vancouver fashion and portrait photography

It's really amazing when the marriage between open source technology and the evil empire of OS systems can happen for the sake of a better digital future. This is precisely the inspiration behind Microsoft's annual Canadian cross-platform conference Make Web Not War.

In an effort to end the idea that open source technology is a dead-end to software developers, this multi-day event will bring together some of the best technologies to the table with web developers with a desired outcome of collaboration. If you believe in the future of the internet and open source community values, Make Web Not War is an event not to be missed.

This annual conference definitely highlights the fact that open source technology can be developed for any platform. Last year's conference was held in Montreal and included some dynamic conversations in sessions with topics covering building in HTML5, cross-platform solutions for social media and killer Wordpress site building techniques. The keynote speaker of last year's event was Joel Perras, the core developer of CakePHP. Montreal was such a huge success that they expanded the conference to two days for its return to Vancouver in 2011.

In the past the company Microsoft has been viewed as a vilified 'evil empire' that depicts them to be unyielding to the changing environment of the internet today. The Make Web Not War conference is a big effort to move from that reputation and directly involve Micorsoft in parts of the web traditionally considered as hostile territory. The conference schedule will include interactive sessions with on-site skill sharing, keynote speakers, panels from various technologists, a networking lounge for connecting with other attendees plus time for community collaboration with Microsoft's commercial software, PHP on Windows, Azure cloud and the Microsoft web platform.

For those with a competing heart, during the Make Web Not War event there will also be a very special coding competition called Code Your Art Out. Filed under the conference's manifesto that 'Web is Art', this competition will be a healthy does of creativity, open source coding and innovative nature. Also the day before the conference, as part of Vancouver Open Source Week and sponsored by Make Web Not War, there is a scheduled event called Wordcamp:Developers. This two-track focus conference will focus on discussions around development in the open-source software Wordpress. This event will also hold a special Wordpress Un-Conference which will be a great place for community supported discussions around design and open sharing.

It is very exciting that the Make Web Not War conference will be held in Vancouver this year. Our city has a thriving tech community that is founded on the belief of open sharing with many companies developing from that mindset and producing viable applications/software that the rest of the world uses on a daily basis.

The philosophy of this conference reinforces the values of the changing face of the internet which is to create and share. The community organizers had a special event held at Public Lounge last night that was a pre-conference meet-up. Active members of the Vancouver tech community gathered to learn more information about the conference, its values and to network for further connections at the May event.

The web is art for all of us who are sharing our intimate details of our lives. Whether it is through photos, videos, blog posts or tweets, we are communicating and collaborating with our thoughts and emotions. This movement can be seen as trivialized but in reality it is a collective consciousness of info and creativity. When you contribute your little corner of the web, whether it be a blog or a personal project, you are contributing to the collective growth of this commons. Make Web Not War is all about the growth of this common space.

Enjoy more photos from the Make Web Not War pre-conference meetup:

'Web is Art' promotional material for the conference depicts a Mona Lisa made entirely of computer code.

This lucky geek won an Xbox Kinect in the event's raffle! So jealous. :)

The Public Lounge had some yummy appetizers for all of the attendees to nibble on.

We are all Web Not War-riors.

Awesome stickers that stated great affirmatioms. I make awesome websites!

Geeks love the web, technology and meat!

At the pre-conference party: making nametags, eating yummy food and networking with other geeks interested in Make Web Not War.

There were plenty of sharpies and stickers add flare to the boring nametags. This is one attendee's creative decorating!

The raffle drawing was in full effect. Microsofts's Julia Stowell was calling out the winners!

Golden ticket to the Tech Community Get Together!

We have a winner!

At the pre-conference party: geeks relaxing; yummy food and Lydia Male addressing the party attendees! 

Green is the new black. Another fun sticker: I develop until I turn green!

A question and answer session for all topics related to the Make Web Not War conference.

It was great to have members of Vancouver's tech community all present at the pre-conference party.

Swag bags for those who wanted one.

Morten Rand-Hendriksen spoke to the crowd about open source technology.

Another shot of the computer code Mona Lisa. The web truly is art.

A crowd gathered to hear Julia Stowell speak about the upcoming conference.

Happy geeks!

Wear your pride: I make web not war! stickers

We all have standards. Now you can wear them! :) 

Make sure to save the dates May 6-7 in your calender for the Make Web Not War conference. :)

More Information:

Make Web Not War 2011 Registration

Make Web Not War 2011 on Techvibes

Make Web Not War Twitter

Make Web Not War Facebook Group

#webnotwar hashtag