Well this is it, we are almost there. In 3 days time some of you will start to arrive in Mappingham and the workshops and hackathon will kick off on 17th Maptember with the main conference starting on 19th Maptember.

The Team are getting very very excited and all of the last details seem to be coming together to welcome you to the #BestFOSS4Gever. This is the final mailing before the event if you have recently signed up for FOSS4G you can skim through the previous mails at http://2013.foss4g.org/about-foss4g/delegate-info

Workshops

There are a few places left for workshops on Tuesday and Wednesday. If you want to try to get a place come to the registration desk each morning before 9.00am, you will need a paypal account to pay on the day as we will have no other way of receiving payments (no cash accepted)

We also have some free workshops running on Thursday afternoon, Friday and Saturday morning. You will need to get to the sign up board early each day as the places will be allocated on a first come first served basis.

Programme changes

The up to date list of programme changes is at http://2013.foss4g.org/programme-changes/ check regularly for changes, there will also be printed sheets available for those of you who prefer paper.

Car parking

The car park at the EMCC is bigger than it looks and extends around the back of the Orchard Hotel. Please look back at the parking instructions from last week’s mail for more info on parking restrictions

Getting around the site

The workshops and some conference presentations are taking place in some of the university buildings in addition to the EMCC. The interactive programme includes links to maps showing the location of all of the buildings and rooms. Most of the walks between buildings are no more than 5 minutes and will provide you with an opportunity to see the beautiful Mappingham campus, here is a photo navigation guide to help you find your way.

Weather guidance

There will probably be a bit of rain in Mappingham next week so I suggest you pack something light and waterproof for when you are moving around the site.

Friday night

Friday is a free night with no formal activity or entertainment scheduled. You can hang out on the campus if you wish or we have provided a list of some recommended bars and restaurants if you want to venture into Mappingham. We have a big screen in the GeoCamp and there just might be some odd ball movie choices screening there as well.

Robin Hoodware

A Robin Hood hat is not obligatory but do you want to be the only person in the opening plenary not wearing one? If you are attending the ice breaker then you will get a chance to make your own Robin Hood hat otherwise go shopping this weekend.

Getting to Nottingham

A reminder, once again, that you can save a lot of money on UK rail tickets by booking online in advance. Details were in last week’s mail.

Have a safe journey to Mappingham

Abi, Addy, Antony, Barend, Barry, Claire, Franz-Josef, Jeremy, Jo, Ian, Ian, Mark, Matt, Rollo, Suchith and I are looking forward to welcoming you to what we want to make the #BestFOSS4Gever

–

Cheers

Steven Feldman

It’s Maptember! In 2 weeks time people will have started arriving at FOSS4G in preparation for the geohack and the workshops, the team will be in hyper caffeinated panic mode and no doubt the unexpected will have already have happened.

This will be a shortish mail, remember that most of the info you may need will have been in one of the previous mailings which are all available on the Delegate Information section of the web site

Transport

Have you thought how you are going to get from the airport/station/motorway to the EMCC? There’s a map here and travel information here

Accommodation

This is the last check that you have booked your accommodation? Your conference pass does NOT include accommodation, there are still a few budget and hotel rooms available if you get to the registration system quickly (you can add them to your registration)

Robin Hoodware

It is not compulsory but it would be very nice if everyone wears a Robin Hood Hat for the opening plenary. Imagine 800 Robin Hoods If you are coming to the Ice Breaker you will have the chance to engage in a thrilling make your own Robin Hood Hat activity with all materials supplied. If not and without in  any way endorsing them you can buy a cheap hat in the UK or the US and no doubt many of you will want to demonstrate your ingenuity and creativity in other ways.

Entertainment

Remember that you have a free night on the Friday night, you can sign up for the visit to the greyhound racing by phoning  +44/0 (115) 910 33 33 for a reminder of the details see http://2013.foss4g.org/delegate-news-68/. We will also be posting a list of bars and restaurants that you may want to visit (we will not be making any bookings though)

There are a handful of places left for the Ice Breaker on Wednesday night and also a few places left for the closing party on Saturday night, you can sign up through the registration pages.

If you are travelling from outside of the UK, don’t forget that we use £ not € or $. Also remember that you will need a UK plug adapter

I will try to get one more mail to you before the conference starts.

