One of the smartest presenters I ever met

One of the smartest presenters I ever met
Originally uploaded by thomaswanhoff

I couldn't catch her name, but she was one of the smartest persons I ever met on a Barcamp. Her talk at Barcamp Mekong in Can Tho, Vietnam, was about being an active student. Not only that she presented in fluent English, she did not use a single powerpoint, instead she draw a mindmap during her speech. In her hands some notes, where she took a look from time to time, but mostly she spoke free.
The topic was, in summary, that students should find their own way of learning and researching. She herself, she said, discovered the way of speed reading while browsing the internet, and she also discovered how to use mindmaps.
Maybe because I am a huge fan of mindmaps I was so excited. It also shows, that Barcamps even in remote areas like Can Tho are always full of surprises.
Although this Barcamp was more for students than developers, I do not regret to took the trip. It was exciting, I learned a lot, mainly about other people and their skills, but also about traditional music in the south.
Thanks to the organizers, Mario and Hong Phuc, for doing a great job, and also thanks to APC school and the volunteers.

Public live blogging from Barcamp Mekong in Can Tho

Barcamp Mekong aka Barcamp Can Tho

Vietnam is getting its third location for a Barcamp (after Hanoi and Saigon), this time further south in Can Tho, the capital of the Mekong Delta. With German efficiency and Vietnamese enthusiasm Hong Phuc, Mario and their team organized the Barcamp for May the 8th an the Can Tho University.

Form the website:

Good topics are topics you are passionate about. Previous Barcamps in Vietnam were held in Hanoi and Ho Chi Minh City with an incredible range of topics. We feel that the “unconference” style of Barcamps are a great chance to share and learn and bring the community of the Mekong Delta together. Some of the topics we would like to see are:

Copyrights and Creative Commons for education
Making educational videos
Google Maps and Google Earth in education
Collaborative tools, microblogging tools, classroom polling tools
Virtual Worlds in education
Making better presentations
Digital Photography
Making themes and setting up CMS like Joomla, Drupal and Wordpress
Storytelling
Ideas on using social networks with students
Finding the right job
Marketing in Vietnam
The “camp” however, is not restricted to these topics and we encourage everyone to suggest topics and lead sessions. We want to invite the wider community in the Mekong Delta to participate.

Together with my buddy Dylan I will do a iPad presentation. Expect a lot of fun!

Leaving for Barcamp Phnom Penh

It's one of the most outstanding tech events in South East Asia and the organizer can be proud to make it the second time. Hope to see a lot of people on Barcamp Phnom Penh on the coming weekend.

Barcamp Saigon Part I

Barcamp Saigon Part II

Barcamp Saigon Video Part III

Barcamp Saigon - for those who wanna organise

I just set up a google group for the Barcamp Saigon Organizers, so if you wanna join...

 

 
 
 

 barcamp saigon organizers
 
 

 Visit this group
 

We are still lokking for a venua as well as a catering service.. any ideas?

Barcamp Phnom Penh Review - Sexy girls in Cambodia and cheap PCs

I am still moved by the Barcamp Phnom Penh on Saturday. It was such an impressing event, I never thought it will come true when we talked about a Barcamppp back in 2007 for the first time. But thanks to Tharum, Ramana and Viirak, it became reality.

Some impressions:



Some thoughts:
We had some discussions about setting some speakers on the agenda, but then we decided to start blank - and it worked. That means at the end, that the participants accepted the concept of a un-conference - which is a huge step in a country like Cambodia. And it was a surprise that a high ranking government official were there the whole day and said thank you tothe organizers.

We also decided to offer two different places for talks, although we had concerns that most Cambodians are used to listen to one speaker instead of planning their own schedule. But it worked too and I am confident that for the next Barcamp much more Garden-locations and small rooms would be fine.

The range of topics was big, and that's what a Barcamp is about. From a Microsoft Commercial to How to date a Cambodian girl, there were a lot of different and even controversial topics.

That leads me to the last point: There was a discussion during the Cambodian girl dating session (which was kind of a hommage to Bangkok Barcamp), when one Cambodian girl asked, why we were talking about dating instead of serious problems the country is still suffering from.

Beside the fact, that Barcamp is also about fun, the point is cultural exchange. The dating topic is not a Cambodian topic, it pops up always on conferences. The cultural point is about the public relations between boys and girls. Cambodians are still shy and very cautions, especially girls. "It's our culture", they say. On the other hand, in every advertising, on live concerts or when they dress up, it's about looking sexy. So there is a gap between the cultural tradition, their own feelings and what maybe the (male) public is expecting.

There will be a change for Cambodian women, and I am confident, after they will be much stronger. They will dress sexy if they want, (and not if they don't want), but also kiss a boy in public. It's then a girls own decision and not a so called cultural thing anymore.

I know, that this topic is controversial, and I like to start a discussion about the role of Cambodian girls in the Khmer society. Thats why I choosed this headline, knowing that it will attract people as well as search enginge :-)

Social Advertising: Barcamp Phnom Penh

Tech enthusiasts to host innovative BarCamp gathering

PHNOM PENH – Bloggers and technology enthusiasts will hold the first annual BarCamp Phnom Penh on September 20, a conference many have termed in reverse an "unconference." Over 150 technology aficionados from the region will attend.

BarCamp, an innovative "impromptu" gathering that began in 2005 in Palo Alto, California, helps "open source" enthusiasts share information about technology in an informal setting. The idea quickly spread from California to the rest of the world, arriving in Bangkok in January 2008 and now in Phnom Penh.

"We hope to foster more innovative ways of thinking in Cambodia," said Tharum Bun, this year's BarCamp organizer. "It's all about breaking down the barriers we have in traditional conferences, where people show up and just listen to presentations. We want to think outside of the box."

Anyone can show up to BarCamp and present a topic, Bun said. Past topics in other countries have ranged from blogging techniques to "How to Date a Japanese Girl."

"After all the hardship our country has experienced, we're trying to bring Cambodia into a new age of innovation and technology," he said.

Representatives from Microsoft and Yahoo! are expected to attend, attracting an unprecedented level of attention into Cambodia for its growing technological revolution.

In August 2007, the Cloggers team (short for "Cambodian bloggers") hosted the Cloggers Summit, a gathering of over 200 individuals who listened and presented on issues of communication and technology in the once war-torn country.

BarCamp's organizers consider the conference to be follow-up to the Cloggers Summit.

EVENT INFORMATION

Where: Cambodia-Japan Cooperation Center (CJCC)

Institute of Foreign Languages, Royal University of Phnom Penh
Russian Confederation Blvd., Khan Toul Kork, Phnom Penh, Cambodia.

When: September 20, 2008, 9:00am - 5:00pm

For more information, visit http://www.barcampphnompenh.org/

BarCamp Saigon in November

Who ever made the decision, the BarCamp Saigon seems to be on November 15th. Location to be announced. There is a Barcamp-Wiki-Page available with latest informations as well as a facebook group named BarCamp Saigon. If you interested, just join us..