Ohio LinuxFest 2008: Free and Open Source Software Conference and Expo
Submitted by Norm Roulet on Sun, 09/14/2008 - 13:39.
10/10/2008 - 08:00
10/11/2008 - 20:59
Etc/GMT-4
Are you running the expensive, bloated, buggy Microsoft Vista or XP Operating System (and all the expensive, proprietary crap that goes with them), or the expensive, bloated, buggy Apple OS (and all the expensive, proprietary crap that goes with it) on your billionaire-controlled "personal" computers? Why? Don't know any better? Learn better at Linux Ohio 2008, October 10 and 11, in Columbus.
Anyone who knows REALNEO knows one of our primary objectives is to expand awareness and use of Free Open Source Software (FOSS) around the world and in our home region of Northeast Ohio. From the original "What is the basic idea of REALNEO?" page on REALNEO, from October 7, 2004:
"REALNEO will put a global open source focus in and on Northeast Ohio, putting our local people and developers together with world class developers around the world to develop here the optimal virtual social network - we become the ultimate creator and creation. This will transfer here lots of sophisticated and valuable knowledge, experience and awareness. More people in NEO will learn about open source and see it as a business opportunity, and that will drive new business activity here and expand a valuable workforce. Having good open source resources here will accelerate open source adoption here, making regional enterprises more competitive and innovative in theglobal marketplace."
This FOSS strategy has worked well for REALNEO and had an impact in real NEO. Thanks to help from experts in Drupal from around the world, we just upgraded REALNEO to Drupal 5.x and are expanding our FOSS footprint here, without ever paying a cent for the software to run our computers and social network... although "we" have paid $10,000s to local and international programmers (real people) making our FOSS code best for our community. And, since introducing REALNEO in NEO, four years ago, we have seen FOSS make progress here... some organizations have followed us in using Drupal, and REALNEO volunteers have recycled dozens of computers to delete Windows and run Linux and then given them to people who may not afford to support billionaires... and this year there are activities planned in NEO for Software Freedom Day.
Still, it is rare for me to encounter organizations or free people with a choice, in NEO, who use FOSS in any real fundamental ways. I'm proud to say the last such person I encountered was NEO musician Charlie Mossbrook, self-learning Linux and other FOSS for music production. To meet lots more such people of choice... perhaps some from NEO... make a quick trip to Columbus, October 10 & 11, 2008, for the sixth annual Ohio LinuxFest at
the Greater Columbus Convention Center. From the Linux Ohio website (running Drupal, I see)...
Hosting authoritative speakers and a large expo, the Ohio LinuxFest
welcomes Free and Open Source Software professionals, enthusiasts, and
anyone who wants to take part in the event.
The Ohio LinuxFest is a free, grassroots conference for the Linux/Open
Source Software/Free Software community that started in 2003 as a large
inter-LUG meeting and has grown steadily since. It is a place for the
community to gather and share information about Linux and Open Source
Software.
A large expo area adjacent to the conference rooms will feature
exhibits from our sponsors as well as a large .org section from
non-profit Open Source/Free Software projects.
This year, Ohio LinuxFest meets at the Greater Columbus Convention
Center (GCCC) from October 10 through October 12. The expo, keynotes
and presentations happen October 11. Admission is free to the Ohio
LinuxFest expo and presentations. A Supporter Pass is available for $65
to attendees who wish to help offset the costs of the conference.
Ohio LinuxFest will offer the Ohio LinuxFest University training
program on October 10, with a registration cost of $350 a person.
2008 OLF Keynotes and Speakers
Keynotes
Joe Brockmeier, openSUSE Community Manager
Mr. Brockmeier is the openSUSE Community Manager, where he puts the
word out about openSUSE and works to grow the openSUSE project by
verifying the project has the needed support and tools. Mr. Brockmeier
has contributed to books on many Open Source topics. He has also
written for many publications, including Linux Magazine, Sys Admin, IBM
developerWorks, Linux Weekly News, Enterprise Linux Magazine, ZDNet,
Unix Review, NewsForge.com and Linux.com.
