The PyCon organizers are excited to announce the start of the PyCon 2010 planning process! Even more importantly, we're looking for motivated local groups to spearhead this volunteer-run, community-based conference. In years past, the locale for the next year was arranged about a year in advance. That worked while we were a smaller conference with many venues to choose from. PyCon 2008, to be held soon in the Chicago area, has over 950 registered attendees at this time. That is over one and a half times the number of attendees from just the year before! We're excited to see PyCon grow, but it also means that how we plan PyCon needs to change just a little bit. The first change is a change in the timeline. Starting with PyCon 2010, we're aiming to begin planning two years ahead. To help us do that, PyCon 2009 will also be held in the Chicago area, at the same venue as 2008. The second change is that the bid process will not be as detail-heavy and will not demand as much initial work by local groups. Instead, we're focusing on the heart and soul of PyCon: the community of volunteers -- we're looking to find excited and committed groups who want to be the backbone of PyCon 2010. The details will be worked out in a collaborative process, with local groups working in conjunction the volunteer PyCon organizers and the Python Software Foundation's Conference Committee. Still interested? Curious? Do you want PyCon 2010 hosted in your area? Here's what to do: • Form a group of people interested in helping with the conference planning. • If you're attending PyCon 2008, join us for a kick-off meeting over lunch on Saturday, March 15th. • Make sure at least one person from your group is on the PyCon organizer's list[1] and, as soon as possible, announce your interest in submitting a bid on the list. This process should be viewed as cooperative -- we're here to help and encourage any group that wants to take on hosting PyCon. • Finally, assemble your official bid, referring to the PyCon Bid Guidelines [2] for information and deadlines and submit it to the PyCon organizer's list before the deadline listed in the PyCon Bid Guidelines. Posting your bid to a publicly viewable website wouldn't be a bad idea either... If you have any questions or need any help, feel free to email the organizer's list and ask away! [1] http://mail.python.org/mailman/listinfo/pycon-organizers [2] http://wiki.python.org/moin/PyConPlanning/BidRequirements