Wow, that was a FUN day! What, you may ask, was I doing all day? Well it was a gather known as BarCamp Memphis. I had an awesome time meeting people and learning new things.
BarCamp is a sort of “Anti-Conference” where the attendees have a say in what gets presented. The morning sessions are set based on input from the potential attendees while the afternoon session is decided and scheduled on site based on the suggestions of those in attendance. The sessions are 45 to 50 minutes long and cover anything from Coding in Django to conversations about eCommerce in Memphis and Video production.
My day started with my arrival at BarCamp Memphis’s location, the offices of Emerge Memphis , one of the best business incubators in the area. After a wrong turn (I don’t get to downtown all that often), I found a nearby spot to park and made my way in. Breakfast was scheduled at 8am, but since I left early to make sure I got there, I got there at 7:30 or so. As I arrived, the staff was still getting setup. I am not one to just introduce myself in these situations, (I suffer from terminal shyness), but the gathered staff, especially the folks I had met over the previous day on Twitter and Zannel, made me feel welcome. After standing and talking, I decided to do something and helped them arrange the name tags to make it easier to get people in and signed-up.
After that, I found the breakfast they had set out. I had a wonderful cheese bagel from Schnuks and a cup of OJ. Then I stumbled across, almost literally, my new friend: Sugar Free Red Bull! That was one sponsor I am SO glad they were able to secure. We mingled and chatted a bit before all meeting in one of the main rooms for the setup and directions for the day.. We got a primer in the background and understanding of BarCamps around the world. Dave Barger Did a great job getting us ready for the day to come.
Tomorrow, I’ll post about the first few sessions and what I took home. Join me as I relive the day through my posts.
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2 Comments
November 10, 2008 at 5:21 pm
Glad you enjoyed it and the Red Bull. I look forward to your future posts. I hope you will join us for other LaunchMemphis events . . . we’ll get going again in early 2009.
November 14, 2008 at 9:23 pm
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