Jono Bacon, Ubuntu Community Manager
Mr. Bacon is the Ubuntu Community Manager, where he
helps advocate Ubuntu and empowers community members in the Ubuntu
community to have their goals, and visions become part of Ubuntu. With
his involvement in LugRadio and the recently ended LugRadio Live, Mr.
Bacon has found time to contribute to many books, including Linux
Desktop Hacks, Building the Perfect Website with PHP and MySQL, PHP and
MySQL Web Applications: Building Eight Dynamic Web Sites and The
Official Ubuntu Book. He also has published articles in Linux User and
Developer, Linux Format and Linux Magazine.
Speakers
Roland Hess - Blender: Open Source Fundraising Success
An overview of the current rise of Blender, the world's
most popular 3D animation software. While some brief background is
given including Blender's origins, code base, development control, and
community structure, we'll focus on the variety of ways that the
Blender Foundation, now called the Blender Institute, has been able to
successfully generate funds over the last five years. If time permits,
we'll also screen their 2008 Open Movie release "Big Buck Bunny."
Roland of a handful of Blender power users who is also on the
development team, Roland provides a unique and entertaining perspective
on the internal workings of one of the world's most popular Open Source
projects. Having written both the official newbies guide - "The
Essential Blender" - and an upcoming book on integrating Blender into
the animator's studio, he is also recognized as one of Blender's
premier documentarians. He lives and works in Pittsburgh.
Mackenzie Morgan
Open wifi in general can be dangerous, and when you're
headed to a conference, you really need to know how to protect your
system from being compromised. Preventative measures, such as how to
properly configure a firewall; day-of precautions, like those related
to physical security; and post-conference data integrity checks just to
be sure will all be covered. Though some of the information may be
better understood by more experienced users, even beginners will
benefit from hearing it.
Mackenzie "maco" Morgan is an Ubuntu Forums moderator who refuses
to admit that she's not a noob. She takes every opportunity to promote
open formats and Free Software, particularly Linux.
Jim Wildman
iscsi storage is typically considered an 'enterprise'
technology. This presentation discuss several ways a hobbyist or small
business owner can use iscsi to add flexibility to their storage
options. A quick overview of iscsi terminology and usage is included,
but the main focus is on practical uses of the technology.
Jim Wildman has been working with Unix since the mid 1980's and
with Linux since the mid 1990's. He has worked in information
technology in medical, manufacturing, Internet and financial markets as
both a consultant and employee. He is currently employed by a large
financial firm as the lead engineer on the global Linux Engineering
team.
Paul Ferris
"Career management tips are often brought up in a generic
light. Linux brings a different focus, managing a FOSS career therefore
requires different thinking. Some of the tips covered apply to all
careers but all will highlight just why managing an FOSS-career brings
unique challenges and twists. Paul will cover a spectrum of ideas that
range from common-sense networking hints to more pressing,
Linux-related power and how it can be best presented for maximum,
positive effect upon your career."
Paul Ferris is a Linux Community member with 10+ years of
experience implementing enterprise Linux. He recently chaired Ohio
Linux Fest and in the past has been extremely involved in efforts to
build community in the Ohio region. Presently, Paul Ferris is a
Technical Architect for Brulant corporation. His technical expertise
and team-building skills are utilized managing a talented group of
engineers that support on-line commerce infrastructure with names that
you will recognize.
Jon "maddog" Hall
Everyone is talking about "Green Computing" these days, but
an even more interesting topic is "Sustainable Computing", which
includes green computing, but also entails good business plans,
sustainable systems, user friendly systems and "always on, omnipresent"
computing. This talk will cover some of those topics, and show why Free
Software is part of this answer.
Jon "maddog" Hall is the Executive Director of Linux International
(www.li.org), an association of computer users who wish to support and
promote the Linux Operating System. During his career in commercial
computing which started in 1969, Mr. Hall has been a programmer,
systems designer, systems administrator, product manager, technical
marketing manager and educator. Mr. Hall has received his BS in
Commerce and Engineering from Drexel University, and his MSCS from RPI
in Troy, New York.
Elizabeth Garbee
In this look at a day in the life of a "geeky teen,"
Elizabeth will explain how free bits fit into a teenage lifestyle. This
includes why a teen should care about open source and the ways a young
person can integrate free software into a life dominated by the Windows
and Mac OS's. Common misconceptions about open source in school will be
exposed and explained, as well as subtle things a teenager (or anyone)
can do to make free bits less "scary" to their peers.
