's pocket book. The Bazaar is going through a major transition which has been brought on by a number of factors which you can read about (if you have any desire to know more about what we've had to deal with) in a ranty, somewhat bitter, open letter I wrote, but decided not to do anything with.

To summarize what's happening: the Bazaar was conceived as a nonprofit conference and expo for free software that would benefit development groups. As it turned out, the dates which we chose specifically to not conflict with LINC Expo or Linux Expo, ended up being very close to IDG's LinuxWorld Expo -- another new show which wasn't announced until after our show was confirmed. Although this was unfortunate we didn't think it was the end of the world.

From the beginning we took a noncompetitive approach with IDG: the Bazaar was, after all, a different show in a different place. Hackers, developers, speakers and attendees liked that approach and we've had tons of support from all over the world.

However, that same approach got us no where with exhibitors and sponsors, i.e. the companies we need to support us so that we can afford to put this show on. Everyone has shut us down, given us the run-around and altogether sent the Bazaar to the brink of its life, except for a few, very excellent companies who believe in the spirit of our show (VA, Patmos, Linux HW).

Anyway, last week I appealed to a couple of leaders in the Linux business community for some help and they told me that competing with IDG was basically hopeless and wished me luck.

Well, our luck was running out, so I contacted a company that was interested in partnering up with us. It wasn't what I wanted to do with the Bazaar, but this company likes our mission and is willing to keep it as a nonprofit event with developers at the center. And they are a major company with the media and capital resources to make things happen.

So please bear with us as we go through some restructuring. If you have any suggestions -- except about the pricing which will change drastically, probably $175 for all the conference sessions and tutorials, $100 for students -- or questions please contact me or the staff.

-steve blood

S. Blood, coordinator extraordinate of the thebazaar is looking to get in communication with project developers who contacted them. Click below for more details, particularly if you are interested in getting costs covered. Thanks to all of the project developers who contacted us regarding travel and accommodation arrangements for The Bazaar. We still need to hear from a number of you, however. We plan to cover expenses for as many free software project members as possible and the sooner we know who is interested in attending, the better the rates we'll be able to get allowing us to bring more people. Please contact us at staff@thebazaar.org. Thanks, Steve Blood.

S. Blood, coordinator extraordinate of the thebazaar is looking to get in communication with project developers who contacted them. Click below for more details, particularly if you are interested in getting costs covered. Thanks to all of the project developers who contacted us regarding travel and accommodation arrangements for The Bazaar. We still need to hear from a number of you, however. We plan to cover expenses for as many free software project members as possible and the sooner we know who is interested in attending, the better the rates we'll be able to get allowing us to bring more people. Please contact us at staff@thebazaar.org. Thanks, Steve Blood.

S. Blood, coordinator extraordinate of the thebazaar is looking to get in communication with project developers who contacted them. Click below for more details, particularly if you are interested in getting costs covered. Thanks to all of the project developers who contacted us regarding travel and accommodation arrangements for The Bazaar. We still need to hear from a number of you, however. We plan to cover expenses for as many free software project members as possible and the sooner we know who is interested in attending, the better the rates we'll be able to get allowing us to bring more people. Please contact us at staff@thebazaar.org. Thanks, Steve Blood.

S. Blood, coordinator extraordinate of the thebazaar is looking to get in communication with project developers who contacted them. Click below for more details, particularly if you are interested in getting costs covered. Thanks to all of the project developers who contacted us regarding travel and accommodation arrangements for The Bazaar. We still need to hear from a number of you, however. We plan to cover expenses for as many free software project members as possible and the sooner we know who is interested in attending, the better the rates we'll be able to get allowing us to bring more people. Please contact us at staff@thebazaar.org. Thanks, Steve Blood.

S. Blood, coordinator extraordinate of the thebazaar is looking to get in communication with project developers who contacted them. Click below for more details, particularly if you are interested in getting costs covered. Thanks to all of the project developers who contacted us regarding travel and accommodation arrangements for The Bazaar. We still need to hear from a number of you, however. We plan to cover expenses for as many free software project members as possible and the sooner we know who is interested in attending, the better the rates we'll be able to get allowing us to bring more people. Please contact us at staff@thebazaar.org. Thanks, Steve Blood.

