Choices for voters
February 25th, 2008Over the past week I have reviewed the six bids to host the OpenOffice.org Annual Conference 2008 (OOoCon): Amsterdam, The Netherlands; Beijing, China; Bratislava, Slovakia; Budapest, Hungary; Dundalk, Ireland; and Orvieto, Italy. So, now for the all-important question: which is the one to vote for?
For people in Asia/Pacific, the chance to attend an OOoCon outside Europe may be too good to refuse. As OpenOffice.org is a truly international organisation, it doesn’t seem right that its premier event has never moved outside Europe - even though the biggest concentration of developers is in Europe. If OOoCon is to be held in Beijing, let’s hope that Sun management dig deep in their pockets to fund as many developers as possible to make the trip. If it helps to bring the China-based developers sponsored by RedFlag and IBM closer into the fold, and speeds up the adoption of their code in the main code base, then surely it will be money well spent.
But what sort of OOoCon will the Beijing team provide? From their proposal, I expect a highly professional, well organised, big city conference. We may even find all the hackers turn up in suits. But with commercial sponsors around - and let’s be honest, we couldn’t have OOoCon in its present form without them - there is always a danger that the real heart of OOo - the individual volunteer contributors - will get swamped. OOoCon needs to reflect the variety, diversity, and individuality of the OOo membership. Therein lies the challenge for the Beijing team.
So in the red corner, we have Beijing. In the blue corner, for people who can only travel to Europe, there is far more choice. Indeed, due to the voting system we have used, this choice is likely to hand OOoCon to Beijing by default, unless all the European votes go to one destination. I must admit I was delighted when I saw a bid from Ireland, just across the water from me. Irish hospitality is legendary, I’m sure the craic would have been tremendous, and if only they had secured Dustin the Turkey to sing Irelande Douze Points at the opening ceremony there would have been no contest 
In the absence of Dustin, from my analysis of the bids, I believe one European bid this year stands above the others, which is the bid from Italy. I believe the combination of an experienced organising team, a delightful warm location, and a thriving local community would be hard to beat. I would urge anyone wanting an OOoCon in Europe this year to unite behind Orvieto. Remember that our voting system allows a change of vote right up to the last minute. However, I don’t expect my advice to make the slightest difference to the result 
Going forward, I believe that the increasing interest in hosting OOoCon means that we will have to change the way we award OOoCon in future. Some form of shortlisting would prevent teams wasting effort on bids which stand little chance of success. It would also be useful to pull the timescale forward, and announce the location of the next OOoCon at the close of the previous year’s OOoCon. This would maximise the learning and experience transfer from one year to the next.
But that’s for later. For today, please remember that voting closes on Friday 29th at midnight UTC!
February 26th, 2008 at 8:50 am
John,
thank you very much for your great reviews, that succeed to walk on the thin line between personal point of view and appropriate balance. I agree with most of your ratings. However, I think Beijing scored a bit too low on the ‘Koper Factor’.
Firstly, as written in the proposal, the attendees will not be distributed all over this huge city, but the selection of the hotels will ensure, that everyone can stay within an area, that is not much bigger than Orvieto.
Secondly, unlike most western preconceptions, Beijing is not only a concrete desert. Well, some parts are, but there are also big quarters with an relaxed and warm atmosphere and a fair number of nice and huge parks. I added an URL, with a personal photo website (in German).
Thirdly, we will do the best we can, that the large numbers of travel sponsorship will not put the individual contributers in second row. In Barcelona for example, we saw a fair number of Asian, but all were on a professional mission. There weren’t not too many individuals from outside Europe at all, to the extend I could see. Having this funds will hopefully ensure, that the European and other community members can still attend, while the OOoCon is held in a remote place like Beijing.
Last but not least, I agree, that we will need a new voting mode for the future. I really like the Instant-Runoff system, you proposed right after the proposal deadline. Nevertheless, as you did mention above, OOo is an international community and has to be careful, that the European dominance within the project doesn’t tie the OOoCon forever to it’s roots. Finding the right balance will be an interesting task for the future.
February 26th, 2008 at 8:53 am
… I was expecting the URL in the textbox to be published. I see, it’s not, so check out this:
http://www.peking-foto.de/
February 26th, 2008 at 9:01 am
Thanks, John. At this time, I can just tell you that the Conference, if awarded to Orvieto (I was born in the region, and therefore you can understand how I feel about having the premier OOo event close to my birthplace) will be a tremendous event. We Italians keep our fingers crossed… Let’s hope for the best.
February 26th, 2008 at 10:09 am
Orvieto rocks!!!
February 26th, 2008 at 11:03 am
Orvieto is really a fantastic place, soothing while intimate and quiet. Still, it always very much depends on the organizing team, the venue and the many other components involved to realize a truly successful event. But, given the alternatives I would myself recommend Orvieto, which provides a truly memorable setting and great opportunities also for nearby toursim and great sightseeing (Bolsena lake just around the corner).
February 26th, 2008 at 4:58 pm
Orviato, without any doubt!
February 29th, 2008 at 11:30 pm
Hi John,
Thanks for your very independent reviews of the proposals and also for your kind words on Ireland … I won’t rule out Dustin the Turkey turning up at Slane Castle with U2 as his backing band just yet …
In hindsight by keeping our proposal tight it may seem a bit light but I can assure everyone of a very professionally arranged conference in Dundalk.
So here’s hoping Ireland get’s douze points from EuroOOoCon!