It’s both scary and exciting for us, hopefully it’s just exciting for you. See you in Nottingham in 2 weeks time

–

Cheers

Steven Feldman

On behalf of the FOSS4G Organising Team

7 days until the tribes start to gather, you must be getting excited by now?

The FOSS4G Team are in overdrive focussing on the mass of logistics for a colossal conference with over 800 attendees, that is a very large number of delegates to feed and water, present to, accommodate, entertain and network with.

This may be the last delegate mail that I send to you before the event kicks off with workshops on Tuesday 17th Maptember in Mappingham (note that the coordinates of the venue are unchanged, just a new alias for the location city) and there is quite a lot of important and useful info included, so please do read through. If you have missed any of my previous delegate mails you can read them at http://2013.foss4g.org/about-foss4g/delegate-info/

Presenters

If you are a presenter or are running a workshop or giving a keynote please have another look at http://2013.foss4g.org/information-for-presenters/ even if you have previously had a look as some details may have changed. It is probably a good idea to check back at this page a couple of times before your session.

Travel for visitors from overseas 

If you are planning to make part of your journey to Mappingham via rail you can save a lot of money by preordering your tickets beforehand and picking up at the station before you travel. Remember that some of the cheaper options restrict you to travelling at the time for which you have booked so allow for some flexibility. You can search for cheap fares and timetables at http://www.nationalrail.co.uk/ but do search for Nottingham as National Rail have not yet recognised Mappingham as a destination

Parking on the University of Mappingham Campus

You must get a free parking voucher and display in your windscreen to park on the campus.

If you are staying in halls – when you arrive for the first time park in the EMCC car park, go to the registration desk where you will get your delegate pass and other goodies and be directed to your hall of residence. The porter at the reception of the hall will give you a car park pass along with your room key.

If you are staying in the hotel – park in the hotel car park and request a voucher from reception when you check in.

Program

Inevitably there are some changes to the program in the last week or so (presenters are ill, plans get messed up) after the program book has gone to the printer. The program changes as of today are summarised at http://2013.foss4g.org/programme-changes/ and we will update this throughout the conference if anything further changes. The interactive program on the website will also be kept up to date with any changes (if you download to an iCal or usng the Android app then you won’t get the changes automatically).

We will have a daily changes sheet for those of you who prefer paper.

No Unconference 

Unfortunately the person coordinating the unconference session on Friday afternoon is not able to get to FOSS4G so we will not be running an unconference.

The GeoCamp is a massive space that will support multiple spontaneous activities including Birds of a Feather http://2013.foss4g.org/programme/birds-of-a-feather-sessions/ and lightning talks if you want to take the initiative.

Photos

If you are taking photos or video that you would like to share with the community then please post to flickr with the tag FOSS4G2013. There is a FOSS4G group on flickr at http://www.flickr.com/groups/foss4g/ which makes it easier to view all of the content from the event, if you can please apply for membership before the event as we may be a bit busy during the event to deal with group admin.

We would like to make a collage of photo and video from the event to use in the closing session, if you want your stuff included please upload to the group. If you want to volunteer to help build the collage or create a funky sound track then please mail volunteers@2013.foss4g.org

OSGeo Live DVD

You will receive the latest release OSGeo Live DVD http://live.osgeo.org/en/index.html when you register for the conference or a workshop. There will be recycling boxes in the conference centre, if you do not want the DVD or if you have multiple copies please recycle the DVD so that we can use them for future events and for teaching purposes.

Make a pledge

Have you made a pledge yet? If not have a look at http://2013.foss4g.org/conf/pledge/ and make one or more pledges, you can also show your approval for other peoples’ pledges. The FOSS4G Team will be making some small awards for the pledges that inspired us, made us laugh or which we thought were incredibly ambitious.

Getting out and about in Nottingham

Travel information and taxi phone numbers are at http://2013.foss4g.org/map/nottingham/getting-around-nottingham/

Some of the locals’ favourite bars and restaurants are at http://2013.foss4g.org/map/nottingham/bars-and-restaurants/

You may need this info to plan your Friday night entertainment if you are not going to the dogs. If you want a restaurant, I encourage you not to leave your planning until Friday late afternoon or you may find everything is sold out.

Robin Hoodware

Have you got your hat or other item of Robin Hoodware? It’s not compulsory but ….

If you are coming to the Icebreaker you will have a chance to make your Robin Hood hat and you may want to swat up on Robin Hood history/mythology as I think there might be the odd question in the quiz.

#tags

If you are a twitterer the #tags will be #FOSS4G2013 or #FOSS4G13 or if you feel so inspired #BestFOSS4Gever, lets leave #FOSS4G (without date) as it has a broader use than just the conference

Phew that was a long one! Time to get back to the preparations now.

I can’t wait to welcome you all to the #BestFOSS4Gever in #Mappingham on 17th #Maptember

–

Cheers

Steven Feldman

On behalf of the FOSS4G Team

Steven is taking a well-deserved rest this week – so a short update from the rest of your Local Organising Committee. Remember, the previous delegate emails are all available on the FOSS4G website.

Launch of FOSS4G Mobile Programme

Have you organised your week yet? Will you be at a workshop, or the GeoHack? Decided on your “must-see” sessions? No?!

This week we are delighted to announce that you can get the FOSS4G programme on your Android Phone* using a great app called “Giggity”. Mark up the sessions you want to catch and make sure you don’t miss a thing during FOSS4G.

Alternatively, remember to check the online programme and make sure you have registered for any extras, such as the GeoHack or Friday night dinner excursion to the Nottingham Dog Track, well before you arrive in Nottingham.

*Want this for iOS? Then volunteer to take the lead on making it happen…

Code Sprint

This week we would like to remind you about the Code Sprint that is happening during and after FOSS4G and can announce that this includes an Open Layers 3 Code Sprint on Wednesday 18th. The Code Sprint provides the opportunity for projects to get together to make plans, work on new features, write documentation and generally collaborate. We provide comfortable facilities with all the power and wifi you could need, it’s up to the individual projects to decide what the time is used for.

Please make sure you have registered your interest as soon as you can on the Code Sprint wiki to ensure that we arrange appropriate space for you.

Special Rates for AGI GeoCommunity ’13 for FOSS4G Delegates

GeoCommunity takes place at the same venue as FOSS4G between the 16th and 18th September and is the most comprehensive independent event in the UK GI calendar providing an opportunity to share knowledge and network with professionals from outside your usual peer group and client base.

The Association for Geographic Information (AGI) are an organising partner of the FOSS4G conference. As a result we are happy to be able to offer FOSS4G delegates the chance to attend GeoCommunity ’13 at the discounted rate normally only available to AGI members. Full conference packages start from only £340+VAT. For details on other delegate packages (including the exhibition, dinner and party on Tuesday night for only £60+VAT) please visit the AGI website.

That’s all for this week – we are grateful for all your support as we get very close now to Maptember. Remember if you are a twitterer you can follow us at @FOSS4G and it would be great if you decided to temporarily change your avatar to use one of these FOSS4G badges

Thanks,

Abigail Page

On behalf of the FOSS4G Organising Team

A short update for you this week.

We are only 29 days from the start of FOSS4G, t-shirts have been ordered, gifts have been ordered, the programme book is about to go to press, it is getting very very real.

If you missed any of the previous delegate mails I have posted copies of them on the FOSS4G web site

Geohack

If you’re not registered for workshops then why not attend our Free hackathon on the Tuesday and Wednesday before the conference. The event is free and open to all, so feel free to also invite people who are not registered for FOSS4G.  For more information see www.geohack.org or email info@geohack.org.

Remember to book accommodation if you are staying over night.

Birds of a Feather

There will be informal birds of a feather meetups at breakfast on the Friday and Saturday mornings and probably a few more will sprout in the GeoCamp during the days, just look up the list of what is going on and turn up. Anyone in the community can suggest a topic for a Birds of a Feather (BoF) meeting. For more details see http://wiki.osgeo.org/wiki/FOSS4G_2013_BirdsOfAFeather

OSGeo Live 7.0

OSGeo-Live is a self-contained bootable DVD that allows you to try a wide variety of open source geospatial software without installing anything. It is composed entirely of free software, allowing it to be freely distributed, duplicated and passed around.

Many of the workshops will be run using the OSGeo Live disc. We will be giving a copy of the DVD to every delegate at FOSS4G

That’s it for this week (I told you it would be a short one). I will be away for just over a week so if you want to mail the team use the contact details on the web site rather than replying to this mail.

