Open Source and Open Innovation with whurley

Cody Marx Bailey on BIL Vs. TED

Cody Marx Bailey of BIL

Web strategist and user interface expert Cody Marx Bailey works on many fronts to bring the technology community together in creative ways. He started a robust Refresh group, produced the highly successful BarCampTexas, and cofounded the BIL conference – an open, self-organizing, emergent, and anarchic science and technology conference that follows the elite TED conference in Monterey, California. I ask Cody Marx Bailey, Co-founder of BIL, about BIL vs. TED, and Cody ask me about my expectations for my first BIL conference.

(whurley) TED vs. BIL, what’s the real story here?
I don’t think it’s really an adversarial thing.  I don’t think they are competing as much as they are complimentary.  I don’t think any of the BIL participants would fault anyone, including myself, for attending TED.  In fact we appreciate, and in some ways recruit, TEDsters to co-attend.  We wanted to hold an open version, in the spirit of TED, but instead of using a traditional conference structure, we essentially took what we knew from BarCamp (and other Camps) and applied it to TED.

How BIL got started is an interesting story. I had the idea at the end of November, 2007 to go out to Monterey, CA during the TED Conference.  I asked a few friends, namely Bill Erickson and Todd Huffman, if they wanted to go out there with me and sorta crash TED.  We had originally planned to simply hang out at the bars and restaurants in Monterey and rub elbows with the TEDsters we knew would be there.

Slowly we recruited more and more folks to make the pilgrimage. By the end of December, we realized we’d struck a chord. We knew what we would be doing during the nights, but hadn’t really accounted for the days. Once the group approached thirty or so, the idea of having our own unconference emerged. We snapped into action because the idea just seemed natural.

Over the next month, we recruited speakers, sponsors, and natural organizers. A group of folks sort of gelled to help plan, spread, and foster the conference. There wasn’t anyone in charge, though some of us graciously accepted more responsibility.

We had to cap attendance at 225 people due to facility capacity. We would have probably had another 150 if it wasn’t posted on the wiki to stay home and wait till next year.

This year I know there will be some great speakers [link to speakers], and the folks who have confirmed their attendance are simply amazing. The facility, Cal State University Long Beach, is absolutely wonderful for BIL. The website has been upgraded to better serve the growing needs of the group. We’re hoping we can really explore the upper limits of the unconference structure. So far, so good.

(Cody) What do you expect from BIL as a first time speaker/attendee?
Now why didn’t I see that coming? I have to be blunt: in and out, nobody gets hurt.

Seriously, hearing about BIL from you and the community set astronomical expectations.  Then I read the list of last year’s speakers and realized the bar would be pretty high for me as well.

I’m revved up for the talks, especially “The Evils of Cloud Computing, Data Portability & Single Sign On” and “State of Humanity+.”  Both intrigue.  The closer we get, the more I get that same feeling Raven and I had when we started BarCampAustin in ’06.

As a speaker, I’m shooting for “Wow!”   My presentation, “15 Minutes with an Evil Genius,” is unscripted.  I create the presentation live, with the audience, and deliver it all in the 15 minutes I’m allotted.  Hopefully folks leave impressed and armed with something they can use.