20 Jan 2010
I just delivered my linux.conf.au presentation on using free and open source software in collaborative humanities research. I have presented on this topic at smaller events, including LCA miniconferences last year, but this was my first presentation in LCA’s main programme. I was more nervous than usual as this is such a prominent conference, and I made some of the speaking mistakes (speaking too quickly, going in circles) that I find embarrassing, but I think I did well enough for a first-time LCA speaker.
One of the more entertaining and well-known speakers in the FOSS community was speaking at the same time, so it is not surprising that I did not have a huge audience, and I would have found a larger one more intimidating anyway. The audience was responsive and good questions were asked, so I think the presentation did its job.
My biggest challenge in this talk was distilling into 35-40 minutes the work that I have been doing for the last two years, and the background principles and my own ruminations on the topic. I am scheduled to give a version of this talk to Linux Users of Victoria in later this year, and may also give a necessarily different version to a group of postgraduate history students. There is still a lot of work I want to do on becoming better acquainted with similar projects elsewhere, and reflecting on the principles of humanities computing. If I can maintain the energy, this would be a good opportunity to work on a series of articles, blog posts or presentations.
16 Jan 2010
This was the afternoon of my arrival. Within a few hours, the temperature dropped a few degrees, and the rain and wind arrived that evening.
16 Jan 2010
It’s wet and windy here. Wellington in January is like Melbourne in August. Even locals are complaining now. Still, I would take a wet, windy summer over 40° heat, any day. Wellington is compact and the population is small, but it still feels like a vibrant, active city. A vibrant, active city that I can mostly cover on foot. I think I could get used to this.
This is my first visit to New Zealand, after 26 years living in the big country next door. I never got round to crossing the Tasman because ‘New Zealand is just there and it’s not about to go away’ (just like Uluru and other Australian landmarks that I haven’t seen). It’s about time I made the effort.
I visited the Museum of New Zealand, Te Papa Tongarewa today, and choked up a bit at the exhibit on the Treaty of Waitangi. The context and the history are different, but I feel angry and ashamed that a treaty like this is still impossible in Australia.
My LCA2010 presentation is nearly ready – I just need another dry run or two. I have even started building a schedule of other presentations to catch, which will probably be revised frequently over the course of the week. My DrupalSouth presentation is at a more embryonic stage.
I have a photo album on Picasa – I’m using Picasa largely to manage photos on this laptop, as I can’t update iPhoto on this machine. (I know, I should be using Linux, but I’m not.) Conference photos might reappear later on Flickr or elsewhere.
16 Jan 2010
It’s wet and windy here. Wellington in January is like Melbourne in August. Even locals are complaining now. Still, I would take a wet, windy summer over 40° heat, any day. Wellington is compact and the population is small, but it still feels like a vibrant, active city. A vibrant, active city that I can mostly cover on foot. I think I could get used to this.
This is my first visit to New Zealand, after 26 years living in the big country next door. I never got round to crossing the Tasman because ‘New Zealand is just there and it’s not about to go away’ (just like Uluru and other Australian landmarks that I haven’t seen). It’s about time I made the effort.
I visited the Museum of New Zealand, Te Papa Tongarewa today, and choked up a bit at the exhibit on the Treaty of Waitangi. The context and the history are different, but I feel angry and ashamed that a treaty like this is still impossible in Australia.
My LCA2010 presentation is nearly ready – I just need another dry run or two. I have even started building a schedule of other presentations to catch, which will probably be revised frequently over the course of the week. My DrupalSouth presentation is at a more embryonic stage.
I have a photo album on Picasa – I’m using Picasa largely to manage photos on this laptop, as I can’t update iPhoto on this machine. (I know, I should be using Linux, but I’m not.) Conference photos might reappear later on Flickr or elsewhere.
15 Dec 2009
The schedule for DrupalSouth 2010 in Wellington has been published. I’m speaking relatively early, so I’ll be able to enjoy most of the weekend without anxiety.
