Pre-Conference
It all started with a single tweet.
After receiving a congratulatory email that my scholarship application was approved, I shifted to intense planning mode. I scanned the Open Source Bridge 2017 schedule and instantly knew I'd have to make tough scheduling decisions throughout the conference. Sessions fell into five technology agnostic tracks: Activism, Culture, Hacks, Practice, and Theory. Even after hours of intense scrutiny, I could not decide between sessions within several time slots. I ultimately noted my favorites and trusted that caffeine-fueled clarity would guide me throughout the conference.
#OSB17: Day 1
I woke up a little psyched, to say the least.
I immediately felt at home in The Eliot Center, which demonstrates why Open Source Bridge is so different from other technical conferences. All-gender restrooms were widely available and thoughtfully stocked with emergency items such as elastic hair ties, gum, and Shout Wipes. Quiet rooms were ready and waiting, should anyone need a breather between sessions. At the registration desk, I was asked to select a lanyard color to indicate my preference for being photographed and recorded. After personalizing my badge, I turned my attention to the coffee and tea station, grabbing an adorable mug for my vanilla tea. To my delight, I ran into a friend from a recent Python Meetup in the Hacker Lounge. We sipped on our beverages while exploring the fun-filled space. There truly was something for everyone at the Hacker Lounge: Legos, job board, comfy seating — and my personal favorite, a sticker swap table.
The keynote was a brief walk away in the Santuary, a walnut and gold leaf wonder complete with a historic 1880's pipe organ and grand piano. The buzz in the Santuary was absolutely electric and all attendees promptly whipped out devices and notebooks for live tweets and notes.
Prior to the keynote, we were welcomed and expertly guided through the Code of Conduct, the recording policy, the venue, and the schedule. This was communicated on a daily basis to guide any attendees that may have missed the previous keynotes and to reaffirm the goal of increasing open source and culture citizenship.
Tech Reform
Nicole Sanchez not only challenged us to look within ourselves as thoughtful technologists, she issued a clarion call to tweet a systemic problem using #TechReform. Nicole has already started compiling #TechReform topics here.
The Hardest Problem in Tech(nical Interviewing) is People
Carol Smith and Heidi Waterhouse shared their technical interviewing expertise and provided take-home worksheets to help present yourself as a confident and capable candidate.
How to load 1m lines of Ruby in 5s
Paul Tarjan discussed the techniques used by Stripe that reduced the time to boot a service from 35s to 5s. Autoloader, build daemon, and massive refactoring, oh my!
The Future of the Web is Low-Tech
Eric Mann delved into the severe need for low-tech access to the web for content consumption all over the world. We walked away with a deeper understanding of these unreached audiences and the techniques to expand our impact.
Onboarding is Unboxing
Kristen Gallagher discussed ways to develop and ship an effective onboarding program by uncovering tacit knowledge.
Democratizing Data
Lorena Mesa reminded us that as developers we decide what data is collected, how long it's kept, who has access to it, and how it's used. Small adjustments to our data collection cycle can make positive impacts for all.
#OSB17: Day 2
Decoupling from (bad) shibboleths
Walé Ogundipé urged us to not only abandon the shibboleths that intimidate beginners, but to invite newcomers through welcoming resources.
Seasons of Debian
Urvika Gola and Pranav Jain shared their Outreachy and Summer of Code experiences with Debian on the Lumicall project.
How To Mentor Humans
Letta Raven shared tips and tricks for mentoring anyone with a different or diverse background from the mentor. Finding that common ground allows mentorship magic!
How Can I Contribute?
Lucy Wyman dispelled the myths that prevent new contributors from making that first pull request and demonstrated how to contribute to open source immediately.
Security, Privacy, and Open Silicon
Josh Lifton reviewed the open hardware information security landscape and focused on the impact of open silicon. You'll want to subscribe to the Crowd Supply newsletter for details on their upcoming conference in the fall.
#OSB17: Day 3
Fake Science! Sad!
Emily Gorcenski did not disappoint the legion of fans with a riveting case study on the successes and failures of Open Data and Open Science. Spoiler alert: "Open Science actually worked — the community caught the problem and figured out how to critique it."
Grassroots activism is hard
Jon Pincus surveyed the grassroots activism landscape and identified areas where open-source solutions could have an immediate impact.
Building #Resist at Meetup
Yanyi recounted the leadership decisions that made #Resist possible, the questions Meetup struggled with, and what they learned about successfully driving change in the activist space.
Open Source Security for Activists
Chris Daley covered the current security landscape for activists and provided Open Source tools to help keep activists safe online and IRL.
24 Hours of Awesome: Science Hack Day Portland
Lilly Winfree and Daniela Saderi shared how the first Science Hack Day in Portland was put together and how open source played a vital part. I have to confess that I found the DNA hack a wee bit gross, but still a fun preview of what's to come in September.
How I Went From Newbie to Open Source Project Owner
Kim Crayton shared how she saw the need for mentorship in the development community, how she built Jr. Dev Mentoring as a result, and how she's honestly navigating the challenges supporting this open source project.
#OSB17 Official Party
Ever heard of a chiptune band? Me neither. Though it was tempting for me to break plans to attend the Official Party, luckily for me, there was a steady stream of live tweets capturing the games, food, and this year's Open Citizenship Award winner!
#OSB17: Day 4
Attendees were invited to create "unconference" sessions to continue conversations or brainstorm on new ideas.
Post-Conference
Finding safe spaces to network and learn can sometimes be difficult as a new developer. But even in intimate sessions with experienced developers, I always felt like my diverse perspective was welcomed and accepted. Thank you Open Source Bridge speakers, attendees, sponsors, and volunteers for such a memorable, accessible, and thoughtfully organized conference. Thank you Stumptown Syndicate and AlterConf for the generous scholarship ticket!
See you all at next year's Open Source Bridge!
P.S. If I haven't already convinced you to attend next year's Open Source Bridge, how about this? The attendees know how to give the in-house wifi serious competion.
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