One of the things I love about putting together a BarCamp is that those who attend a BarCamp are responsible for making the event what they want it to be.

BarcampMilwaukee4 is going to be a lot more of an Unconference than usual. We're busting to make it a great event, but economic realities have made the "participatory" element of Barcamp more important than ever.

So let it be said, that you, dear Barcamp attendee, are responsible for making Barcamp into an experience that you will enjoy. Think about what you need to ensure you're going to be comfortable, connected, and engaged-- and then bring those things. Or make arrangements to bring those things. Or bring money to buy those things. Just don't expect that those things are going to show be there for you.

I plan to bring my own coffee pot, coffee maker, cooler of drinks, a power strip, cables, chairs, and tables, I also plan to bring some snacks, coffee, and things to share.

That's the thing about a participatory conference, right? It's not just about the Law of Two Feet and about getting great gifts of knowledge and t-shirts from your community. For Barcamp to work, you have to give back, too. If everybody took care of their own needs, and then ensured that they were also contributing to the comfort, connection and engagement of their neighbor, Barcamp could be held in a dark cave on top of a flagpole, and it would be great.

The organizers of BarcampMilwaukee, great people like Jenn, Ashe, Pete and Kevin, have given largely of themselves this year, and I, for one, am going to work as hard as I can to ensure that I live up to the standard of giving of themselves (and their time and their effort) that these folks, my friends, have set.

Will you?

I've been blogging a lot lately, just not here.
BarCampMilwaukee4 is only twelve days away! Holy Crap!
That's super awesome.

I'm not sure what I'm going to do, session wise, I'm kind of rolling with the event and see what happens, but I posted these thoughts on the sessions discussions page at BarcampMilwaukee.com, and figured I might as well share here, too.

You have to give a session at Barcamp this year. There's no rule, or anything, but if you don't give at least co-facilitate a session this year, you're doing it wrong.

Don't let your monkey mind, your self-hater, get in your way. You have valuable experience to share. Sharing your knowledge is righteous and good. Your experiences make you an expert in what you know, and we can all benefit when you share that expertise.

Don’t be afraid to do some beginner’s sessions! You have far more expertise than you realize, and part of the magic of BarCamp is that the stuff you know a little about added with the stuff your colleagues know a little about makes for a whole lot of collective knowledge.

On the other side of the coin, if you know a lot about a subject, consider running an “intro” session before your advanced sessions. For example, If you think you might want to put on an “advanced Joomla hacking” session, think about doing an “Intro to Joomla” session first. You’ll find that running an intro session will help feed the advanced session, and will probably get new users excited about the subject you're so passionate about!

What ever you do, Don't make the mistake of thinking you can coast through a Barcamp without contributing in some way. If you really can't bring yourself to host a session, try volunteering at the front desk, making a meal for someone, bringing water to the session rooms or taking out the trash.

We'll see you punks at BarcampMilwaukee4, Ok? It begins Saturday, Oct. 3, 2009 at 10 a.m. and runs through Sunday, Oct. 4, 2009 at 4 p.m. at the Chase Commerce Center, 3073 S. Chase Ave, in Milwaukee.