Several folks have written in over the weekend (including Alan himself) to point us to Alan Cox's Diary where he says that LinuxWorld has no intention of covering speaker expenses for their show. There's always The Bazaar and Linux Expo.

Steve Blood sent in an update to the goings' on with thebazaar, the conference due to take place in March in NYC. Click below for the run-down; looks like things are taking shape. Everything is coming together here in New York for The Bazaar. We've updated a number of things on the site and changed our pricing to make exhibits and a couple of session tracks free of charge. Our press release hit the wires last Thursday and the response has been great. Registrations are rolling in and a major news network in New York is now working with us to do some cool stuff.

Getting The Bazaar off the ground has been exciting but it hasn't come without its challenges. Along the way, we've dealt with some issues which are worth noting:

LinuxWorld Expo.
An unfortunate coincidence has put us on consecutive weekends on opposite coasts. For us, this is both exciting and frustrating. Exciting because come March the free software fervor will be rocking the technology world. Frustrating because although we are aiming to have a different type of show, we have to compete to get vendors and sponsors.

Pricing.
As an independent show funded by a nonprofit, we need to make sure we break even on the first Bazaar. Unlike big shows who can and do take losses in the beginning, if we take a loss, the Bazaar will not happen again. We used Apachecon and the Atlanta Linux Showcase as models when we were examining pricing options but people resented the fact that we were charging to go to the exhibits. Our prices reflected what we thought was reasonable and the fact that we didn't want to be dependent on sponsors. We've had some luck with sponsors (though nothing definite yet) so we've optimistically changed the pricing so that exhibits and a couple of session tracks are free.

Our plan.
Some people have questioned our motivation for doing the Bazaar. Our goal is to create an expo which serves both the free software community and the public and business world. We want to be sure that there is a balance between the old and the new, between the people who have worked to get free and open source software to where it is today and the people who join the community in the future. To that end, we feel it's important that all of the free software projects are a focal point and we will bring developers from as many projects as possible. And if we do clear a profit, the money will be used to help free software development.

We will follow the comments on slashdot, but if you would like to discuss any of these issues with us directly, please contact us at staff@thebazaar.org . Also, if you are a developer from a free software project and you're interested in joining us and/or delivering a talk, please drop us a line.

thanks,
steve blood

Steve Blood sent in an update to the goings' on with thebazaar, the conference due to take place in March in NYC. Click below for the run-down; looks like things are taking shape. Everything is coming together here in New York for The Bazaar. We've updated a number of things on the site and changed our pricing to make exhibits and a couple of session tracks free of charge. Our press release hit the wires last Thursday and the response has been great. Registrations are rolling in and a major news network in New York is now working with us to do some cool stuff.

Getting The Bazaar off the ground has been exciting but it hasn't come without its challenges. Along the way, we've dealt with some issues which are worth noting:

LinuxWorld Expo.
An unfortunate coincidence has put us on consecutive weekends on opposite coasts. For us, this is both exciting and frustrating. Exciting because come March the free software fervor will be rocking the technology world. Frustrating because although we are aiming to have a different type of show, we have to compete to get vendors and sponsors.

Pricing.
As an independent show funded by a nonprofit, we need to make sure we break even on the first Bazaar. Unlike big shows who can and do take losses in the beginning, if we take a loss, the Bazaar will not happen again. We used Apachecon and the Atlanta Linux Showcase as models when we were examining pricing options but people resented the fact that we were charging to go to the exhibits. Our prices reflected what we thought was reasonable and the fact that we didn't want to be dependent on sponsors. We've had some luck with sponsors (though nothing definite yet) so we've optimistically changed the pricing so that exhibits and a couple of session tracks are free.

Our plan.
Some people have questioned our motivation for doing the Bazaar. Our goal is to create an expo which serves both the free software community and the public and business world. We want to be sure that there is a balance between the old and the new, between the people who have worked to get free and open source software to where it is today and the people who join the community in the future. To that end, we feel it's important that all of the free software projects are a focal point and we will bring developers from as many projects as possible. And if we do clear a profit, the money will be used to help free software development.

