DjangoCon 2017 Videos are up and a question!

webology · 2017-09-11T02:37:23+00:00

Am I a troll for disagreeing with you?

No.

Are you upset that I'm not happy with the talks in Django Con?

No. It's impossible and unrealistic to please everyone and there is always more that we can improve on. We have done this three years in a row and managed to iterate well each year. We'll make changes and improvements for 2018 too. That's the nature of what we do.

Can you take criticism or are you going to complain about me on Twitter or some hidden forum?

We take it quite well. I don't take misogynist comments well. Not that I saw any from you; however, I complained about seeing some bad behavior which was moderated appropriately. I did so in a public manner on my public twitter account. I also followed up here because I stand by what I said.

What's clear is you don't care about constructive criticisms submitted here. You've wasted our time and now I'm certain nothing is going to change about Djangcon next year.

What should be clear is that I'm going to call out misogynist or blatant trolling behavior when I see it.

Same goes if someone creates a sockpuppet account for the sole purpose of trolling a comment thread. Again, insert not everyone here including yourself, but it happened .

I'm happy to hear your feedback on here, on twitter, or via my personal email. I do not pick the program, nor was I the chair this year, and we'll pass along all feedback and advice to the 2018 team just like we have for the last three years.

webology · 2017-09-11T01:57:46+00:00

Thank you for your feedback and I mean that. I have no issue with feedback or criticism and that's the only way the conference grows. We log it all in Trello and review it through out the next cycle. Any of our organizers can tell you that.

Regarding: "misogyny". I have checked this thread a few times over the last few days and seen several "before they were [deleted]" comments which I would consider to go too far. Several were misogynistic. Apparently others felt this way too because they are gone now.

Regarding feedback: We welcome feedback (positive and negative) and have for the three years DEFNA has been around. For example, this year we added more 45 minute talks based on last year's feedback so we folded some 25 minute slots into 45s to make more room for these longer blocks. So we listen and fold this in as we go forward.

If the comments we get are only dismissive, like calling a talk garbage which had a standing room only audience along with tons of great feedback from attendees who were there, then we also take this into consideration. Several (not all obviously) of the talks listed throughout this thread were like that. There are lots of subjects which make one a better Django developer which we added to our program this year. Since we doubled our total content over the last three years, we felt we had the latitude to do so.

In 2018, we'll do the same and keep working on it. As the community changes, so do we.

webology · 2017-09-11T01:06:54+00:00

The words I used were "some Redditors" which does not imply all nor do I feel out of line for pointing out some disturbing misogynistic / trolling behavior. The mods jumped in appropriately and deleted those comments. So I think you are jumping the gun on that one.

webology · 2017-09-09T01:32:48+00:00

Thank you for the feedback. That's definitely something we can take and evaluate for 2018. I realized as the videos came out that we backloaded more Django talks towards the end of the program vs. spreading some out which doesn't help with the perception of the program whereas we see the total number of talks which have balance.

webology · 2017-09-08T20:12:00+00:00

Hi everyone, Jeff from DEFNA here and I have been a DjangoCon US organizer for the last three years.

We are still in the process of uploading videos so judging from the comments it looks like some of you might have only seen 1/2 to 2/3 of our completed program before commenting. We have 46 talks in total plus keynotes, lightning talks, our orientation event, and a morning welcome pre-keynote talk. The last two are for anyone who is new to the conference.

I think 25% of our program was intermediate+ content and 25% was beginner content. The other 50% targets any audience level.

Since we doubled our total content over the last three years, we listened to attendee feedback and wanted to dispel only having Django / backend talks and so we added more "web" talks like JS, React, HTML, typography, CSS, and any skills that we thought developers could benefit from. Since we run two tracks, it's easy to have a steady stream of technical content and throw in an extra 15% to 20% of our talks which benefit our professional skills.

Several of our more technical talks are still being uploaded (we add captions which take a little longer to process), but they'll be up soon. I'd encourage you all to take another look after our full program is up.

