FOSS.IN
From OSSWiki
FOSS.IN is a Free and Open Source Software (FOSS) conference, held in India.
It is the successor of the FOSS conferences known as Linux Bangalore, and is one of the biggest FOSS events in Asia, and potentially one of the largest of its kind in the world. Originally designed to be a national FOSS conference for the FOSS community in India, it, over a span of five years, grew into an international conference, attracting audiences and speakers from across the world.
Contents |
Scope
Unlike the Linux Bangalore conferences that it succeeded, FOSS.IN features a much widened scope, addressing not just Linux, but all Free and Open Source Software FOSS technologies.
Traditionally held in Bangalore, India, this event is held in late November or early December every year. It is designed to be "portable" in scope, i.e. no longer limited to being held in Bangalore.
The event is facilitated by the local FOSS user group(s) in the city where it is held.
FOSS.IN/2005
The most recent edition FOSS.IN/2005, held Nov.29 to Dec.02 at Bangalore Palace in Bangalore, saw the participation of thousands of delegates, with more than 140 speakers presenting more than 180 talks, workshops, tutorials and BOFs. International speakers included Alan Cox, Harald Welte, Jonathan Corbet, Rasmus Lerdorf, Danese Cooper, Volker Grassmuck and many more.
Conversations and Interaction
However, the main attraction of the event was not the many talks by celebrity speakers, but the "conversations" between participants at the BOFs, which for the first time saw interaction between FOSS users, developers and promoters from across India and many parts of the world, and between the Indian government, representatives of the Indian educational system, students and decision makers.
Role of the community
While coordination of the event is handled by a core team, led by veteran FOSS promoter Atul Chitnis, the entire content of the event is created by the FOSS community of India, and almost every aspect of the event is decided by the community as well. FOSS.IN is unusual, with the event being put together by the FOSS community in India, via mailing lists, wikis, volunteers and user groups.
Funding
The event is funded through sponsorships received from industry, academia and government. Delegates to the event pay only a very small amount which is used to pay for food, snacks and T-Shirts for the delegates, and does not go towards the funding of the event infrastructure itself. This is by design - most technical and professional conferences of this sort in India tend to be extremely expensive, and out of reach for the average person. Like its former "avataar" (Linux Bangalore), FOSS.IN attempts to provide knowledge to people at the grassroot level.
Role of Indian Government
The event enjoys the endorsement and patronship of the Government of India, specifically the Ministry of Communications and Information Technology, who have been increasing their efforts to popularise FOSS in India as an alternative to expensive and often trouble-prone proprietary software, typically in the form of software from Microsoft.