A 16 year old from the US, Elizabeth developed an early interest in
open source, installing her first Debian machine (with some help!) at
age 9. Since then, her main computing interest has been graphics
manipulation and digital art. Aside from computers, Elizabeth is a
dedicated student who is passionate about music, and enjoys reading
comic books.
Dan Chen
This presentation demystifies the maze that is Linux audio
and demonstrates graphical and command-line tools and best practices
(e.g., filing bug reports) to assist in resolving common issues. Modern
sound hardware, the Advanced Linux Sound Architecture (ALSA), Open
Sound System (OSS), JACK Audio Connection Kit (JACK), PulseAudio,
GStreamer, and Phonon components will be discussed, although
troubleshooting will emphasise the former two components (hardware and
ALSA).
Dan Chen is a former Ubuntu core developer whose hair either
greyed or fell out altogether in the process of resolving numerous
audio issues in the aforementioned popular Linux distribution.
Scott Preston
Linux is the perfect platform for robotics. This session
will show how to use various programming languages to communicate with
micro controllers, capture images from web cameras, perform voice
recognition and text to speech, all the components you need for an
intelligent robot.
Scott is a member of the Java Community Process, Central Ohio Java
Users Group, Columbus Ruby Brigade and founder of The Columbus Robotics
Society. He wrote his first book The Definitive Guide to Building Java
Robots, by Apress in 2005, and Co-Authored, Real-World-Ajax by SYS-CON
Media in 2006. Scott has given talks about robotics all over Ohio
including CodeMash 2008.
Mat Kovach
Software without a purpose has little value if it can't be
used for something the people want. Using R, Open Source databases,
TCL, Python, GNUPlot, and GNU FORTRAN, I'll demonstrate how that
software can be used to research: Can a baseball defy gravity? Do
pitches act differently at each stadium? Is a pitcher injured? Are
current pitchers throwing spitballs and why they should!
Mat been involved with Open Source for .. well too long. When not
involved with running NOOSS and maintaining Uptime
(http://uptime.openacs.org) and MyTurl (http://myturl.com), he turns
his attention to baseball by contributing to the RetroSQL project, an
effort to develop OSS and standards for baseball researchers. This year
at the SABR (SABR) Mat lead a talk on OSS for baseball researchers.
Leading a baseball talk at OLF was the next logical step. Mat is also
currently working on a book called 'Hacking the Pitcher' and has been
known to throw a mean spitball.
Moose
OpenAFS is a free, secure, distributed, file system which
started as a research project, became an IBM product, and then Open
Source Software. We'll look at how Open Sourcing has affected the
development of OpenAFS while debunking some old myths from its for-pay
days. We will also examine the basic terms and concepts used as well as
the things OpenAFS can and can't do. At the end of the talk, you should
know enough about OpenAFS so you can try it out for yourself - no
server needed!
Moose as been working with AFS since before it was called AFS,
when it was a research project, and has worked with it through it's
growth as an IBM developed & marketed product, and now as an Open
Source project. She has run AFS at small and large sites, and does
OpenAFS consulting and training among other system administration
things. In her spare time, Moose gives talks and evangelizes about
OpenAFS to whomever she can. If there is any time left over, it is
spent napping.
Eric G. Wolfe
A few Linux integration tricks. Kerberos and LDAP:
advantages and disadvantages. Demonstrations: - Setup Kerberos
authentication for PAM integrated services. - Using Apache mod_krb5 to
imitate IIS integrated authentication. Samba 3 AD integration &
MSRPC tricks. Demonstrations: - Setup a simple "Domain Member" Samba
server; - Use the MMC computer management snap-in with your Linux
Servers; - Building a better/smarter BIND DNS slave using MSRPC and a
Domain Controller.
Eric had his first taste of Linux with Slackware 3.4 in 1997, and
has been an avid user ever since. He has helped found two Linux User
Groups in WV, one which is still active almost five years later. This
will be the fourth year he has attended the Ohio LinuxFest. Currently,
Eric is a member of the IT Systems team at Marshall University, where
he assists in the day to day operation of various Red Hat Enterprise
servers, VMWare ESX servers, and even the occasional Microsoft Windows
Server.
