BarCamp: Charleston's user generated conference is back (update: afterparty, topics)

Image by Chrys Rynearson/BarCamp Charleston Be sure to check out the video from last year below.

Update November 12: Headed out tomorrow?

If so, great, and here's all you need to know about going from the organizers (schedules, parking, format, etc.)

Update November 10: We're just a few days away form the Saturday event and there's a few things I'd like to point out:

If you have yet to buy a ticket, you can get one here, but word to the wise: available tickets are getting low.

First reporting:

You may recall BarCamp Charleston, the "unconference" event from last year, well it's back on Saturday, November 13, at the College of Charleston.

"It's referred to as an 'unconference' because we don't develop a list of speakers that we think people should listen to," says lead organizer Chrys Rynearson.

"Instead, all of the sessions, demonstrations, and interaction throughout the day are all determined by those who attend. People show up in the morning and 'pitch' a session topic; we have a person who writes them all down; we then post them on the wall and let people vote on what session they'd like to see. After that, we do a quick tally, organize the sessions by time slot and classroom, and away we go."

So in the same event where you might have a techier topic like "WordPress Setup and Security Configuration," you'll also find more business oriented discussions like "Team building, a facilitator's bootcamp," and even quirkier things like "Salsa dancing for noobs."

But it's also adaptive, in that if a handful of entrepreneurs decided in the last minute to co-present on a presentation about startup best practices, or pursuing venture capital funding, it would allow for that to happen in a purely ad-hoc, open environment.

In all they're expecting 350 to 400 people to attend and dish out the $10 admission fee (includes breakfast, lunch, t-shirt, and admission to an afterparty.)

The organizers seem pretty excited about this year, saying that last time they spent much energy educating people about what BarCamp is and how it's neither a bar nor a camp.

Rynearson continues, "This year we'll see more people attend (meaning more sessions, participation, networking, energy), including groups from Atlanta, Asheville, Charlotte, Myrtle Beach and Columbia. You know there's value behind an event when you can draw top talent from that far away."

Interested? Go check out what sessions are being talked about on the event's website and maybe "propose" your own.

And if you'd really like to help, they're still looking for sponsors and they hold bi-weekly planning meetings which are open to all -- the best way to get in touch about either is to use their contact form or find them on Twitter @BarCampCHS.

The event kicks off at the Stern Student Center at the College of Charleston (map) and runs from 8 a.m. to 6 p.m., details on the afterparty are due soon.

Curious how this all shakes out, well: