To cut to the chase, I extracted the hCal events from the 2009 conference schedule and fed them into a Simile Timeline. I then linked each event to the corresponding slice of my IRC client log. If you want to take a look it’s here.
I don’t remember what initially sent me there, but my introduction to Code4Lib was through the IRC channel. I’ve been logged in there off and on ever since. It keeps me informed and entertained and, yes, occasionally distracted. I’ve since attended all four of the yearly conferences, met and meatspace-friended a good percentage of the #code4lib regulars, contributed a patch here and there to a couple of projects, and helped organize a one-day regional gathering. I guess you could say at this point that I’m pretty fond of the whole thing.
This is why I take it somewhat personally when the annual hand-wringing debate begins over the perceived “cliquishness” of the community. There was much fuss this year–an awkward amount, even, IMO–over 1st-timers vs. old-timers. I make it a point to try and sit with people I don’t know during the lunches and shake a few hands. Lots of folks do the same for dinner. Basically, IMO, if you feel like an outcast n00b, YOU’RE NOT TRYING HARD ENOUGH.
There is, however–and maybe I have a bit of “I haz a straw man. Let me show u it” going on here, but anyway–an aspect of the “code4lib is just a big fat secretive, juvenille high school-ish in crowd” argument where I think we majorly fail, and that is the non-open nature of the backchannel.
I met a lot of awesome new people over the past few days attending the 4th code4lib conference in Providence, RI, Jon Phipps of the NSDL MetaData Registry. I was a little suprised to read he didn’t enjoy the program, but that’s cool. I give him big props for calling it as he sees it. The part that got under my skin, because he’s totally right, was his mention of “the hugely active IRC back channel of ongoing commentary (which really should be displayed where everyone including the presenters can read it)”. This simply rang true to me.
Let me first say what I’m not saying: I do not think it’s rude and unfair that a bunch of us (100+, depending if you count those not physically present at the conf) are carrying on a parallel conversation while the presenters we have invited are getting up on stage and sharing projects and ideas that they care deeply about and have slaved over. This is the nature of our beast. To paraphrase something BillDeuber said in channel yesterday, is the channel and extension of the conf, or vice versa? I think the latter.
But I do think it’s rude and unfair that we are carrying on an un-open and inaccessible parallel conversation while the presenters we have invited are getting up on stage and sharing projects and ideas that they care deeply about and have slaved over.
The funny thing is, this reasoning is not what first prompted me to put my chat log up on the web. I did it because Corey Harper asked if I’d email him the section from when he was presenting at the linked data preconf and I figured others might like the same courtesy. I also thought Timeline would be a cool project to experiment with. I’ve since had a few conversations about whether or not it’s fair to the people in-channel who maybe didn’t realize what they were saying was going to be published later on. But if someone is accusing you of being cliquish and secretive, how is the proper response not to be more open and transparent? To say, “Here, take a look. See for yourself.”
This is probably making it seem like there must be some really juicy shit going on in the back channel, but that’s exactly the thing: there’s really not. It never gets any snarkier than your typical MST3K episode. And would anyone argue that Joel, Mike, Crow and Tom Servo didn’t really, deep down, love those old, bad movies they were forced to watch?
#1 by ranti on February 28th, 2009
The timeline looks really nice. Thanks for posting it.
Re. the chats that “should be displayed where everyone including the presenters can read it”: the Top Technology Trends Committee from LITA tried it out at ALA last year's conference and it was a huge distraction to those who just want to sit and listen to the speakers. I imagine it could end up be the same at code4lib.
#2 by Liza Daly on February 28th, 2009
Based on my experience with larger, broader tech conferences, the #code4lib crowd is a modicum of politeness by comparison. You do not want to read the backchannel from OSCON when guys from Microsoft are on stage.
#3 by Liza Daly on February 28th, 2009
“Modium”? Model.
#4 by n00b on March 2nd, 2009
“Basically, IMO, if you feel like an outcast n00b, YOU’RE NOT TRYING HARD ENOUGH.”