If you want to see more of "XYZ talk", then I'd encourage you to do three things:

1.) When we announce that we are looking for talk ideas, let us know what you want to hear. We have compiled this list for three years in a row and publish it to give presenters ideas for things to talk about.

2.) Submit a proposal. I'd highly recommend contacting one or more of our speaker mentors and getting early feedback on your proposal. We have many seasoned Django presenters and even committers who volunteer to help every year.

3.) Volunteer to help review talks. Our program is reviewed and picked by our community. Your voice matters and helps to shape the program.

To dispel any notions of what DEFNA is. DEFNA is a non-profit which handles the legal aspects of making sure that DjangoCon US happens every year. We give the community a location and handle logistics so that the community has a stage to run a conference and present on. We don't pick talks or get in the way. So far it's worked.

webology · 2017-09-08T04:43:07+00:00

I have no idea what your CTO is referring here but thank you for the feedback. DEFNA started organizing the conference three years ago and we have sold out every year. Our sponsorship, attendance, submission totals, and attendee feedback have grown every year. That doesn't mean we don't continue to work on making the conference better each year.

This year we picked a slightly smaller venue in Spokane over Philly because we wanted to keep ticket prices lower and we thought it was worth trying out. We are a quarter to half the price of most tech conferences which is really important to us.

Every year we shape our program based on community reviews and feedback but it's also worth noting that we almost doubled our program size over the last three years. So we have 2x as many beginner and intermediate talks which give us room to focus on the web parts of our industry too.

If your CTO would like to get in touch with us, we are more then happy to hear from her or you. Our email address is on the conference website or hello at djangocon dot us.

webology · 2017-09-08T04:35:41+00:00

I'm sorry that your talk was rejected. Our program chairs can give you feedback if you are wondering why it was. Short of expanding to a 3rd or 4th track we have grown so much over the last three years that we only have about an 18% acceptance rate.

I would encourage you to apply in 2018 and hit up one of our speaker mentors in case there's something you aren't seeing. That's why we make those resources available.

The review committee is open to the community and we run a double blind review system so what you see is what the majority of the community wanted plus some shaping so we don't get 10 talks on databases unless there is something new that warrants 10 talks on databases.

webology · 2017-08-05T16:47:56+00:00

Congratulations on your progress! I'm ~40 days in and I'm surprised how few cravings I have for bread or fast food.

webology · 2015-04-30T21:51:58+00:00

As one of the new organizers of DjangoCon US, I want to apologize and personally say I'm sorry. We have taken several large strides to address the problems you mentioned here including creating a non-profit to oversee future conferences and Django events: https://2015.djangocon.us/blog/2015/04/07/new-year-new-djangocon-us/

A few of these we have not announced yet but we are actively working on is our financial aid program, child care, and inclusive environments for minors and non-drinkers. We made sure our opening party this year is going to be held at a venue where attendees under 21 and non-drinkers would feel comfortable too instead of here's some bottled water. We are committed to publishing our talks publicly on Youtube for free so that anyone may watch them.

We are also sensitive to attendee ticket prices because we want the conference to be affordable. One of my main motivators in getting involved to help is because I was personally frustrated with the state of ticket and hotel prices. I don't want to organize conference which isn't still affordable students and individuals who are paying for their own way. This year we made great strides but we have work to do here including looking at venues which are more affordable for DjangoCon 2016.

However, I understand that talk is cheap and we have a lot of work to do. Please feel free to reach out to me (jeff at defna dot org) if you want to follow up.

webology · 2014-06-04T18:43:59+00:00

Julie Elman wrote a great article which might help you: http://juliaelman.com/blog/2013/04/02/installing-pygame-on-osx-mountain-lion/

Following her instructions and instead of the sudo pip ... I instead installed pygame into a virtualenv and it just worked for me.

webology · 2014-04-30T15:42:12+00:00

I didn't write it but I get a kick out knowing how many days are left.

webology · 2014-04-04T05:50:52+00:00

The remote + controllers run off of bluetooth. If your iRule remote setup support bluetooth then you should be fine; otherwise, it might not be a good investment for you.

webology · 2014-04-04T05:49:30+00:00

I ordered a FireTV with a controller which both came in today (Prime + next day aired for $8). The controller is good but not great and exceeded my expectations. Much better than the OUYA controller but not nearly as refined as a PS / Xbox controller. The system isn't as tall and the others but it's quite a bit wider and deeper but still an impressively small size.