We will follow the comments on slashdot, but if you would like to discuss any of these issues with us directly, please contact us at staff@thebazaar.org . Also, if you are a developer from a free software project and you're interested in joining us and/or delivering a talk, please drop us a line.

thanks,
steve blood

Steve Blood sent in an update to the goings' on with thebazaar, the conference due to take place in March in NYC. Click below for the run-down; looks like things are taking shape. Everything is coming together here in New York for The Bazaar. We've updated a number of things on the site and changed our pricing to make exhibits and a couple of session tracks free of charge. Our press release hit the wires last Thursday and the response has been great. Registrations are rolling in and a major news network in New York is now working with us to do some cool stuff.

Getting The Bazaar off the ground has been exciting but it hasn't come without its challenges. Along the way, we've dealt with some issues which are worth noting:

LinuxWorld Expo.
An unfortunate coincidence has put us on consecutive weekends on opposite coasts. For us, this is both exciting and frustrating. Exciting because come March the free software fervor will be rocking the technology world. Frustrating because although we are aiming to have a different type of show, we have to compete to get vendors and sponsors.

Pricing.
As an independent show funded by a nonprofit, we need to make sure we break even on the first Bazaar. Unlike big shows who can and do take losses in the beginning, if we take a loss, the Bazaar will not happen again. We used Apachecon and the Atlanta Linux Showcase as models when we were examining pricing options but people resented the fact that we were charging to go to the exhibits. Our prices reflected what we thought was reasonable and the fact that we didn't want to be dependent on sponsors. We've had some luck with sponsors (though nothing definite yet) so we've optimistically changed the pricing so that exhibits and a couple of session tracks are free.

Our plan.
Some people have questioned our motivation for doing the Bazaar. Our goal is to create an expo which serves both the free software community and the public and business world. We want to be sure that there is a balance between the old and the new, between the people who have worked to get free and open source software to where it is today and the people who join the community in the future. To that end, we feel it's important that all of the free software projects are a focal point and we will bring developers from as many projects as possible. And if we do clear a profit, the money will be used to help free software development.

We will follow the comments on slashdot, but if you would like to discuss any of these issues with us directly, please contact us at staff@thebazaar.org . Also, if you are a developer from a free software project and you're interested in joining us and/or delivering a talk, please drop us a line.

thanks,
steve blood

Steve Blood sent in an update to the goings' on with thebazaar, the conference due to take place in March in NYC. Click below for the run-down; looks like things are taking shape. Everything is coming together here in New York for The Bazaar. We've updated a number of things on the site and changed our pricing to make exhibits and a couple of session tracks free of charge. Our press release hit the wires last Thursday and the response has been great. Registrations are rolling in and a major news network in New York is now working with us to do some cool stuff.

Getting The Bazaar off the ground has been exciting but it hasn't come without its challenges. Along the way, we've dealt with some issues which are worth noting:

LinuxWorld Expo.
An unfortunate coincidence has put us on consecutive weekends on opposite coasts. For us, this is both exciting and frustrating. Exciting because come March the free software fervor will be rocking the technology world. Frustrating because although we are aiming to have a different type of show, we have to compete to get vendors and sponsors.

Pricing.
As an independent show funded by a nonprofit, we need to make sure we break even on the first Bazaar. Unlike big shows who can and do take losses in the beginning, if we take a loss, the Bazaar will not happen again. We used Apachecon and the Atlanta Linux Showcase as models when we were examining pricing options but people resented the fact that we were charging to go to the exhibits. Our prices reflected what we thought was reasonable and the fact that we didn't want to be dependent on sponsors. We've had some luck with sponsors (though nothing definite yet) so we've optimistically changed the pricing so that exhibits and a couple of session tracks are free.

Our plan.
Some people have questioned our motivation for doing the Bazaar. Our goal is to create an expo which serves both the free software community and the public and business world. We want to be sure that there is a balance between the old and the new, between the people who have worked to get free and open source software to where it is today and the people who join the community in the future. To that end, we feel it's important that all of the free software projects are a focal point and we will bring developers from as many projects as possible. And if we do clear a profit, the money will be used to help free software development.

