• Posted on June 13th, 2009

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    Community Leadership Summit 2009 Update

    A while back I announced the Community Leadership Summit 2009 in San Jose on the 18th and 19th July 2009. Well, I think it is time for lil’ update on what is shaping up to be a rocking event.

    The aim of the summit is get community managers, leaders and organizers together to discuss, debate and share ideas on building great community in a vendor-neutral environment. The event is entirely free (although I ask everyone to go and register and it takes place the weekend immediately before OSCON, in the same venue: the San Jose McEnery Convention Center. Details of how to get there are here.

    Since I announced the event, the response has been stunning and over 150 people have registered with a fantastic and diverse range of contributors signed up to attend. You can see this awesome list of attendees here.

    The the aim and purpose of the event to provide an open, transparent and vendor-neutral environment for discussion, and I have been really keen to make sure this is an unconference (an event in which an empty schedule is available at the start of the event, and attendees can go and add topics). The reason for this is to ensure the sessions are as diverse as possible and not merely what I think we should discuss. The openness of the scheduling means that anyone can add a session that they think would be of interest to the other attendees.

    If you are coming along and interested in running a session, feel free to discuss it on this wiki page with the other attendees: you may find some other people who would like to help with the session. Speaking of the wiki, we also have rideshare, roomshare and other pages springing up to make attending the event as easy and enjoyable as possible.

    I have another update on the event half-penned, but I will send that over in the coming week. Stay tuned, and go and register! I hope to see you there!

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  • Posted on June 12th, 2009

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    Art Of Community Reviews Galore!

    Recently I have been sending The Art Of Community manuscript out to a number of people who are well respected in various communities to get there feedback on the completed book. With the content complete and the only changes being tiny typo fixes, now has been the idea time to gather this feedback. How was the response? Well, I am stunned, see for yourself:


    “The Internet provides the potential to separate us into a cacophony of discordant voices or to congregate us as purpose-driven communities. Jono Bacon, in his insightful The Art of Community, teaches the latter path, detailing the principles of successful community-building in a way that will appeal to both neophyte and expert alike. Given the increasingly critical role of community managers in the technology industry and beyond, The Art of Community should find a place on any businessperson’s bookshelf, not to mention that of the PTA president, book club organizer, or union activist. Yes, it’s that good”.

    — Matt Asay, Alfresco and C|NET


    “Jono Bacon truly understands communities–and more importantly, how to build communities that thrive. This is the definitive guidebook to building successful communities–definitive because it is based on Jono’s extensive experience as community manager for Ubuntu, a product that inspires an Apple-esque devotion in very large part because of its vast and dedicated community. For developers and entrepreneurs who want to learn how to tap into the power of community, as Ubuntu has done so masterfully, this book is a must-read”.

    — Ian Murdock, founder of Debian and Vice President of Emerging Platforms at Sun


    “In the age of participation, there is no better tour guide than Jono Bacon. The Art of Community teaches leaders how to increase collaboration and authenticity to build belonging. This isn’t just for technology leaders; anyone who wants to harness community for their cause should read this book.”

    — Amanda McPherson, The Linux Foundation


    “In Art of Community, Jono “Community” Bacon once again shows that his nom de guerre is apropos. He breaks down the soft science of community management in a way few others could. Jono fundamentally understands the soft science that is community management. With his trademark British humor, he deftly explores the intricacies and subtleties of his trade, while weaving a story that is both entertaining and informative. In The Art of Community, Jono combines his deep knowledge of community with his trademark British humor. The result is both informative and entertaining, and is a must read for those looking to better understand the soft science that is community management”.

    — Jeremy Garcia, Founder of LinuxQuestions.org


    “Jono Bacon, in The Art of Community, takes you on a personal journey to the heart of what it takes to have and become part of a productive and well-oiled community”.

    — Amber Graner, Ubuntu Community Member

    Wow.

    If you point your beady eyes to the top of the website, you will see a new Reviews link where I will be gathering these reviews of the book.

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  • Posted on June 9th, 2009

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    First Copy-Edit Complete

    Quick update!

    Today I was booked off work to complete the first copy-edit of The Art of Community. What this mean’t for me is that I have just read the whole book again. I am pleased to report that it is looking good!

    Now the chapters are back with my copy-editor and then they head over to production ready to be professionally type-set. At this point we will start seeing the content look like a “real book”. Exciting times!

