OSCON 2006: Here I come!

In a few hours I’ll be getting on a plane to Portland, OR to attend the O’Reilly Open Source Convention (OSCON).

I attended OSCON in 2002, and I had mixed feelings about the event. I did myself a tremendous disservice then by not forcing myself to talk to the other people at the convention. In the years since, I’ve learned that the real value of these conferences is not so much what’s being presented, but who else is there. The networking opportunities are virtually limitless, and you really ought to meet the other geeks there. A lot of people are doing a lot of cool things with Free and Open Source software, and being able to email someone you met at a conference when you need some expert guidance can be invaluable.

Of course, on my last trip I went alone, and didn’t know anyone else at the conference. And truthfully, I felt intimidated by all the smart people milling about. This year I’m still going alone, but I know at least a small number of people who will hopefully help with introductions to more people. And I know of more people, from their online presences, so I’m hoping to put faces to names for a few folks, too. Finally, I’m more confident of my own technical abilities (and less embarrased of my ignorance), so I’m looking forward to this year’s conference an awful lot.

If you’re at OSCON this year, let me know! I’ll probably be at the Keysigning BOF on Thursday.

My return flight leaves late Saturday night, so I’ll get the opportunity to see the original FreeGeek, and hopefully pick up some pointers for use at FreeGeek Columbus!