I am looking forward to meeting you in Robin Hood Land (aka Nottingham) in Maptember for the #BestFOSS4Gever

Remember if you are a twitterer you can follow us at @FOSS4G and it would be great if you decided to temporarily change your avatar to use one of these FOSS4G badges

Cheers

–

Steven Feldman

On behalf of the FOSS4G 2013 Organising Team

That counter on the web site says that it is now under 5 weeks until we kick off FOSS4G! The organising team are getting a bit frantic and trying to fit in some holiday before Maptember is upon us but the stream of info and announcements continues.

There is quite a lot in this week’s mail covering the nearly final final program, hacking, pledges, prizes, parties, silly clothing, software, keeping fit, confirmations of your bookings and a football game (phew!) So read on and enjoy.

Programme

With enormous thanks to our technical wizard, aka Barry Rowlingson, we have launched our searchable interactive all singing and dancing nearly final final programme at http://2013.foss4g.org/conf/programme/. You can search, sort by tags, star your choices and then download your selection as an iCal. Please remember that a few things may change in the programme between now and the start of FOSS4G.

Geohack @FOSS4G

“Free software is a matter of liberty, not price — you should think of free as in free speech, not as in free beer.”  — Richard Stallman

Next month, Geohack at FOSS4G brings you the best of both worlds – be part of the birth of innovative new solutions to interesting challenges (shared freely, as open source, with the rest of the world) – whilst allowing us to provide for you with free food and refreshments.

Spaces are limited.  Visit geohack.org to register your interest.

If you’ve not been to a hackathon before, see the FAQ section, or email Ian Edwards via info@geohack.org with your questions.

Make a pledge and help us create a legacy from FOSS4G 2013

Making a pledge at FOSS4G is an easy and fun way to commit to doing something at FOSS4G or for the wider OSGeo community either during Maptember or in the following year. All you have to do is pop along to http://2013.foss4g.org/conf/pledge/, have a look at the pledges to get an idea, some are serious commitments and some are less so, maybe you would like to “like” a few, then submit your own pledge. After a tiny bit of moderation it will appear on the pledge page. We hope to have a way of letting you tell us when you have fulfilled your pledge and the conference team will be awarding some prizes for the pledges that most appeal to us.

Opening up the Map

Remember that the Opening up the Map gallery is open for submissions until 6th Maptember so submit your maps at http://2013.foss4g.org/programme/opening-up-the-map/

Partying

On Saturday night the team from BrewDog will be coming over to the GeoCamp to lead us through a speciality beer tasting session. We will have a mountain of pizza, some fun activities and an opportunity for you to become part of the entertainment. If you are not leaving until Sunday why not join us? You can book at http://2013.foss4g.org/additional-options/

On Thursday night at the Gala you will get to see the Festival of the Spoken Nerd (@fotsn) they are going to be amazing and are currently smashing it at the Edinburgh Fringe.

Details of all of the entertainment at FOSS4G is here http://2013.foss4g.org/programme/entertainment/

Don’t forget that it would be great if you brought along a bit of Robin Hood clothing.

OSGeo Live 7.0

A lot of dedicated people are working very hard to get the latest tested releases of all the OSGeo projects built onto a DVD for you. We will be giving a copy of this fantastic resource to every delegate at FOSS4G.

Keeping fit

If you are staying in the Orchard Hotel there is a fitness centre available to you and even if you are not there is a swimming pool nearby on the site which is free to use for all delegates (you will need a £1 coin for the lockers which will be returned to you).

There is also some very good advice about getting fit for Maptember here

Confirmation of your booking

By now you should have received an email from Claire Gilmour confirming the details of your booking. You need to check this. If you haven’t received a mail or it is incorrect you should mail Claire at claire@agi.org.uk now, please don’t leave it till later.

Football on Tuesday night

That’s Soccer for the North Americans. Jeff Johnson of OpenGeo is organising a trip to see the Nottingham Forrest vs Middlesbrough football match on Tuesday night. He says “The more the merrier”. General tickets go on sale on Sept 3rd and he is finding out about a a group sale from the club. If you are interested in joining the football fans contact Jeff at jjohnson@opengeo.org

t-shirts

Thanks to everyone for helping us work out the sizing ratios, the shirt order is about to go off so I will be taking down the survey but don’t worry everyone will get a FOSS4G t-shirt regardless of whether you filled in the survey or not.

