Category Archives: Events

Attracting a younger crowd to user group meetings

We had a discussion at the office this afternoon that centered around how to attract a younger group of people to the computer user group meetings.  We got several suggestions out of this, but are looking for more ideas.

First of all, WHY do we want to attract a younger crowd?  Well, the average age of the groups (Ann Arbor Computer Society, Ann Arbor Dot Net Developer Group, Ann Arbor Java User Group, Michigan Python User Group) is … well … "experienced". We could all benefit from a younger perspective, and the groups could use an infusion of new members.  Makes sense to tap the untapped market. Winston Tsang tells me that the Ruby User Group is pretty young, and that's interesting.  What are they doing differently, except that it's Ruby?  Well, for one thing, the meeting is held on campus.  That's interesting, because I initially shyed away from AACS when meetings were held on campus because I thought that it was a student group (it wasn't).   I wonder if that would make a difference?

The programming has been pretty "hip" in recent years, and diverse.  AADND has been focusing on .NET content, which has left AACS to mainly do "other than .NET".  That makes sense.

This month's AACS topic is Domain Specific Languages in Ruby.  I think that might attract a younger crowd but I'm not sure.  We'll see.  Oh yes, and AACS provides free pizza to all attendees, as well.

If you know anyone under the age of 30 that isn't in the habit of attending the user group meetings, can you reach out and explain what they are?  Let them know that if they are looking for a job, want to learn more about the industry and/or the Ann Arbor area, or simply want to hang out with other techies for the night, the user groups are a good way to accomplish that.  The meeting is at 6 pm.

Hopefully we'll have a big crowd on Wednesday for Joe's talk.  And if you can't make it on Wednesday (ahem, or even if you can!), Thursday's MichiPUG (Python user group) meeting will be great as well.  The Thursday meeting is at 7 pm.
 

Both meetings will be at SRT Solutions, 206 S. Fifth Avenue, Suite 200, Ann Arbor. 

 

Joe O’Brien at AACS on Wednesday

Joe O'Brien, of the Columbus Ruby Brigade and EdgeCase, will be in Ann Arbor this week.  He's presenting a talk at the Ann Arbor Computer Society – "Domain Specific Languages: Molding Ruby".  A summary appears below.

"Ever wondered what all the fuss is about when it comes to DSL's and Ruby? It seems to be all we hear about. This talk will peel away the onion and look at what it is about Ruby that makes it the perfect candidate for creating your own languages. I will show you, through examples, how you can create your own languages without the need for compilers and parsers. We will also cover some real world examples in areas of Banking and Medicine where DSL's have been applied."

Joe spoke at AACS about a year ago, and I was lucky enough to attend.  His talks are always interesting.  If you can attend, I definitely recommend it.

Location: SRT Solutions, 206 S. Fifth Avenue, Suite 200, Ann Arbor, MI 4810-4

Time: 6:00 pm

Date: Wednesday, February 6

AACS members are free and open to the public.  Supporting memberships are available ($20/year), but not required.

 

C# Jam early bird deadline is tomorrow …

Bruce Eckel has put together another Jam event for the Ann Arbor area.  This one is on C#, and will feature authors Jamie King (who is co-authoring a book with Bruce on C#) and Bill Wagner (who is working on "More Effective C#" as a follow-on to his previous 2 C# books). 

Here's "What is a Jam" from Bruce's registration page:

 

A software jam is a lab-based workshop experience, where you can:

  • Decide if you want to work on your own projects or work on the supplied programming exercises.

  • Work alone or in a group.

  • Set your own pace, so that you can "go deep" in areas that are important to you.

  • Get guidance from an instructor, as needed.

Although the format is different than what you may be used to, we've found that people seem to learn a lot more than they do in traditional seminars.

I have to agree.  I've attended several Jam events and found them to be great learning experiences.  Bruce is going to come if attendance warrants an assistant.  Jamie and Bill are the experts (but, of course, Bruce is no slouch either).

If you're planning to attend, sign up by tomorrow or miss the early bird deadline.  http://www.mindviewinc.com/Conferences/CSharp3Jam/Index.php

 

Bruce Eckel blogs about CodeMash …

Bruce Eckel blogged about CodeMash and the reward of community-based conferences.   I'm glad that he and many others have reported a positive experience at CodeMash.  It really does make all of the work in organizing such an event seem more worthwhile.  I have to admit that about a month before the event, it's easy to sit back and think, "Sheesh! Maybe we should have some professionals do this instead!".  But, when it comes down to it, I think that developers know what other developers want to see in a conference and if we strive for that, the conference will continue to be successful.  As Bruce pointed out, for CodeMash, it's not about making a profit.  In fact, having the added stress of HAVING to make a profit would be unthinkable.  Heck, we're stressed just trying to make sure that we don't lose our shirts and we're thrilled that the community has embraced the conference!  And, it's a conference that *I* want to attend, and the people that I know want to attend. So yeah, it's worth it.