Either a significant number of attendees are feeling this way, in which case your perspective is not very helpful, or people aren't. I think I could come up with an argument that the changes that would benefit the most alienated of the bunch would benefit even those who feel most at home, but my point here is that saying people need to try harder is like saying they need to be smarter, literally, like get a brain transplant or something else that simply isn't going to happen. I mean, you could tell newbies in advance that they have to try hard, and maybe that would have some impact, but I doubt much. More likely what will change how hard they try (whatever that means) is the experience of their first time, assuming they come back. If you see that people are feeling “outcast,” you can either try to improve the experience of new attendees, or not care/see it as a good thing, or you can blame them and absolve yourself from any responsibility WRT the reality of how people behave. Your apparent choice here is itself alienating to me, since it is classic blame the user and their limitations. Fulfills one major negative coder stereotype for me.
#5 by abangert on March 3rd, 2009
Would like to see something long these lines:
8 things I learnt about using twitter as a participation tool by Olivia Mitchell: http://www.speakingaboutpresenting.com/audience...
#6 by MrDys on March 3rd, 2009
My favorite discussion of backchannels and their utility is in this blog post and it's comments: http://mamamusings.net/archives/2004/03/30/conf...
Food for thought for next year…?
(Of course, I'm in the camp that has no problem with #code4lib and its comments.)
#7 by Jodi Schneider on March 4th, 2009
@abangert “Either a significant number of attendees are feeling this way, in which case your perspective is not very helpful, or people aren't.” Good point! Which is it, and how can we find out?
Emphasis of “old-timers” vs. “first timers” made me a bit sad. In part, conference attendance isn't the right measure. For instance, Eric Lease Morgan attended for the first time this year–so, technically a “first timer” though he's been managing the listserv for years.
This was my second year at the conference. Last year, I was really surprised at how many people I knew, since I do hang out in IRC.
I want code4lib to be open and accessible. I also deeply value the geeky, “if you want it to happen, make it so” way we interact and run the community. As we institutionalize, how that scrappy.
I heard great things about dev8's use of screens a couple of days before the conference and thought about trying to project the backchannel this year. I'm really interested in projecting it next year–though I want to think, also, about other ways to be accessible and open as a community. Ideas?
#8 by rosy1280 on March 4th, 2009
I think the problem is partially in what Jay says and partially in what the noobs say.
Noobs don't try hard enough because we're in a profession where people are inherently afraid to ask questions or say what they know (or don't know) and seem like an idiot. After all we're paid to maintain things that we may know absolutely nothing about, but eventually we become experts on. So as a Noob myself, I went forth and investigated the community, its practices, etc. and was able to insert myself and I feel like I've been accepted. But too be honest, if I hadn't investigated all of this in advance it would have been a completely different conference for me.
At the same time I think that the already “in people” need to remember how hard it is to be on the outside. Some are really great about extending themselves, while others aren't so great. And that's ok. By try to remember how much anxiety you have when you go into any situation and you know no one. Go up and say hi to random people, but also try to extend those conversations beyond a simple “where the hell did all the moon pies go?” Ask them where they are from, what they do, what's their sign. Essentially pick up a friend at code4lib.
Just my two cents.
#9 by Declan on March 4th, 2009
There were Moon Pie? Dammit. I bet all new people ate them.
I was thrilled to see so many hands up when it was asked how many new people there were. I hope that Mark's initial talk about how to be social at code4lib helped.
I have a sick and twisted plan to have everyone do a FOAF, then have an event where everyone stands in a three dimensional representation of the “knows” graph and then take anyone not connected out for a drink. Hey, it's no geekier than that freakish Werewolf thingy.
D
#10 by Jonathan Rochkind on November 30th, 2009
Is the timeline still available? I get a 500 error when clicking on the link.
#11 by lbjay on December 10th, 2009
Timeline is back. Some python modules got lost during the last server upgrade. Sorry ’bout that.