We are also printing a limited edition Maptember t-shirt, these will be available for sale during FOSS4G with the profits from the sale of these t-shirts being donated to Map Action

That’s about it for this week except to remind you that we still need a few more volunteers, so please step up and offer your skill and time at http://2013.foss4g.org/volunteering-at-foss4g/

There may be a slight interruption to the flow of delegate news over the next couple of weeks but rest assured that we will be back before the conference with at least a couple of more mailings.

We are looking forward to welcoming you to Nottingham in Maptember for the #BestFOSS4Gever

If you are a twitterer you can follow us at @FOSS4G and it would be great if you decided to temporarily change your avatar to use one of these FOSS4G badges

Cheers

–

Steven

Only 41 days left till FOSS4G starts, the organising team are either going on holiday or getting frantic or even both! What about you?

Please take time to read this mail as there is important stuff in here to help you make the most of FOSS4G and if you don’t then don’t say we didn’t tell you.

Opening up the Map

Thanks to neat technology and the efforts of our Map Gallery organiser Ken Field we have been able to extend the deadline for submitting your map to 6th Maptember. So there is no excuse not to sift through your projects and submit your work here

t-shirts

Thanks to everyone who gave us t-shirt sizing info. We have to get the orders out by the end of the week so if you haven’t done so yet please go to http://2013.foss4g.org/t-shirts/ and tell us your size preference (including whether you want women’s or men’s style) and it will help us to get the mix right.

Volunteering

We had a great response to our request for volunteers last week but we still need more (I think I will still be saying that on the morning we start the conference)

Whatever your skill or interest in helping, please have a look at http://2013.foss4g.org/volunteering-at-foss4g/ and sign up, then you can add the snazzy “I’m volunteering at FOSS4G” badge to your mail signature and we will give you a mention in the programme book if you sign up by 9th August plus a special gift.

Dressing for FOSS4G

Last week I suggested it would be fun if loads (actually all) of the delegates were wearing some item of Robin Hood clothing. There are loads of items for UK based folk here and I am sure the non-brits among you are enterprising enough to get something together.

Entertainment

On Wednesday night at the Ice Breaker we have Mike Parker the author of Map Addict whose mum said to him “Why did you have to swear in a book about maps?” It is going to be a great evening, you can still book a place here

We’ve updated the entertainment section of the web site with some video and sound tracks of The Nerds and Chris Conway our two headline acts for the Gala Night on Thursday (included in a full 3 day conference pass)

On Friday night you are on your own, you need to make some plans. We will have a list of pubs, clubs and restaurants for you to choose from. We have also organised an evening out at Nottingham Greyhound Stadium (yes in the UK we race dogs)

Going to the dogs

On Friday, escape the conference centre for a trip out for a social evening interlaced with the drama of racing. We have arranged dinner and a race card in the restaurant box at the Nottingham Greyhound Stadium (http://www.nottinghamdogs.com). The cost of the evening will include entry, a three course dinner with tea & coffee in an informal setting with table service, a race card for the greyhound races & for those that wish, the ability to place bets from the tables. The box is glass fronted and newly refurbished with panoramic views over the racetrack and screens around the box showing the odds, race results and video feed of the races. You can also leave the box to go down to the trackside to watch the races up close. The main race card starts at 7:15pm.

Menus are available online (http://www.nottinghamdogs.com/dining.php - the menu for 20th September will be available shortly). You can order from this on the night, no need to specify in advance. The restaurant can cope with different dietary preferences but these should be expressed at the time of booking.

Places on this evening are limited as we’ve reserved just 100 spaces. Please book directly with the stadium by phone on +44/0 (115) 910 33 33 and choose option 3 for restaurant bookings. If you’re phoning out of hours please leave a name and contact number and they will ring you back. The cost of the evening is £19.80 per person. There will be a booking fee of £1 per reservation. You’re encouraged to book together in groups if you can as each group can then be sat together, and you only get charged one reservation fee between you. It’s also fine to book singly and find a space in our block of tables on the evening. Please mention that you are part of the University of Nottingham group when booking to make sure we are sat together.

We expect this to be a fun evening out in a different setting, and hope to see you there.