We will follow the comments on slashdot, but if you would like to discuss any of these issues with us directly, please contact us at staff@thebazaar.org . Also, if you are a developer from a free software project and you're interested in joining us and/or delivering a talk, please drop us a line.

thanks,
steve blood

Steve Blood sent in an update to the goings' on with thebazaar, the conference due to take place in March in NYC. Click below for the run-down; looks like things are taking shape. Everything is coming together here in New York for The Bazaar. We've updated a number of things on the site and changed our pricing to make exhibits and a couple of session tracks free of charge. Our press release hit the wires last Thursday and the response has been great. Registrations are rolling in and a major news network in New York is now working with us to do some cool stuff.

Getting The Bazaar off the ground has been exciting but it hasn't come without its challenges. Along the way, we've dealt with some issues which are worth noting:

LinuxWorld Expo.
An unfortunate coincidence has put us on consecutive weekends on opposite coasts. For us, this is both exciting and frustrating. Exciting because come March the free software fervor will be rocking the technology world. Frustrating because although we are aiming to have a different type of show, we have to compete to get vendors and sponsors.

Pricing.
As an independent show funded by a nonprofit, we need to make sure we break even on the first Bazaar. Unlike big shows who can and do take losses in the beginning, if we take a loss, the Bazaar will not happen again. We used Apachecon and the Atlanta Linux Showcase as models when we were examining pricing options but people resented the fact that we were charging to go to the exhibits. Our prices reflected what we thought was reasonable and the fact that we didn't want to be dependent on sponsors. We've had some luck with sponsors (though nothing definite yet) so we've optimistically changed the pricing so that exhibits and a couple of session tracks are free.

Our plan.
Some people have questioned our motivation for doing the Bazaar. Our goal is to create an expo which serves both the free software community and the public and business world. We want to be sure that there is a balance between the old and the new, between the people who have worked to get free and open source software to where it is today and the people who join the community in the future. To that end, we feel it's important that all of the free software projects are a focal point and we will bring developers from as many projects as possible. And if we do clear a profit, the money will be used to help free software development.

We will follow the comments on slashdot, but if you would like to discuss any of these issues with us directly, please contact us at staff@thebazaar.org . Also, if you are a developer from a free software project and you're interested in joining us and/or delivering a talk, please drop us a line.

thanks,
steve blood

Steve Blood sent in an update to the goings' on with thebazaar, the conference due to take place in March in NYC. Click below for the run-down; looks like things are taking shape. Everything is coming together here in New York for The Bazaar. We've updated a number of things on the site and changed our pricing to make exhibits and a couple of session tracks free of charge. Our press release hit the wires last Thursday and the response has been great. Registrations are rolling in and a major news network in New York is now working with us to do some cool stuff.

Getting The Bazaar off the ground has been exciting but it hasn't come without its challenges. Along the way, we've dealt with some issues which are worth noting:

LinuxWorld Expo.
An unfortunate coincidence has put us on consecutive weekends on opposite coasts. For us, this is both exciting and frustrating. Exciting because come March the free software fervor will be rocking the technology world. Frustrating because although we are aiming to have a different type of show, we have to compete to get vendors and sponsors.

Pricing.
As an independent show funded by a nonprofit, we need to make sure we break even on the first Bazaar. Unlike big shows who can and do take losses in the beginning, if we take a loss, the Bazaar will not happen again. We used Apachecon and the Atlanta Linux Showcase as models when we were examining pricing options but people resented the fact that we were charging to go to the exhibits. Our prices reflected what we thought was reasonable and the fact that we didn't want to be dependent on sponsors. We've had some luck with sponsors (though nothing definite yet) so we've optimistically changed the pricing so that exhibits and a couple of session tracks are free.

Our plan.
Some people have questioned our motivation for doing the Bazaar. Our goal is to create an expo which serves both the free software community and the public and business world. We want to be sure that there is a balance between the old and the new, between the people who have worked to get free and open source software to where it is today and the people who join the community in the future. To that end, we feel it's important that all of the free software projects are a focal point and we will bring developers from as many projects as possible. And if we do clear a profit, the money will be used to help free software development.

