Sebastopol, CA--"There is an upheaval in the open source landscape, particularly Linux, and the corporate landscape is changing too," observes Tim O'Reilly, founder and CEO of O'Reilly & Associates. Economic pressures and legal battles have combined to push open source topics to the front burner as companies, institutions, and governments of every size make technology decisions. O'Reilly, long a vocal open source advocate, brings together open source influencers, early adopters, technology activists, developers, and business leaders to evaluate and debate the evolving open source landscape at OSCON, the annual O'Reilly Open Source Convention.
The 2004 O'Reilly Open Source Convention, to be held in Portland, OR from July 26-30, is now accepting proposals delving into topics that matter most to the entire open source community, which includes new--and perhaps unexpected--players. "OSCON provides an analysis of what's happening now and what may come--what will affect the future landscape. This convention brings together projects in a way that other conferences don't. We're able to cover a broad range of topics in a deep, coherent way," says OSCON program chair Nathan Torkington. "It's not just about trimming costs at large companies, it's about collaborating and innovating our way into the next big thing. This convention is like a radar. It's a mix of what you'll be doing as soon as you get back to your desk and what you'll be doing differently in six months."
The keynote speakers for the next OSCON exemplify the event's wide-ranging mix: Freeman, George, and Esther Dyson, presenting a joint keynote address; Robert Lefkowitz, who was one of OSCON 2003's most thought-provoking speakers; Milton Ngan of Weta Digital, the company that created the digital effects for "The Lord of the Rings" films; and Tim O'Reilly. Other influential open source leaders will come to OSCON to accept the first Open Source Awards, produced by the Open Source Institute (OSI) and ZDNet (winners will be announced in stages during the winter and spring of 2004).
Proposals Submission Information--Deadline: February 9, 2004
Individuals and companies interested in making session or tutorial presentations, or participating in panel discussions, are invited to submit proposals. Presentations by marketing staff or with a marketing focus will not be accepted; neither will submissions made by anyone other than the proposed speaker. Session presentations are 45 or 90 minutes long, and tutorials are either a half-day (three hours) or a full day (six hours).
The theme for OSCON 2004 is "Opening the Future: Discover, Develop, Deliver." Proposals for sessions that help attendees discover new open source projects, develop new relationships, or deliver value to their employers and coworkers are especially welcome. Proposals that are not related to the theme are also encouraged, such as case studies showing how open source software solved thorny problems or replaced expensive closed source software, best practices for a tool or system, new features or modules, and fundamental skills.
The tracks and conferences running in parallel at the convention include:
Linux
- Management, security, administration, configuration
- Desktop, server farm, back office, personal productivity tools, development
PHP Conference 4
- Unix, Windows, Apache, and beyond
- New developments, security, case studies, large-scale applications development,
best practices
The Python 12 Conference
- Python and Zope
- Using the latest modules, software engineering, case studies
Perl Conference 8
- Perl 5, Perl 6, Parrot, mod_perl
- Useful modules, software development tips, developing for Parrot and Perl 6
MySQL and PostgreSQL
- Configuration, migration, data warehousing, tuning
- Clustering and replication, fallover, backups
- Efficient client-side processing and query design
Apache httpd, Java, and XML projects
- Apache web server: 2.0, modules, configuration, performance tuning, security
- Apache XML projects: Xerces, Xalan, Cocoon, FOP, SOAP, XML-RPC, XML Security
- Apache and Open Source Java projects: Jakarta, Jserv, Avalon, Geronimo
XML
- XML Schemas, Transformations, Software, Services, and Standards
- New standards, best practices, web services, IP issues around standards and schemas
Applications
- System administration tools, servers, back office utilities
- GUI systems, user applications, productivity tools
Ruby
- Introductions to aspects of Ruby for people unfamiliar with the language
- Power user talks for experienced Ruby programmers
OSCON is the one place open source practitioners of every stripe can gather to learn useful skills, discover what's new, and "cross-fertilize" projects. Concludes Tim O'Reilly, "OSCON is for anyone interested in open source. It's the one event that brings together leaders of all the major open source projects not only with the hacker community but also with commercial software developers, business leaders, analysts, and even opponents of open source."
Additional Resources:
Complete details and to submit a proposal
Press coverage, blogs, photos, and news from last year's convention
More information on open source issues
For information on exhibition and sponsorship opportunities at the convention, contact Andrew Calvo at (707) 827-7176, or andrewc@oreilly.com.
About O’Reilly
O’Reilly Media spreads the knowledge of innovators through its books, online services, magazines, and conferences. Since 1978, O’Reilly Media has been a chronicler and catalyst of cutting-edge development, homing in on the technology trends that really matter and spurring their adoption by amplifying “faint signals” from the alpha geeks who are creating the future. An active participant in the technology community, the company has a long history of advocacy, meme-making, and evangelism.