Queries relating to the menu & booking system are best addressed to the Stadium, but you can also direct queries about the event to Jeremy Morley, jeremy.morley@nottingham.ac.uk

Bring your talents to Saturday Night’s Closing Party

Not everyone will be rushing off after the closing plenaries on Saturday afternoon. On Saturday night we are going to have a chilled evening in the GeoCamp with speciality beer tasting, pizza and improv. We’ve got a microphone, we’ve got a stage, now all we need is you to bring your talents. If you can sing, play a musical instrument, tell a joke, recite your favourite bit of Shakespeare, organise a game or do anything else Mark Iliffe wants you to contact him. You can still book a place at the closing party here

Accommodation

I know I have mentioned this before but every week there are new people who have signed up so i think it is worth repeating. Our records are showing that a lot of people have not booked accommodation through our system. That’s fine if you have made other plans but please note that accommodation is not included in any delegate passes.

You need to book your accommodation either through our registration system (you can log into your booking if you already have one and book university or hotel rooms) or you need to book accommodation directly.

That’s it from me for this week. I am getting very excited about making the #BestFOSS4Gever in Nottingham in September.

Remember to follow us on twitter to get the daily news on FOSS4G, we are @FOSS4G

–

Cheers

Steven

Only 48 days left till FOSS4G starts, if you aren’t getting excited you should be.

This is quite a long mail, please take time to read it as there is important stuff in here to help you make the most of FOSS4G

There has been a heck of a lot of activity and we have now finalised an incredible list of keynote speakers for the plenary sessions, you can see the full list at http://2013.foss4g.org/programme/keynoters/

t-shirts

How do you work out the size balance for ordering close on a 1000 t-shirts? Well we were wondering on that and we hope that you can help us. Go to http://2013.foss4g.org/t-shirts/ and tell us your size preference (including whether you want women’s or men’s style) and it will help us to get the mix right. This is not an order form so no guarantees but it should help. The form will be available for about 7-10 days.

Volunteering

We had a great response to our request for volunteers last week but we still need more. Imagine if 800 FOSS4G delegates all offered a bit of their time and unique skills.

FOSS4G is going to be colossal, over 200 sessions and workshops, unconferences, birds of a feather, entertainment etc across 5 days and nights, to make that run smoothly we need your help. We need volunteers to help with all sorts of tasks, you only have to volunteer for a couple of hours. In particular we are looking for people who are willing to “chair a session” – you don’t need any prior experience, just a willingness to introduce 2 or 3 speakers, facilitate the questions at the end of each presentation and keep the speakers to time – easy!

Whatever your skill or interest in helping, please have a look at http://2013.foss4g.org/volunteering-at-foss4g/ and sign up, then you can add the snazzy “I’m volunteering at FOSS4G” badge to your mail signature and we will give you a mention in the programme book if you sign up by 9th August and a special gift.

Video

Do you have any high end video skills within your organisation? We would like to get someone to make an inspiring video that we could use as part of the opening plenaries, can you help? If you can, please mail me.

A bit of local mythology

You probably know that Nottingham is closely linked to the tales of Robin Hood (see http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Robin_hood for some background). We on the organising committee like the idea that open source software sort of fits in with the positive income redistribution activities of Robin and his Merry Men so we were very chuffed when Jo pointed us to this Robin Hood License http://www.laliluna.de/articles/posts/open-source-robin-hood-license.html

To extend the Robin Hood theme of FOSS4G 2013 we thought we would invite you to bring along a Robin Hood style item of clothing, a hat, a feather, be as creative as you wish (or don’t bother at all if that kind of thing makes you cringe). It would make an awesome opening session if we had 1,000 Robin Hoods in the audience.

Accommodation

Our records are showing that a lot of people have not booked accommodation through our system. That’s fine if you have made other plans but please note that accommodation is not included in any delegate passes.

You need to book your accommodation either through our registration system (you can log into your booking if you already have one and book university or hotel rooms) or you need to book accommodation directly.

That’s it from me for this week. I am looking forward to welcoming you to the Best FOSS4G ever in Nottingham in September.

Remember to follow us on twitter to get the daily news on FOSS4G, we are @FOSS4G

–

Cheers

Steven

FOSS4G starts in 55 days! The pace is really hotting up (as is the British weather).

I plan to send out a (nearly) weekly mail updating you on details as we run (or even sprint) up to the conference.

If I am repeating reminders that you have already received, it is because I don’t want anyone to miss out on opportunities etc.

Volunteering

We want to make this “the best FOSS4G ever” – will you help us?