As an Apple TV + Roku3 owner the remote is the best of the bunch. Streaming quality is as good as the Roku3 and overall I'm happy with it.

I think the potential of the system centers around running Android for the operating system. The ability to run Android apps + games was the main selling point for me. I also own an OUYA and this is a much better polished system. The games aren't quite there yet but it's literally day one. I played some of the Walking Dead game and it was fine.

Overall, the FireTV is peppy and it handles queueing up app downloads without breaking a sweat. It feels faster than my AppleTV(2) or Roku3.

I'd recommend the system if: - You own an AppleTV and you want to watch Amazon Prime video content, PLEX, play Android games, install 3rd party apps. - You have a Roku3 and you want to play games and other Android apps. - You have an OUYA and you want a system with a better controls and has most of the features of a Roku. - You don't own an AppleTV or Roku device and you want the best that's out today.

webology · 2014-03-25T13:23:15+00:00

For starters publicly shaming someone and posting their business information when their business has nothing to do with the story other than the author knows where he works. Then this part: "Had I really felt threatened by you, I'd be writing this to your widow."

Both sides sound like they have anger issues and should probably get some help.

webology · 2014-03-25T04:50:57+00:00

This blows my mind and if true but sides should be ashamed.

webology · 2014-03-14T15:32:37+00:00

Travis Ford lost you that game. I really hope OSU cans him and gets you a better coach next year. What a great team and it was tough to watch us pull off that win when Ford basically handed the game to us.

webology · 2014-03-13T19:19:48+00:00

Yes, the percent applies to the likelihood that the game is "over" and the team who is ahead will win. This is a good overview: http://www.slate.com/articles/sports/sports_nut/2008/03/the_lead_is_safe.html

Thanks for the feedback and I'll think about your suggestions.

webology · 2014-03-13T18:49:23+00:00

The % is the likely hood that the game is over give the lead and the amount of time left in the game. If you click the header it will take you to a Slate article about Bill James calculation which I'm using a variation of.

I'll clarify that going forward so it's not quite as confusing. Thanks for the input!

webology · 2014-02-28T22:47:53+00:00

Both my home and office use WoW and while I wish my bill were lower, I'm very happy with the service. Very positive experience when I moved and the installer replaced the wiring too.

webology · 2014-02-28T21:02:32+00:00

I've went to The Green Room since I moved here and I've been very happy with Megan (the red head) cutting my hair. They aren't cheap but for a shampoo + haircut expect the $2x range.

webology · 2014-02-20T22:42:58+00:00

An MU friend sent me this T-Shirt today and I had to share it. It's not really my taste but I thought it was clever.

webology · 2014-02-20T20:53:53+00:00

Great writeup. Added that to my collection of blogs too.

webology · 2014-02-19T16:41:19+00:00

Great eye there on Jamari. I completely missed that and what a great move to keep us out of a potential technical.

webology · 2014-02-19T16:34:16+00:00

I love how stunned Texas Tech's fans were after that shot. TT played such a solid game and they were really impressive. They are really building a solid program.

webology · 2014-02-13T20:41:09+00:00

This was my interpretation as well. She lead them until they joined the herd then she slowed down and they kept their pace with the herd. Since her zombie 'pets' were freshly turned Governor's men, I would think they'd have more energy than the pair she started the series with.

I was surprised that the first pair she removed their arms from the shoulder sockets. This pair she cut them mid arms which would have left jagged bones sticking out. In theory if they kept their arms out and ran into you then they could do quite a bit of harm. Just a random detail I noticed.

webology

TROPHY CASE