Is WordCamp the conference for you?
I had the pleasure of attending my first WordCamp conference this weekend in Portland. Yes, I know, first WordCamp, how is that possible for a WordPress focused web developer like you? I guess I just wasn’t organized enough to attend previous ones.
I was also not expecting much. As the saying goes, you get what you pay for, so how good can a $20 conference be? WordCamp PDX proved to be exceptional and went beyond my expectations.
The first scheduled speaker, Jason Grigsby started the conference with a bang and demonstrated how important and easy it is to speed up your WordPress installation. His presentation consisted of information that was easy enough for bloggers to grasp and yet didn’t belittle hard-core developers.
Matt Mullenweg opted for a casual question and answer session instead of a presentation which gave the audience an opportunity to pick his brain. Having heard Matt speak in the past, it was great to see him answer people’s question and chat with them casually afterward.
Saturday ended with another great presentation by Tyler Sticka who talked about WordPress powered portfolios and provided us with code samples that we can use and customize to our liking. Once again, the talk was slightly technical, but Tyler managed to present in a way, which I think wasn’t too intimidating to non-coders.
Sunday’s presenters were equally stellar. John Hawkins and Will Norris gave us great advice on how to build plugins and what not to do, while Scott Porad, Cheezburger Technology Officer of Pet Holdings, Inc., the company behind the hugely popular I Can Has Cheezburger? and Failblog.org gave quite a high-level presentation explaining how his company operates and shared tips on how to be more efficient when programming.
Overall, I was very impressed with the information I gathered during the weekend. I was expecting discussions on CSS, content organizing, problems with installation, etc.., but instead, was confronted with SQL queries and plugin development code. I learned a great deal and now have plenty of advice to follow and put in place.
As most WordCamps go, the model is based on the unconference. As a result, during the scheduled talks, other discussions were taking place here and there. People simply wrote topics on the board and initiated the discussions. A group of realtors even gathered on the roof deck on Sunday afternoon to discuss matters that relate to them. How awesome is that?
As Matt pointed out during his Q&A session, WordPress has become popular because of people like you and me who attend and organize WordCamps. Regardless if your a blogger or hard-core coder, WordPress is a great platform and there’s bound to be something for you at WordCamp. So check it out and see if there’s a conference near you.
Hi Christine,
Thanks for attending. I’m glad you enjoyed my session, and it is very nice to hear it wasn’t too technical. It’s difficult to strike the right balance and still share technical information. :-)
Great write up. Thanks again.
-Jason
Very nice write up! This was my 6th or 7th WordCamp this year, and ranks near the top of my list. The content was great and the people attending were an amazing group. Plus, I absolutely loved the unconference portions of the event. Tons of great info to be had.
Hopefully we’ll run in to each other at a WordCamp down the road.
John
Good writeup. My only complaint about Wordcamp PDX is several of the speakers assumed everyone knew who they were.
Other than that it was good informative weekend.
Thanks for the comments everyone.
Willangford, I didn’t notice that from the speakers, but I’m guessing that this might be an over site. I think that everyone gets nervous in front of crowds and forgets something. I know I always do.
Hope to see you at a next WordCamp.
@willlangford Interesting comment. I wonder what part the close-knit community played in that. A lot of people knew each other.
For my part, I never talk about how I am when I present even when no one in the audience knows how I am. I do that primarily to get people engaged in the presentation as quickly as possible.
I usually start by saying, “Hi I’m Jason,” and then launch right in. :-)