FOSS4G is going to be colossal, over 200 sessions and workshops, unconferences, birds of a feather, entertainment etc across 5 days and nights, to make that run smoothly we need your help. We need volunteers to help with all sorts of tasks, you only have to volunteer for a couple of hours. In particular we are looking for people who are willing to “chair a session” – you don’t need any prior experience, just a willingness to introduce 2 or 3 speakers, facilitate the questions at the end of each presentation and keep the speakers to time – easy!

Whatever your skill or interest in helping, please have a look at http://2013.foss4g.org/volunteering-at-foss4g/ and sign up, then you can add the snazzy “I’m volunteering at FOSS4G” badge to your mail signature and we will give you a mention in the programme book and a special gift.

Geohack

The geohack is an opportunity to hang out in our awesome GeoCamp and hack with open source tools and open data in response to a series of environmental and humanitarian themed challenges such as http://2013.foss4g.org/geohack/challenges/smart-cities/. The geohack is free to attend on Tuesday and Wednesday sign up at http://hackathonfoss4g2013-es2005.eventbrite.com/ so why not get to Nottingham early even if you aren’t attending the workshops and do a bit of geohacking? Big thanks to the Met Office for sponsoring the geohack.

Opening up the Map

Have you made a map in the last year that you are particularly proud of? Did you use open source software or open data? If the answer to those questions is yes then you should be entering your map in our Opening up the Map exhibition (you might even win a prize). If you have a pdf version or a web link to a live app then it will take you less than 5 minutes to submit your map at http://2013.foss4g.org/programme/opening-up-the-map/ and your map will be on display throughout the conference venue and in a special area in the GeoCamp

Extra Stuff

If you have booked a full conference place, it includes attendance at the Gala Night Party on Thursday, there are a couple of other entertainment options for you to consider:

• The Ice Breaker evening on Wednesday evening will be a fun and informal evening with a special guest speaker (you won’t want to miss him or her) and activity to get you in the mood for the best FOSS4G ever (if I don’t say so who will?) – this is a great opportunity to meet some new people before the hurly burly starts on Thursday morning.
• If you are not leaving until Sunday, we didn’t want to leave you high and dry on Saturday night, so we have a gentle night’s entertainment and food for you which will help to wind down from the “best FOSS4G ever” (are you getting the idea?) – what else are you going to do on a Saturday night in Nottingham?

You can still book these events by logging back into your registration via http://2013.foss4g.org/registration/

Accommodation

Accommodation is not included in any delegate passes. You need to book your accommodation either through our registration system (you can log into your booking if you already have one and add an room booking) or you need to book accommodation directly.

We have a few hotel rooms left – for peak nights we are down to single figures against our block booking. Remember the Orchard Hotel is one minute from the conference centre where all the action will be going on late into the night. The lower cost university rooms are also booking up very quickly, so please don’t leave booking accommodation too late.

Promoting FOSS4G

Can you help us to promote FOSS4G to the widest possible audience? You have your own networks of customers, colleagues etc, please publicise your attendance and support for FOSS4G and encourage them to attend the event. Maybe you could tell them that they shouldn’t miss out on “the best FOSS4G ever”

That’s it for this week, until the next update

Cheers

Steven

Avalanche – thanks to http://www.flickr.com/photos/ecb/

So what’s going on and why? In the traditional GI space the interest in open source is just exploding. I can list a dozen public sector bodies from small local authorities to the largest counties to government departments and agencies who are all now saying “we need to look at open source”. They aren’t all about to change in the next few months (although several will) but they are no longer questioning the robustness of open source software or the availability of enterprise level support (some proprietary vendors should take note). Now these organisations are starting to explore the benefits and freedom that open source offers them and of course in a time of austerity the cost savings can be massive even if open source is not free!

There is lots happening in the open data space too, interest in OSM just keeps on growing and I have recently joined the advisory board of a new venture, Open Cage Data, started by Ed Freyfogle and his team at Lokku. I’m going to write some more on this soon.

There is so much open geo goodness going on in the UK in September that we have renamed it Maptember! For starters there is State of the Map, FOSS4G, the Humanitarian OpenStreetMap Team’s hack week, a QGIS codesprint, OSM plus and the 1st UK QGIS User Group meeting. Have a look at the Maptember web site for more details.

So will I see you in Maptember?

Warning – Avalanches can be very disruptive