[OSList] Bar Camp?

Wed Sep 16 11:57:04 PDT 2015

Hi All,

I want to merge my post from 11 days ago (below) into this thread, because
it relates to unconferences/barcamps and OS.  The post got stuck in the OS
List Moderation Queue due to the size of attachments, so now the
attachments are links instead.

Is there a difference between unconferences and barcamps?  I have seen them
used interchangeably.  Here's the post from September 5th to add to this
conversation:
-----

Hat tip to Harold for bringing up the idea of "Open Space in the Wild" on a
recent Tuesday OS Hotline call.  Unconferences are one such form that OS
takes outside of the OS community.  Hat tip to Tricia for hosting the
Tuesday OS Hotline.  If you haven't attended one yet, look for the
announcements on Monday/Tuesday on this list.  They are lots of fun!

So here's the topic I'd like to discuss on this thread:
I understand that unconferences (aka barcamps) evolved/descended from open
space.  It seems to be an estranged relationship where many of the hundreds
of people who run unconferences have never heard of open space.  From my
personal experience and from the opinions of others who have held
unconferences, they vary in quality from poor quality to excellent,
depending on many factors such as the level of preparation that

In this thread, I'd like to ask, "What are the main differences between
unconferences and OS?"  Here's a start to the list of differences that I
can see:

Some unconferences start with a slide presentation (an example is in the
links below), and this never happens in OS.

Unconferences frequently (but not always?) start with theater-style seating
rather than an opening circle.

Unconferences have everyone give 3-word introductions.

Unconferences almost always (from my experience) last one day or less.

During the closing people will often share "key takeaways" from the
sessions whereas during an OS, people usually share reflections about the
overall experience (I think)

Unconferences rarely mention the terms "butterfly" and the "bumble bee" (at
least from the 20 that I've attended)

OS has more of a griefwork element (there is a problem/crisis or the
situation on the ground is changing and something is ending and we need to
figure out what comes next) whereas unconferences are more about birds of a
feather getting together.  Said another way, OS is more frequently about
collective action and unconferences are more about building social cohesion
and individual learning.

Any other key differences?  These are just my impressions.

Another question on my mind: "When is an unconference a more appropriate
tool than an open space?"

So that you can understand the language of one breed of unconference
organizers, here are some of the resources that EdCamp (a large
unconference series) shares with its organizers:

Checklist for how to run an EdCamp unconference:
https://docs.google.com/document/d/1F4nEotV_Gab-QFIJk_EJSeUOeKTVVV598_jeAhanDjg/edit
A diagram for EdCamp which describes tips for how a participant can make
the most of their experience
<https://qiqochat.files.wordpress.com/2015/09/how-to-maximize-the-edcamp-experience-1.png>
(I didn't make this, but I uploaded it to my WordPress site since it was
too big to attach to an OSList message)

A slide presentation which is used to begin EdCamp unconferences
<https://qiqochat.files.wordpress.com/2015/09/sample-edcamp-intro-2.pptx>
A mish-mash of tips and resources for organizing an EdCamp
<http://www.edutopia.org/edcamp-organizer-resources>

Lucas Cioffi

Charlottesville, VA
Mobile: 917-528-1831

On Wed, Sep 16, 2015 at 10:00 AM, Daniel Mezick via OSList <
oslist at lists.openspacetech.org> wrote:

> "Lean Coffee" is yet-another derivative of Open Space. It's simple, fun,
> and useful- like OST itself.
>
> Here is the origin story:
>
> www.leancoffee.org
> Lean Coffee started in Seattle in 2009. Jim Benson and Jeremy Lightsmith
> wanted to start a group that would discuss Lean techniques in knowledge
> work – but didn’t want to start a whole new cumbersome organization with
> steering committees, speakers, and such. They wanted a group that did not
> rely on anything other than people showing up and wanting to learn or
> create.
>
>
> Apparently, (almost) everybody believes Lean Coffee is in fact a
> stripped-down "light" version of OST for smaller groups:
>
> https://www.google.com/search?q=www.leancoffee.org+open+space&ie=utf-8&oe=utf-8
>
> Daniel
> www.openspaceagility.com/about
>
>
>
> On 9/16/15 9:40 AM, Daniel Mezick via OSList wrote:
>
> Bar Camp history does not support the idea that BarCamp precedes OST
> development:
> https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/BarCamp#History
> The first BarCamp was held in Palo Alto, California
> <https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Palo_Alto,_California>, from August 19–21,
> 2005
>
> So interesting also, that the name derives (indirectly) from "foobar"...ha
> https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/BarCamp#History
> The name *BarCamp* is a playful allusion to the event's origins, with
> reference to the programmer slang term, foobar
> <https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Foobar>: BarCamp arose as an
> open-to-the-public alternative to Foo Camp
> <https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Foo_Camp>, which is an annual
> invitation-only participant-driven conference hosted by Tim O'Reilly
> <https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tim_O%27Reilly>.
>
> "Foo camp" which preceded Bar Camp also came much later than OST:
> https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Foo_Camp
> The first FOO Camp was held in August, 2003, and had approximately 200
> attendees.
>
> Daniel
> www.openspaceagility.com/about
>
>
>
> On 9/16/15 4:53 AM, Martin Roell via OSList wrote:
>
> Hey Arno,
>
> Arno Baltin via OSList wrote:
>
> I have been assisting a group of professionals at organising their
> annual meetings for couple of years. These have been unconferences in
> different forms - Open Space, World Cafe, ... This time they chosed Bar
> Camp.
> I have no experience with that. Reading through some materials, appears
> it is more like a technically well supported Open Space which is a
> preference of IT  people and a predecessor of OS.
> I would appreciate any hints on how to facilitate a Bar Camp.
> It will be a 2 day meeting of (maximum) 100 participants.
>
> Barcamp is like a badly done OpenSpace with some constraints that make
> it harder to get work done.
>
> So _basically_, if you just open space, like you normally would, but
> calling the whole thing "BarCamp" (and saying the word "BarCamp" a lot,
> Barcamping-People seem to like that), all will be well. (Or, in your
> context, simply drop that, open space, and let people get to work.)
>
> (Barcamps have a tendency for a "facilitator" to "help" people post
> "sessions" to the marketplace. They also have a ritual where after a
> person announces a "session" (it's always a "session", never an
> "issue"), the "facilitator" asks the "participants" for a show of
> interest ("raise your hand if you are interested in attemding this
> session") so that they can then "plan" better (many hands: you get a big
> room assigned). There is no circle at the beginning, and none at the
> end. A lot of "teaching" takes places - extroverted people "giving"
> sessions to the less extroverted one, much less walking-around, less
> spontaneity. If "teaching" is the goal, they actually work decently.)
>
> You'll probably get some slack from hardcore barcampers if you don't do
> all of that; and you'll step on people's toes for not following other
> barcamp-rituals, but I'd still go for it in the context you described.
> Check in with your sponsor why they want "BarCamp" - what does that mean
> for them, what's the important thing in that for them.
>
> Best,
>
> Martin
>
>
> --
>
> Daniel Mezick, President
>
> New Technology Solutions Inc.
>
> (203) 915 7248 (cell)
>
> Bio <http://newtechusa.net/dan-mezick/>. Blog
> <http://newtechusa.net/blog/>. Twitter
> <http://twitter.com/#%21/danmezick/>.
>
> Examine my new book:  The Culture Game
> <http://newtechusa.net/about/the-culture-game-book/>: Tools for the Agile
> Manager.
>
> Explore Agile Team Training
> <http://newtechusa.net/services/agile-scrum-training/> and Coaching.
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>
> --
>
> Daniel Mezick, President
>
> New Technology Solutions Inc.
>
> (203) 915 7248 (cell)
>
> Bio <http://newtechusa.net/dan-mezick/>. Blog
> <http://newtechusa.net/blog/>. Twitter
> <http://twitter.com/#%21/danmezick/>.
>
> Examine my new book:  The Culture Game
> <http://newtechusa.net/about/the-culture-game-book/>: Tools for the Agile
> Manager.
>
> Explore Agile Team Training
> <http://newtechusa.net/services/agile-scrum-training/> and Coaching.
> <http://newtechusa.net/services/agile-scrum-coaching/>
>
> Explore the Agile Boston  <http://newtechusa.net//user-groups/ma/>
> Community.
>
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