We will follow the comments on slashdot, but if you would like to discuss any of these issues with us directly, please contact us at staff@thebazaar.org . Also, if you are a developer from a free software project and you're interested in joining us and/or delivering a talk, please drop us a line.

thanks,
steve blood

Steve Blood, whom Nate and I have been talking to for quite some time now has officially opened the gate to thebazaar.org. New York City. Javits Hall. Many cool people (check out the list). March. Everyone must come. He also asked anyone who is interested in contributing, speaking, or just dropping a line to send some thing over here. This will be an interesting conference because it shows a different emphasis and new directions for Linux. update! Steve Blood has sent a response to the some of the comments below. I apologize for the delay in responding to some of the concerns raised yesterday (we are busy trying to get ready to go to the Atlanta Showcase). Also, if you sent email, please be patient, it'll probably take us a couple days to catch up with the deluge.

The Bazaar was conceived as an event to promote free software and increase its visibility in the public eye. It is a nonprofit event and the proceeds will benefit a number of free software projects.

It was not planned in a vacuum. I've corresponded with a number of people including Greg Hankins (ALS organizer), Eric Raymond and Richard Stallman all of whom have been very helpful and have warned me of the cost and difficulty, and helped me narrow down the objectives of the conference, which we decided would be primarily to increase the visibility and credibility of free software in the business world.

The dates were chosen specifically to not conflict with LINC or LinuxExpo. Unfortunately, they ended up coinciding closely to LinuxWorld's dates. We don't have the reputation of IDG, nor the financial resources, which would allow us to announce a show and then say that we'll tell you more on November 1. We tried to change the dates after we found out, but the only other opening at the Javits Center is in September.

The fact that they are so close is a concern, but that depends mostly on how IDG handles it. The Bazaar doesn't need to make money, but it would be good if we didn't lose any. I don't consider LinuxWorld a competitor and I think having two big conferences on either side of the country will generate even more press than a single one.

Furthermore, we don't want this to be just a "Linux" show. It will be a free software show including as many free software projects as possible.

Two weeks ago I announced our plans to members of as many of the free software projects as I could find. I got a very positive response from many of them and corresponded personally with developers from KDE, NetBSD, Gnome, the FSF, Stampede, and Apache. All of them were excited about the idea and wanted to come if we could arrange a booth for them.

The cost is definitely a concern. It took us a while to decide what to charge people. We made our decisions based on a number of factors. First and foremost is our costs. The Bazaar will cost somewhere between $150K and $200K. We received a $75K grant from a private foundation to get started. Without the benefit of a market research department, we need to keep a worst case scenario in mind. With any luck, it'll be far more popular than we imagine and we'll be able to give a lot of money to the free software projects. If not, then we'll let Mecklermedia do the next free software show in NYC.

Some comparison with other conferences such as Apachecon ($1295 for less than 2.5 days), Comdex ($895 for two days), etc. will show you that our prices are not outrageous.

One last thing about price. We didn't solicit any corporations to be the general sponsor of this show (such as C2Net and IBM for Apachecon and Redhat, Caldera and Linux-HW for LinuxExpo). We don't really want people to automatically associate free software with one particular company. As a result, this extra cost will be born by the attendees instead.

The venue was chosen because we are located in the New York area and the Javits center is a big league exhibition space. In addition, New York is a world business center and, in our minds, the best place to get free software in the eye of the public and the business world.

One of our goals is to do the groundwork to put a conference on and then find a motivated group or individual in another city (or country) to take our work and apply it elsewhere. If the first Bazaar is successful, we'd like to take to the road, at which point we'll need a lot more help.

(And no the Javits Center has not listed us on their website yet, but does that really surprise any of you? If you want to call them and ask about us, please do. Their number is on their website.)

As for the web design. My primary business is web design. None of the 100+ hours of design time for thebazaar.org were billed to in Limine. Most of them were done after hours and on Sundays. We put a lot of effort into it, but there are still some rough edges. And I apologize for the frames, I didn't realize it would be such an issue -- we're currently making a non-framed, non-javascripted version for all the lynx users out there.