    More news soon!

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  • Posted on June 5th, 2009

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    Leo Laporte Confirmed To Write The AoC Foreword

    Ladies and gents, I am pleased to confirm that Leo Laporte has been confirmed as the author of the foreward for the The Art of Community. Recently I have been joining Leo Laporte and Randal Schwartz on FLOSSWeekly as a presenter, and Leo confirmed live on air a few days back that would be “honoured to write the foreward for The Art of Community”.

    Leo has created, hosted, and contributed to a number of technology-related broadcasting projects. He created and co-hosted Dvorak On Computers in January 1991 (co-hosted with computer pundit John Dvorak), and hosted Laporte On Computers on KGO Radio and KSFO in San Francisco. In addition, Leo also hosted Internet! on PBS, and The Personal Computing Show on CNBC. In 1997 he earned an Emmy Award for his work on MSNBC’s The Site, a daily Monday through Saturday hour-long newsmagazine he helped create and appeared on in the role of a computer-generated character named Dev Null. In 1998, he created and co-hosted The Screen Savers and the original version of Call for Help on the cable and satellite network ZDTV (later TechTV). Leo was the host of the daily television show The Lab with Leo Laporte, recorded in Vancouver, Canada. He also hosts a weekend technology-oriented talk radio program show titled Leo Laporte: The Tech Guy. The show, once an exclusive to KFI AM 640 (Los Angeles), is now syndicated on more than 60 North American radio stations through Premiere Radio Networks, and on XM Satellite Radio. Leo appears semi-regularly on Showbiz Tonight, Live with Regis and Kelly, World News Now, and briefly with Bill Handel on Friday mornings on KFI. He has also been a guest technology expert on numerous talk radio programs in local markets across the U.S. and Canada.

    These days Leo currently owns and operates a netcast network, TWiT.tv. The name is derived from the network’s award winning, flagship podcast This WEEK in TECH, or TWiT, which is hosted by Leo along with a rotating panel of guests usually made up of several other former TechTV employees. This show remains one of the most popular podcasts on iTunes and other podcast subscription services, as evidenced by winning an award at the November 2005 Podcasting Expo in California for the year’s best podcast and by its over 280,000 weekly downloads. Some of his other netcasts include Security Now! with Steve Gibson, MacBreak and MacBreak Weekly, both hosted in a fashion similar to TWiT, The Daily Giz Wiz with Dick DeBartolo, Munchcast with Cammy Blackstone, Windows Weekly with Paul Thurrott, FLOSS Weekly, net@nite with Amber MacArthur, and Roz Rows The Pacific (launched June 3, 2008).

    As part of this work Leo has created a remarkable community around his broadcasting. Known as the TWiT Army, Leo has worked hard to build a loyal following and provided many of the resources required to foster and grow that community. I am confident that his experience, wit and commentary on community will make for a fantastic foreword for The Art of Community.

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  • Posted on June 5th, 2009

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    Update-a-licious

    Well folks I just wanted to give you a quick update on the book. Things have been a little quiet on the website as I have spent the last few weeks in Barcelona with work, and the few weeks before that was preparing for said work trip. Thankfully, I am back now and I can let you know where things stand.

    Well, on the flight over to Barcelona I wrapped up the draft manuscript for The Art of Community! With two fully-charged batteries, plenty of coffee and virtually no legroom I ploughed on to finish merging in the awesome comments from my reviewers, and when I landed I sent the full book off to O’Reilly. A few glasses were chinked that night, I can assure you!

    The following few weeks (while I was on the work trip) was fairly quiet on my end as the book had been sent off to the copy-editors for a detailed word-by-word check. This is being done by one Genevieve d’Entremont, complete with awesome film-noir name and a flair for finding typos and tightening sentence structure. She sent me back all the chapters a few days ago and I have started reading the entire book again and tending to her comments. I have also booked tomorrow, Monday and Tuesday off work to focus on these copy-edits and I expect to have them all completed by Tuesday. At that point the book will be basically complete from my side and will then go off to the typesetters to make it look purty.

    So folks, that is where we stand right now. I also just want to say a huge thanks to all the support you have been giving me on here and Twitter / identi.ca: you are all awesome! And thanks to all of you who have pre-ordered from Amazon for supporting the project!

