Last week someone sent me an article about the “dueling” MySQL conferences from IOUG and O’Reilly. On the one hand, I find it really entertaining that there’s a perception that, three years ago, when the Sun acquisition wasn’t even on the radar, we purposefully scheduled our conferences against each other in anticipation of this moment. If we had a crystal ball or the ability to see the future that well, I would have picked better lottery numbers three weeks ago.
The sad part is all the focus is placed on a hypothetical negative, and it overshadows the real point of the article – that a collection of MySQL community supporters are pooling their time and effort to make sure the community stays strong. I’m lucky enough to get to work with the MySQL Council, and so I know that working on anything related to MySQL is about collaboration. It’s about providing access. If the major problem facing a community is that they’re getting too much support, what a problem to have.
This kind of accessibility is the driving philosophy behind open source, so let’s not think of this as a duel; it’s about having choices. Look at the speakers, the locations, and the supporting offerings (to learn more about the different events, try the OurSQL podcast). If you’re confused, know that you have resources, like the Council volunteers. We have Council members presenting at both conferences, so I think you’ll get a straight answer.
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