Please feel free to respond to these issues, and if you want to correspond with me send mail to staff@thebazaar.org

Steve Blood, whom Nate and I have been talking to for quite some time now has officially opened the gate to thebazaar.org. New York City. Javits Hall. Many cool people (check out the list). March. Everyone must come. He also asked anyone who is interested in contributing, speaking, or just dropping a line to send some thing over here. This will be an interesting conference because it shows a different emphasis and new directions for Linux. update! Steve Blood has sent a response to the some of the comments below. I apologize for the delay in responding to some of the concerns raised yesterday (we are busy trying to get ready to go to the Atlanta Showcase). Also, if you sent email, please be patient, it'll probably take us a couple days to catch up with the deluge.

The Bazaar was conceived as an event to promote free software and increase its visibility in the public eye. It is a nonprofit event and the proceeds will benefit a number of free software projects.

It was not planned in a vacuum. I've corresponded with a number of people including Greg Hankins (ALS organizer), Eric Raymond and Richard Stallman all of whom have been very helpful and have warned me of the cost and difficulty, and helped me narrow down the objectives of the conference, which we decided would be primarily to increase the visibility and credibility of free software in the business world.

The dates were chosen specifically to not conflict with LINC or LinuxExpo. Unfortunately, they ended up coinciding closely to LinuxWorld's dates. We don't have the reputation of IDG, nor the financial resources, which would allow us to announce a show and then say that we'll tell you more on November 1. We tried to change the dates after we found out, but the only other opening at the Javits Center is in September.

The fact that they are so close is a concern, but that depends mostly on how IDG handles it. The Bazaar doesn't need to make money, but it would be good if we didn't lose any. I don't consider LinuxWorld a competitor and I think having two big conferences on either side of the country will generate even more press than a single one.

Furthermore, we don't want this to be just a "Linux" show. It will be a free software show including as many free software projects as possible.

Two weeks ago I announced our plans to members of as many of the free software projects as I could find. I got a very positive response from many of them and corresponded personally with developers from KDE, NetBSD, Gnome, the FSF, Stampede, and Apache. All of them were excited about the idea and wanted to come if we could arrange a booth for them.

The cost is definitely a concern. It took us a while to decide what to charge people. We made our decisions based on a number of factors. First and foremost is our costs. The Bazaar will cost somewhere between $150K and $200K. We received a $75K grant from a private foundation to get started. Without the benefit of a market research department, we need to keep a worst case scenario in mind. With any luck, it'll be far more popular than we imagine and we'll be able to give a lot of money to the free software projects. If not, then we'll let Mecklermedia do the next free software show in NYC.

Some comparison with other conferences such as Apachecon ($1295 for less than 2.5 days), Comdex ($895 for two days), etc. will show you that our prices are not outrageous.

One last thing about price. We didn't solicit any corporations to be the general sponsor of this show (such as C2Net and IBM for Apachecon and Redhat, Caldera and Linux-HW for LinuxExpo). We don't really want people to automatically associate free software with one particular company. As a result, this extra cost will be born by the attendees instead.

The venue was chosen because we are located in the New York area and the Javits center is a big league exhibition space. In addition, New York is a world business center and, in our minds, the best place to get free software in the eye of the public and the business world.

One of our goals is to do the groundwork to put a conference on and then find a motivated group or individual in another city (or country) to take our work and apply it elsewhere. If the first Bazaar is successful, we'd like to take to the road, at which point we'll need a lot more help.

(And no the Javits Center has not listed us on their website yet, but does that really surprise any of you? If you want to call them and ask about us, please do. Their number is on their website.)

As for the web design. My primary business is web design. None of the 100+ hours of design time for thebazaar.org were billed to in Limine. Most of them were done after hours and on Sundays. We put a lot of effort into it, but there are still some rough edges. And I apologize for the frames, I didn't realize it would be such an issue -- we're currently making a non-framed, non-javascripted version for all the lynx users out there.

Please feel free to respond to these issues, and if you want to correspond with me send mail to staff@thebazaar.org