There is a big Linux event in NYC today and tomorrow – but I won’t be there. The Linux Foundation’s End User Collaboration Summit has some big names presenting including Novell’s CEO Ron Hovsepian, Canonical CEO Mark Shuttleworth, Red Hat EVP Paul Cormier and an impressive list of financial industry executives from UBS, NYSE, Credit Suisse, CME and AIG.
But I won’t be there to hear any of them in person. The Linux Foundation has decided to keep the End User Collaboration event as a closed event without press (at least that’s what they told me).
“While we very much appreciate your interest in attending the 2008 End User Summit , I am afraid that attendance is limited to end users, kernel developers and LF member vendors only,” Angela Brown of the Linux Foundation wrote in an email to me. “We have decided that press will not be allowed to participate in the event. After the event, we will issue a summary to press and be available for questions.”
To be fair, the Linux Foundation has always been very responsive to me overall and Jim Zemlin the Exec Director of the LInux Foundation is an excellent person to interview anytime. The Linux Foundation also has a new conference called LinuxCon set for 2009 which hopefully will allow for press.
While I understand that there are times when closed door sessions are necessary – as a technology journalist I also must always see openness and transparency as being of paramount importance. With a closed door event, my first question will always be – what aren’t they telling me?
