---
title: 'BarCampPortland: Five reasons to attend'
date: '2008-04-22T13:22:36-07:00'
type: post
word_count: 533
char_count: 3567
tokens: 693
categories:
  - 5reasons
  - BarCamp
  - Events
  - Oregon
  - Portland
tags:
  - BarCamp
  - Events
  - Oregon
  - Portland
---

# BarCampPortland: Five reasons to attend

*\[Editor: Leave it to [Dawn Foster](http://portlandonfire.com/dawnfoster "Dawn Foster")—chair of [Legion of Tech](http://legionoftech.org "Legion of Tech"), publisher of [Portland is Awesome](http://portlandisawesome.com "Portland is Awesome"), and blogger at [Fast Wonder](http://fastwonderblog.com "Fast Wonder")—to over deliver. I asked for five reasons to attend BarCampPortland, and she graciously composed an entire post. So, without further ado…\]*
[](http://barcamp.org/BarCampPortland "BarCamp Portland")

### [BarCampPortland:
Portland Geek Culture: building an active tech community in Portland, Oregon](http://barcamp.org/BarCampPortland "BarCamp Portland")

[![BarCamp Portland](https://i0.wp.com/siliconflorist.com/wp-content/uploads/2008/04/logobarcampportland_250.jpg?w=925)](http://barcamp.org/BarCampPortland "BarCamp Portland")[BarCampPortland](http://barcamp.org/BarCampPortland "BarCamp Portland") is an unconference for the Portland tech community, produced *by* the Portland tech community. It is an ad-hoc gathering born from the desire for people to share and learn in an open environment. BarCampPortland is also an intense event with discussions, demos, and interaction from participants. You never quite know what to expect at BarCamp.

The event will be held on May 2, 3, and 4th at [CubeSpace](http://cubespacepdx.com "CubeSpace"). When you arrive on Friday, there will be an agenda framework (times / rooms), but the content for the sessions will be decided by the participants. You can expect interesting topics, cool people, wifi, fun activities, and more!

You can watch this [BarCamp video](http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7XlqEDIJzfw "BarCamp video") if you want to learn more about the BarCamp format and concept.

#### 5 reasons to attend

1. The participants set the agenda. No big, corporate conference planners deciding what you want to hear; you get to decide what we talk about!
2. Fun! We have plans for evening werewolf, other games, and maybe even a movie on Saturday night.
3. You get to hang out with cool people. Last year about 250 of the coolest people in the Portland tech community attended.
4. The format is highly interactive: you can ask questions, contribute, and participate. Keep in mind that roundtable discussions work better than presentations at BarCamp.
5. All topics are welcome: open source, wiki, programming, knitting, online communities, science fiction, and much more. Get creative with your topics. Want more time on a topic or want to hold an adhoc discussion? We have plenty of flexibility built into the BarCamp format.
6. **Bonus**: You can [get a cool t-shirt if you donate to BarCampPortland](http://legionoftech.org/blog/?page_id=15 "Get your BarCamp Portland t-shirt") by april 26th. Design by Brash Creative will be announced mid-week.

If you have not yet RSVPed on Upcoming, [please do it now](http://upcoming.yahoo.com/event/421147/ "RSVP for BarCampPortland"). Having an accurate count of attendees really helps us plan the event!

Holding events can be expensive, so we are still looking for sponsors. None of the organizers make any money on the event – all of the sponsorship money goes toward event costs. The more money we raise, the more we can do for the event. If your company is interested in sponsoring, please contact Selena Decklemann (selenamarie on gmail).

For more information, visit the [BarCampPortland wiki](http://barcamp.org/BarCampPortland "BarCamp Portland").

*Silicon Florist is a proud sponsor of BarCampPortland.*