Andrew Pitonyak
What can I run on Linux? Can I run Word? Can I burn DVDs?
Can I play games? This presentation is a survey of miscellaneous
applications for Linux. The emphasis is on solving problems rather than
detailed coverage of specific applications. Topics such as office
suites, graphics, financial management, and utilities will be covered.
The intention is to provide coverage appealing to both the advanced and
novice user.
Andrew Pitonyak is a computer scientist and mathematician widely
known in the OpenOffice.org (OOo) community as an expert in OOo macros.
Andrew has numerous published documents and materials primarily in the
area of Linux and OOo. He is frequently found on OOo related forums and
mailing lists helping as time permits.
Ilan Rabinovitch
It is becoming increasingly vital to the success of
open-source that elected representatives be properly informed about
issues relating to open-standards & access to information. Issues
such as the DMCA, DRM, copyright/patent reform, and information access
pose very serious risks to open source and the freedom of information.
This presentation will review ways in which ordinary geeks can better
make their voices heard and make a difference in this election year.
Ilan Rabinovitch is a Co-Founder of Geek-PAC (previously
BytesFree.org). Additionally he has helped organize the Southern
California Linux Expo as Conference Chair over the last 7 years. When
not advocating open source and free software, he earns a living as a
Systems Administrator at Edmunds.com in Santa Monica, CA
Bob Solimeno
Drupal is an open source content management platform that
is extensible and easily upgraded as new versions are developed. This
platform was chosen to serve two technical databases to share
information among research groups in a Fortune 500 manufacturing
company. An unused desktop PC was obtained to make a LAMP server with
Drupal. A working system was developed within one week to serve the
needs of about 30 users.
Bob Solimeno is a Principal Scientist working for a Fortune 500
manufacturer in the pulp and paper industry. He has been employed as a
scientist working in a variety of industrial and research laboratory
settings for more than 20 years, and has been an avid computer "power
user" since 1982. GNU/Linux and Free Software have been part of his
life since 1996.
Douglas Davis
The office suite can be used for many things in the typical
home. A few handy home projects will be demonstrated that can be done
with Office suites on Linux. Some examples are customized Christmas
cards, a celebration slide show, a club newsletter, a poster, CD labels
and taxes. Tips on sharing documents with people using other office
packages will also be included. A short comparison of different office
suites available on Linux will also be included.
Doug has been a Unix user since mid 1980s and has used Linux at
home since 1999. He has evaluated several office suites over the years.
He has prepared presentations on Linux that were played on MS power
point for several years. Doug has PhD Aeronautical Engineering from Air
Force Institute of Technology.
Bdale Garbee
My son and I enjoy building and flying model rockets. But
when we went looking for an electronic altimeter to measure how high
our flights were going, the products we found required the use of
proprietary software for configuration and to extract the data
recorded... and that's no fun! This presentation will report on our
experiences developing open hardware and associated open source
software to satisfy our altitude curiosity, punctuated with photos and
video clips.
Bdale first contributed to Free Software in 1979, has a long
history of involvement in the Debian distribution, and is Chief
Technologist for Open Source and Linux at HP. His primary hobby seems
to be turning all of his other hobbies in to open source projects...
Jeff Price
Xen Virtualization, a demo of the Novell/Microsoft paravirtualization drivers for Windows
Peter Salus
Where next? It's over 60 years since the transistor was
invented. It's 25 years since rms launched the Gnu Project. Next year,
the Net, UNIX and Linus Torvalds will be 40. It's 30 years since M$
moved from New Mexico to Washington. And both the Web and Linux will
reach majority in 2009. Is that it? Where are we going? What might the
next decade bring?
Peter H. Salus is an aged technological historian. Among his books
are "A Quarter Century of UNIX," "Casting the Net," and (most recently)
"The Daemon, the Gnu and the Penguin."
Printer-friendly version
MYPLAspace
I like the play on words. Drupal is the open source choice for public librarians. "Watch that you don't drop that "L" in public, young man!"
(*A note to the new PLA president--Jeff Schuler is your drupal dude)