The Bangalore Barcamp

[jace]

Plans are afoot for a Bangalore edition of Barcamp. Barcamp is an “Unconference”, an event where we eliminate the panel of speakers and let the attendees do the talking, on the assumption that most attendees are also knowledgeable and, being unencumbered by the formality of stage, more likely to make interesting conversation

Comments

[ex_ga_woo]

How will this be an unconference if most of the time most of the people are not knowledgeable about the topic at hand?

I think the reason tech unconferences work (I've never been to one) is because tech geeks have a cursory knowledge of everything techie and so can participate regardless of the particular technical topic at hand. I don't think a generic geek unconference is possible. It could be, at most, an event with a bunch of talks and an enthusiastic audience.

Or maybe I'm just wrong about what BarCamp is supposed to be. I don't know.

[jace]

What if, say, the talk were on traffic? You don't have to be a traffic geek to understand the nuances of traffic management. Anyone who faces traffic can appreciate it

[manubhardwaj]

You don't have to be a traffic geek to understand the nuances of traffic management. Anyone who faces traffic can appreciate it.

It's 3am, and I'm not all that eager to argue about this, but what you say isn't true IMHO. There's a big difference between appreciating traffic management (which is what you and I can't do in Bangalore) and understanding its nuances: an uncle of mine, Anantharamaiah, was a professor at IIMB with a PhD in Transportation Management; it's a completely different ballgame.

[jace]

True, good catch. I was aiming for the bringing about awareness side of things. Sadly, it seems this Barcamp will be overrun by the Web 2.0 crowd.

[manubhardwaj]

In a world where it's "cool" to have a bunch of people hanging around in a room where WiFi access seems to be the biggest

Here's a thought: get these people together and make it a No Laptop rule. Then let's see how many of these people actually have ideas, thoughts and opinions to share, and how many of them are obese gasbags who find power in flaming mailing lists.

Most geeks are seriously deprived of interaction. The best times I've had at IIMB have been when a bunch of brainy people have sat for hours and talked about life. And geeks understand everything?! Yeah OK whatever.

It ain't cool to be photographed (digitally) sitting in front of a WiFi-connected Mac at a conference of people, dammit. Why do you think I don't want to come to the BarCamp? I'm sick of "my kernel is cooler than yours" talk, and I'm afraid there is nothing I will learn except AJAX at BarCamp. Even the chef seems to have said no, and he will, by far, be the person I can learn the most about life from.

[manubhardwaj]

Two clarifications:

- The first sentence should read
In a world where it's "cool" to have a bunch of people hanging around in a room where WiFi access seems to be the biggest priority, here's a thought:

- There was not, repeat not, a reference to anybody specific here; the "gasbag" comment was personification of what I believe to the typical asshole geek, as opposed to the good geek. IMHO. IMHO.

[jace]

I can't speak for the other planners -- and thankfully not, because they counter my more eccentric ideas -- but here is some of what I've considered

[jace]

It looks like someone was daft enough to tell a Web 2.0 crowd that Web 2.0 was overrated, and got booed for it (BarCampHyderabad). I can't find that report now.

[bluesmoon]

actually, they work because geeks have the ability to understand anything

[ex_ga_woo]

For example, I hang out with cultural studies academics these days. They know very little of tech, but their insights into other fields such as cinema and art are utterly fascinating. Let's get people like them into this. (http://groups.yahoo.com/group/bangalore_barcamp/message/15)

Culture, art, cinema? Really? Most geeks have trouble designing an unugly web-page.

P.S: Anyway, I probably shouldn't be discussing this because I won't be at BARCamp Bangalore. So, um, before someone comes in here and asks me to mind my own business...

[jace]

If you're expecting someone to discuss the nuances of bharatnatyam vs kuchipudi, yes, that'll be a turn off. But what if someone comes up and demonstrates how piracy is actually good for innovation, with clear evidence of how today's stars started their careers with cheap rip-offs? (Yes, I know someone who studies this.)

[ex_ga_woo]

Yeah, I agreed with your previous comment. Was just addressing bluesmoon's actually, they work because geeks have the ability to understand anything. I think there are a lot of "scientist geeks" who cannot understand art and who probably never will.
I just quoted part of your mail since it had examples of stuff many geeks will be unable to understand.

[bluesmoon]

maybe your definition of geek isn't complete