LocalFOSS

The countdown has begun. In eight days, over five hundred delegates will descend on the University of New South Wales to take part in the Southern hemispheres premier Free and Open Source Software (FOSS) Conference.

The annual conference, which was last year held in Dunedin - New Zealand, has been growing strongly since it was first launched in 1999 as the Conference of Australian Linux Users(CALU).

The conference organisers have already achieved something of a coup, attracting Andrew "Andy" Tannebaum, one of the giants in Operating Systems design. Mr Tannenbaum will be the first Keynote Speaker.

The team is also proud to be bringing another first to Australia. The One Laptop Per Child project is an ambitious attempt at developing a low cost yet powerful platform for developing nations. As well as having a functional demonstration unit on display during Open Day, some of the leading developers from the OLPC project will be presenting at the conference.

linux.conf.au has grown to embrace a selection of mini-conferences immediately before the main conference program. These community organised streams include a range of subjects. Open Source Game Development is covered, so is the role of Women in Free and Open Source Software Development and the 2 day Education program has almost become a permanent fixture.