WordCamp Sydney, July 21-22 – Hope I See You There!

WordCamps are happening all over the world. There are 27 scheduled for the second half of this year according to the WordCamp Central site. So what are they, and why should you attend?

What Is a WordCamp Anyway?

WordCamps are conferences focussed on WordPress. They’re organised by the community, often based around local WordPress meet ups, and cater to anyone who has an interest in WordPress. They usually have a schedule of presentations by speakers on WordPress-related topics, and often have expert panels, or hands-on sessions too.

Casual WordPress users, people with businesses that rely on WordPress, web designers, web developers, even WordPress core developers are all welcome to attend and even speak at WordCamps. It’s all about getting together, sharing knowledge and experience, and networking with other WordPress enthusiasts.

Ok, So Why Should I Go Along?

You mean besides to share knowledge, learn from experts, learn from users, and generally have fun together? Well I guess if you’re not into all that, you might just go along to see what everyone else is doing. Many great ideas in the WordPress community, even within WordPress core itself, started as a discussion at a WordCamp. Exciting things happen at WordCamps, so why wouldn’t you want to go along!

There’s a WordCamp Sydney 2012. What’s Happening There?

WordCamp Sydney 2012 is less than two weeks away, and the line-up is looking pretty amazing! So far I count 20 presentations, and the vast majority are local talent. Here are a few presentations I’m particularly looking forward to:

• The Future of WordPress – Brent Shepherd
• What Multisite Can Do For You – Anthony Cole
• Demystifying Custom Post Types and Taxonomies – Tracey Kemp
• TurboPress: The High Performance Guide to WordPress – Jeff Waugh
• How to Get Paid What You’re Worth – Troy Dean
• eLearning games, powered by WordPress – Dan Milward
• Child Theming – Chris Aprea (one of our authors!)
• The Plugin Spectacular – Tony Consentino

There are even more, including an expert panel on WordPress Theme Frameworks!

That Line Up Looks Amazing! Are You Going?

I certainly am, are you? If you’re going along to WordCamp Sydney, come find me and say hello. I’m more than happy to have a chat about all things WordPress. In fact, that’s why I’m going!

If you’ll be in the Sydney area on the weekend of July 21 and 22 this year, make sure you grab yourself a ticket and come to WordCamp Sydney. Having been along to several WordCamps myself, I can honestly say that if I could attend every WordCamp in the world, I would. Networking and chatting with other WordPress developers and users is such a boost to your work life, and a whole bunch of fun too!

Are you coming along to WordCamp Sydney? Have you attended a WordCamp in your area? Let us know in the comments, and tell us what you love about WordCamps.