What the hell is a BarCamp?

Ryanne and I went to BarCampSF. It's an exciting, self-organized event that started here in San Francisco. People come together to talk about what they love: coding, videoblogging, podcasting, all things web. The good news is that anyone can start a BarCamp for any reason. This model is extremely smart because this is how communities form strong bonds: face to face communication. Because there are no commercial/vendor aspirations to a BarCamp, the atmosphere creates itself based on the individual people who attend. We hope to move Node101 in this direction. See also Podcamp.

I've said it before and I'll say it again. Developers and web creators are fun to be around because they are incredibly optimistic. These people feel engaged and empowered. Instead of being locked into a complaint wheel, they solve problems and create the things they want to see. So the dream is for geek communities in Alabama, Buenos Aires, or Cairo to come together and connect. Technology won't change the world, but it's a tool to be used for sure.

BarCamp still a mystery? Check out our video.
Edited with Original Music by Ryanne Hodson:

click here to download

Comments

[schlomo]

"En-fucking-gaged" is right.

[Susan]

Thanks so much for telling people about BarCamp, and reminding me to look into it again. I had met one of its Dallas organizers at SXSW, and I just dropped him an email. Our BarCamp down here is going to be in August! Maybe I can film some of it...

[littlepurplecow]

Oh wow. I just followed convoluted path that started with today's post on Scobleizer - which lead to Josh Wolf's video on Ryan is Hungry - where you complemented his suit. I interviewed you at BlogHer for our podcast. Great videos. Smart thinking. Glad to connect.

[Ismael Briasco]

Great post, It helped us a lot to bring the first BarCamp at Buenos Aires like yo suggested as an example ;)

This is the first BarCamp in for hispanic people in Latin America!

www.barcamp.com.ar

Ismael Briasco
Director
psicofxp.com