maddog

Last was maddog's keynote. It was more or less the same one from Ohio Linuxfest, with a few new developments. He talked about bringing computing to urban poor in Sao Paulo, not just the "African child under the banyan tree."

A primary problem, maddog said, is that there's simply not enough power in these places, so projects like the OLPC will certainly help bring computing to places where power is at a premium. Also, using terminals with LTSP could save a lot of money for hardware, as well as power costs since terminals consume far less power than full computers. Wireless mesh networks will bring the Internet to rural areas, and the Internet will expand with the collective intelligence of those who have yet to experience it.

Dinner

We had dinner at Sushi Dragon, a Japanese steakhouse next to our hotel. It was very decently priced and downright delicious. It was the greatest value of all the places we ate. I think my bill came to a little more than CAD $15, or about USD $16. It was quite tasty and affordable for a sushi joint.

After-party

The afterparty was fantastic. I talked with a number of attendees, both Canadian and American, and even introduced one of the bartenders to a new mixed drink.

I had an in-depth conversation with one Canadian about American politics during the Cold War and the Star Wars (Carter/Reagan, not George Lucas). Most of my American history classes stopped at about 1970, so it's always cool to hear about the years after. Hearing it from a foreign observer, though, is even more interesting.

Home

On our way back to the States, we stopped at Niagra Falls. Jon and Pat had never been there, and loved it. The weather was great, so we could see lots around us. Next year, we're going to spend more time at the Falls and go to the Skylon tower.

Stay tuned for our conclusion on the last page.