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  • Posted on May 15th, 2009

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    Amazon Applies Discounts

    Thanks to everyone who has already pre-ordered The Art Of Community on Amazon so far. I am pleased to report that thanks to your wonderful folks, Amazon have applied some discounts to the book in their different international stores. This is making The Art Of Community and the ability for people to support the project even more accessible to communities. Thanks, everyone!

    So, the current prices stand as:

    Thanks everyone for your continued support, and don’t forget to throw a button on your website!

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  • Posted on May 14th, 2009

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    Art Of Community on Kindle?

    A lot of people have been asking me if The Art Of Community will be available for the Amazon Kindle. I asked O’Reilly and there is a reasonable likelihood it will, but no confirmation yet. So, Kindle fans, is that the end of the story? Well, no…

    Its time to vote with your feet. Or rather, your mouse.

    Amazon have a feature that allows you to share your desire to see a given title on Kindle. Its simple: you click the link, and they let the publisher know.

    So, if you want to see The Art Of Community available on the Kindle: click here. Thanks!

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  • Posted on May 12th, 2009

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    First Review Of The Art Of Community Draft

    Amber Graner gained press attention for her adventure of joining the Open Source community and writing a series of frank and to-the-point blog entries sharing her experience. Based upon her honesty and passion for learning about community, I was keen to ask her to review the book and offer some comments on the content. Well, she has just written up a rather nice blog entry:

    Jono Bacon’s latest book, The Art of Community - ROCKS!

    A few weeks ago I was given the awesome opportunity to review The Art of Community. I was surprised, excited, and humbled. However, as I read each chapter I realized that whether it is an Open Source Community, a Parent Teacher Group, or a Church Group, or your favorite book club, this book has something for you. Communities are Communities!

    Some people know, I am new to both the Ubuntu and Open Source communities, yet through my life I have had opportunities to be part of other communities and I wish I had The Art of Community then. My participation and learning process would have been a bit easier. However, my learning process just got a little smoother.

    The Art of Community will take you to the heart of what it takes to be part of, govern, deal with conflict and even what to look for in a community manager. Each chapter flows into the next, yet if you want to focus on a single topic, such as Creating Buzz or Events, each chapter will work well as a stand-alone guide.

    The Art of Community will take you, as it did me, on your own personal journey through the most common themes of community such as “Where do I start?” “What do I do now that I am part of a community?” “How do I plan an event?” “I have a problem, now what?” “I want to start a team how do I?” - just to name of few. The Art of Community answers these questions and much, much, more.

    Ready for the definitive community howto book? Then The Art of Community is for you. So what are you waiting for order now. Click here. If you pre-order don’t forget to add the “I have pre-ordered” to your websites, and blogs!

    I just wanted to give you a hint at what to expect. I found each chapter to be a trigger for all sorts of ideas. The wheels are turning and smoke is coming out of my ears. Ok, there is no smoke, but I was overwhelmed out the amount of information that Jono has assembled into this book. I hope you will find it as exciting and useful as I have and will continue to! Enjoy!

    Amber is one of the few people to have read the full draft of the book cover to cover, and as such, this is the very first review. Thanks so much for your kind words, Amber!

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  • Posted on May 9th, 2009

    Written by Jono Bacon

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    Website Buttons Ahoy!

    Kings and queens of the Internet, I have just put online a bunch of website buttons for spreading the word about The Art Of Community. You can go and see them over on this page.

    As an example, you can put this lovely specimen on your website:

    Art Of Community Website Button

    with the following code:

    <a href=”http://www.artofcommunityonline.org/”><img src=”http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3597/3516061651_8910ba25c9_m.jpg” alt=”Art Of Community”></a>

    I would love to hear if you put it on your website, so do let the rest of us know in the comments on this blog entry. Thanks, folks!

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  • Posted on May 8th, 2009

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    Website Feedback Needed!

    As we build to the launch of The Art Of Community, I am really keen to make the most out of artofcommunityonline.org. I am excited about the opportunity of not only building the website into a more expansive information portal about the book, but to also provide discussion and facilities about community management, leadership and growth in general. As such, I am looking for your feedback.

    What would you like to see on this site? What features and facilities would you find useful? What would you like to see regarding the book, and what regarding general community management topics?

    Feel free to throw some ideas in this general direction and lets see what I can provide for the Art Of Community community. Thanks, folks!

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