My MIX11 Recap: Open Source Fest

On the evening of the pre-conference day Microsoft hosted the “Open Source Fest”. Open to all MIX attendees, this event allowed authors of open source software using current Microsoft technologies to present their projects.

This was a very interesting evening and overall I would rate it as a success. But there were some things that should be adressed by the organizers in the future that prevented the event from being truly great:

• It was loud. In a room crammed with tables full of computers and lots of people discussing the many projects that was inevitable. Maybe some movable walls (which also could be used to attach posters to it) would have helped, but the noise level was still tolerable. That was until…
• Some “rat-pack” impersonators came on stage and began singing. I found this not only disturbing the discussions, it was also an insult to the presenters of the project. Did the organizers think that the projects alone weren’t interesting enough?
• It was a bit too dark and the signs on the tables (showing the project’s name and the table number) were too small. Finding a specific project in the crowded room was difficult.

These nitpicks aside, I would like to see another Open Source Fest next year. It was great to see the projects being presented with great enthusiasm by their creators and there are quite a few I’ll take a further look at in the next weeks.

Next up: My MIX11 Recap: Day 1