Only a few tickets left for OpenSim conference

Press Release:  OpenSimulator Community Conference 2014 Expected to Sell Out, Tickets Still Available

October 16, 2014 – Conference organizers expect the OpenSimulator Community Conference 2014 to be a sell out event this year.  The conference will be held on November 8 and 9, 2014 on an OpenSimulator grid designed specifically for the event, and focuses on the developer and user community creating the OpenSimulator software.

“Registration has been brisk this year,” said conference organizer Chris Collins.  “We have fewer than 100 general admission tickets remaining and they seem to be going quickly.”

The registration page is here.

Recent attendees at an OpenSim Community Conference load test. (Image courtesy Stephen Gasior.)
Recent attendees at an OpenSim Community Conference load test. (Image courtesy Stephen Gasior.)

High Profile Keynote Speakers

The conference features several high profile keynote speakers this year, including Philip Rosedale, CEO of High Fidelity, who will speak about the future of the Metaverse, and Steve LaValle from Oculus Rift, who will discuss the Oculus team’s race to deliver consumer grade virtual reality for mainstream adoption.

In addition, a keynote panel of core OpenSimulator developers will discuss the future of the platform, including the Hypergrid, content licensing and permissions, scalability, and project maturity.  Keynote panelists include Justin Clark-Case, Crista Lopes, Mic Bowman, Oren Hurvitz, Michael Cerquoni, and Melanie Milland.

Philip Rosedale giving a recent presentation about High Fidelity. Click on image for full video.
Philip Rosedale giving a recent presentation about High Fidelity. Click on image for full video.

Volunteers, Content Donations Still Needed

Conference organizers have also asked members of the OpenSimulator community to consider volunteering for the conference or making donations of content to help showcase the features and possibilities of the OpenSimulator platform.

“We still need volunteers to help with audience assistance and greeting, so we encourage experienced OpenSimulator users to sign up to be a volunteer,” said Collins.  “We also hope to give people more avatar choices this year, so we appreciate donations of avatar components or other content that can be shared with conference attendees.”

New Learning Lab Track Gives Hands-On Experience

The Learning Lab track is a new addition to the conference schedule this year, featuring hands-on learning sessions to help content developers, teachers, and others learn how to design and create engaging content in the OpenSimulator platform.

Topics in the Learning Lab include developing interactive fiction and gamification components for community building, importing and exporting content from other platforms, and using OpenSimulator for K-12 education.

“The conference is a great introduction to OpenSimulator for those who aren’t familiar with it,” said Collins, “and we hope experienced OpenSimulator users will come away with new tools and practical knowledge to continue to grow the platform.”

Registration for the virtual OpenSimulator Community Conference is free and open to the public.  The conference will also be livestreamed through UStream.

For more information please see the conference website at conference.opensimulator.org.

About OpenSimulator

OpenSimulator is an open-source platform that supports the creation of collaborative, immersive, distributed and social 3D virtual environments over the Internet. OpenSimulator software is now the basis for the emerging metaverse of many “grids” or worlds of varying sizes and purposes.

About AvaCon

AvaCon, Inc. is a 501(c)(3) non-profit organization dedicated to promoting the growth, enhancement, and development of the metaverse, virtual worlds, augmented reality, and 3D immersive and virtual spaces. AvaCon holds conventions and meetings to promote educational and scientific inquiry into these spaces, and to support organized fan activities, including performances, lectures, art, music, machinima, and much more. AvaCon’s primary goal is to connect and support the diverse communities and practitioners involved in co-creating and using virtual worlds, and to educate the public and their constituents about the emerging ecosystem of technologies broadly known as the metaverse.

About the Overte Foundation

The Overte Foundation is a non-profit organization that manages contribution agreements for the OpenSimulator project.  In the future, it will also act to promote and support both OpenSimulator and the wider open-source 3D virtual environment ecosystem.

About High Fidelity

High Fidelity, Inc. powers inter-connected virtual worlds, using new hardware devices to catalyze entirely new kinds of interactions between avatars. Our open source software architecture enables unlimited scalability of both content and audience.