Holding a Workshop

Workshops we have already run

• https://pretalx.com/oe-workshop-2020/
• https://pretalx.com/openembedded-workshop-2023/

Setting up the Call for Participation

We use Pretalx for managing the CFP and scheduling process. As of October 2023, they offer up to a 25% discount for community organizations who are not trying to make a large profit. Setup the workshop in pretalx, then email sales and ask for the discount information.

Once you have the discount code, the billing page should show a sticker saying 25% discount. Click place binding order and you come to an invoice you can download. EMail the PDF to the SPI treasurer for payment.

For FOSDEM, some people will be submitting to FOSDEM for the larger audience, but once the FOSDEM schedule is published, people with talks that are good for the workshop and not accepted at FOSDEM might want to give it during the workshop. We have had people do talks at both and make changes for the workshop to make it more developer centric. Don't discourage people submitting to both.

Setting up the ticket shop

We use Pretix for tickets.

Finding workshop space

Spaces used:

* Agora used in 2023. We had about 40 people and that was the upper limit for the space. Getting in and out of the building needed a key card, which was a bit of a headache. The location was great, once we found the door, since it is very close to a tram line coming from the center of Brussels. We also plan to use it in 2024, since we know the space and it basically works for us.

For FOSDEM we have used [1] Silversquare to find space.

Setting up the ticket shop

We have a ticket shop with Pretix.

Create a new event and you will have the option to clone an existing shop. This copies most of the information you need and then you need to edit carefully to fix dates and links. Verify the pricing and ticket types. We typically have an early bird price, a regular price and supporter ticket that has the option for the purchaser to set their own price.

Before letting the shop go live, submit a ticket to the SPI treasurer to make sure the paypal linkage is still good. The ticket sales flow directly to avoid routing money through personal accounts. Send an email to treasurer at rt.spi-inc.org so the request can be tracked. You will to make sure the person checking the linkage has an account in our pretix. As of Nov 2023 this is true.

Other details

* Promote via social media
* Remind people via email
* Monitor proposals
* Review proposals
* Create schedule
* Monitor ticket sales