Coincidentally, just today I ran across a post on the Java Posse google group from a Posse listener who missed CodeMash and was hoping that there was another event coming up with the same talks and same speakers.  I'm sorry (and pleased, at the same time!) to say, "Nope!  It's a one of a kind event."  He promises that we'll see him at CodeMash in '09.  Cool.

PyCon registration is open

PyCon will be held in Chicago from March 14-16 (with tutorials on the 13th and sprints afterward).  Registration is now open at http://us.pycon.org/2008/registration/new/

The tutorials and sessions both look great, and there are also lightning talks and open spaces.   I'm even hoping to lure my scientist husband into attendance.  He has looked at Python about a year ago and liked it.  He's not a programmer, but he did some programming in Pascal in college and briefly looked at C++ a few years ago.  He said that Python was the most understandable of the languages he has seen.  This seems to be a common reaction from scientists, and so I'm hoping that he will go and learn more.  He may even end up using it at work someday!

It's great having a conference like this in the Midwest, and I have already signed up.   I seem to recall that the conference filled up last year (in Dallas).  I didn't want to miss out.
 

Python Underground, Scala, and Blaze: oh my!

We have several free events coming up at SRT.

On Thursday, January 3, at 7 pm is the monthly Michigan Python User Group meeting.  Discussions will likely center around a project called Python Underground and I've heard rumors of a discussion of the Rails is a Ghetto blog post by Zed Shaw.

This Friday, January 4, we will hold lightning talks from 3-5.  Anyone is welcome to attend (and speak for 10 minute segments).  I'll be doing a talk on Scala, a preview of a section of my upcoming CodeMash talk. 

On Tuesday, January 15, James Ward (from Adobe) and Bruce Eckel (Java guru) will present "Connecting Java with Flex using Open Source Blaze" for a joint meeting of the Ann Arbor Computer Society/Ann Arbor Java User Group. 

And, some for-fee events in the area as well:

CodeMash is, of course, Jan 10-11 (and the evening of the 9th) in Sandusky, OH at the Kalahari Resort and Indoor Water Park.  If you are planning to attend, register SOON at $175 for the 2.5 days to avoid the procrastinator fee (of $250).

And the Rich Internet Application Jam will be held at SRT's offices, from January 14-16.  Early bird registration goes through January 4, so register before then to save $100 from the $500 fee.  Note: the registration fee includes a copy of FlexBuilder.
 

 

CodeMash registration deadlines!

If you're a CodeMash 07 alum and planning to attend CodeMash v2.0.0.8 Jan 9-11 in Sandusky, OH, I hope you're online today and registering.  The alumni discount ($110) expires today.

Regular registration goes through Jan 5 ($175) but then the procrastinator rate of $250 kicks in.

And, the last time I checked (late last week), the Kalahari was "out" of rooms in the CodeMash block, but were still honoring the $88/night (vs. $229) rate.  I have no idea how long that will last, or if it's even ongoing.
 

 See you in Sandusky!  

 

Rich Internet Application Jam at SRT January 14-16

SRT Solutions will be hosting an RIA Jam, with Bruce Eckel, James Ward (Adobe) and Josh Holmes (Microsoft).  This self-paced exploration of rich internet options will give participants the ability to learn about Flex and Silverlight and to talk about JavaFX, which doesn't seem to be quite ready for prime time just yet.

I've done several of the jams that Bruce has organized, and I have found them to be great learning experiences. I'm thrilled that we will be hosting this at our new office in Ann Arbor.  We've been getting inquiries about it already, and since enrollment is limited to 30 participants, it seems prudent to register early (plus, early bird pricing of $400 by Jan 2 versus $500 after that makes registering early wise as well).  Sure, you could learn these technologies on your own, but I've found that learning in a jam session like this helps me stay focused when I get frustrated, and that's proved to be really helpful.

Oh, and Adobe is throwing in a free FlexBuilder license with your paid registration fee.  Nice!

Registration and more information are available on Bruce's site. 

 

A CodeMash song!

OK, the CodeMash Google group is a very cool group of people.  I mentioned yesterday about the Nerdcore reference.  Today, one of the group members (Matthew Williams) has written lyrics for a CodeMash song to the tune of Monster Mash.

Here's a preview:

"Coder Mash"
TTTO: Monster Mash
Words by Matt Williams, 20071204
(Licensed under Creative Commons Attribution License)

I was working on my code late one night
When my eyes beheld an eerie sight
For my server's access logs began to rise
And suddenly to my surprise

It did the mash
It did the coder mash
The coder mash
It was a hacker smash
It did the mash
It caught on like a flash
It did the mash
It did the coder mash

[and there's more … and it really does get even funnier)

If you don't come to CodeMash, you will definitely miss out. 

 

 

Nerdcore at CodeMash?

OK, while perusing the CodeMash Google group, I've learned a new term: nerdcore. There is a fairly lengthy thread between some of the attendees who will be organizing a jam session at the conference.  VERY COOL.  But nerdcore?  I had to look it up.  Sheesh.  I'm very amused.  Can't wait to see THIS!

NOTE: The alumni discount rate of $110 expires on 12/15 (as does the discounted block of rooms at the Kalahari Resort), so register SOON if you haven't already.

 See you at CodeMash!