Some Thoughts on BookCamp Toronto 2009

I had the pleasure of attending BookCamp Toronto 2009 this weekend, at the University of Toronto iSchool. Before I get into the more reflective components of this post, I would like to send out a huge thank-you and congratulations to the organizers, team. Hugh McGuire, Mitch Joel, Mark Bertils, Erin Balser, and Alexa Clark, you should all be commended for the work you did. The BookCamp was well organized, and it struck the perfect balance between a large convention and a small, intimate unconference. The sessions were well thought out, and were lead by people who were excellent at striking a balance between giving information and allowing conversations to flow naturally, while remaining on topic.

Easily the biggest topics of conversation were eBooks and DRM, which is not a surprise considering that the theme was the future of books. The publishing industry is in an obvious state of flux, and some suggested they were about seven years behind the music industry, which is not really a great place to be.  The discussions were very balanced, some people were for DRM, some were against it, and some were against it, but hated it on principle, considering it a necessary evil.  There was a lot of discussion about the future of books, and if eBooks will replace traditional paper books. Most people there representing publishers really seemed to be forward thinking, and looking to embrace change and the future. There were a few people who seemed like they would need some hand holding, but the very fact that they were at an unconference spoke to their professional dedication to the future of books.

I have been to other unconferences before, specifically the last two PodCamp Torontos, and it was interesting to see the different groups coming together. With all due respect to PodCamp, the general audience of BookCamp was more professional, with industry insiders and publishers making up a large part of the crowd, with fewer hobbyists and dilettantes than PodCamp attracts.  As one of the hobbyist at Podcamp myself, that should in no way be read as a slight.

The discussions were always lively and interesting, and I would love to see this become a regular addition to the Toronto Camp calendar. If you missed this year, make sure you attend the next one!  If you are interested in seeimg some images, I have posted a handful from the day on my flickr account.