January 24, 2009, 12:04 pm
Contests, at their best, can highlight creative thinking and originality.¬â In the Linux community, there seems to be an serious overabundance of both.¬â Four different contests âÃî all starting this January âÃî are doing their best to crowdsource and give out significant prizes to the winners.¬â Vote, participate, or just soak it all in, these contests are great ways to get involved. ¬â
For one âÃî the Linux New Media Awards âÃî IâÃôm a judge and would love to have your input.¬â See the categories below and if you have suggestions on who I should vote for, please email me at amanda (at) linux-foundation (dot) org.
The four contests all involve creativity, judges, and significant prizes including a trip to France for one, and a trip to Japan for another.¬â So, whether you look at these contests as a chance to show off your video skills, go after real prize money, or just a fun way to participate in the big, online discussion that is Linux, thereâÃôs room for all.
So, donâÃôt sit on the sidelines.¬â Get involved.¬â Let the contests begin.
*** âÃúThink Inside the BoxâÃù Contest
CiscoâÃôs Application eXtension Platform (AXP) developer contest, termed the âÃúThink Inside the BoxâÃù contest, is offering Linux developers $100,000 in cash prizes.¬â The AXP is a Linux blade server running Linux kernel 2.6 and is compatible with Fedora Linux.¬â The skills and knowledge of Linux development used in the contest are the same skills used in general Linux application development on servers.¬â Brian Proffitt of the Linux Developer Network blogged http://ldn.linuxfoundation.org/article/cisco-developer-contest-brodges-gap-between-networking-developmentâÃú>about the details and reasoning behind this contest being sponsored by Cisco.¬â HereâÃôs the http://www.cisco.com/en/US/prod/collateral/routers/ps9701/white_paper_c11_459082.htmlâÃú>Cisco Application eXtension Platform Overview. And http://www.cisco.com/en/US/products/ps9701/products_data_sheets_list.htmlâÃú>hereâÃôs a number of examples of how Linux can be used to run server applications from inside of the Cisco Integrated Services Router (ISR).¬â There are over 5 million Cisco ISRs currently deployed.¬â All of these routers can accept the Cisco AXP Linux blade server.
More information can be found on the Cisco Innovation blog http://blogs.cisco.com/innovationâÃú>here.
*** The âÃúIâÃôm LinuxâÃù Video Contest
The idea is simple.¬â Create a video that explains why Linux is great.¬â You can parody the âÃúIâÃôm a PC, IâÃôm a MacâÃù ads, you can go serious, you can go crazy.¬â ItâÃôs up to you.¬â The contest opens January 26 and will close at midnight Pacific Time on March 15, 2009.¬â ItâÃôs judged by a panel of open source and advertising professionals.¬â Judging criteria will be based on originality, clarity of message, and how much it inspires others to use Linux.¬â The judges will also take into account community votes on The Linux Foundation video site such as number of favourites and starred voting.¬â The winning video will be unveiled at The Linux FoundationâÃôs Collaboration Summit in San Francisco on April 8, 2009.¬â The winner will receive a free trip to Tokyo, Japan, to participate in The Linux Foundation Japan Linux Symposium in October 2009. There are already some very cool entries.¬â
Contest rules and guidelines are available here:‰ http://video.linuxfoundation.org/category/video-category/-linux-foundation-video-contest
*** Linux New Media Awards
The Linux New Media Awards recognize the most significant products, projects, people, and organizations related to Linux during the calendar year, 2008.¬â Instead of trying to cover all categories each year, they select a few specific topics that âÃúrepresent the major themes and trends of the past year.âÃù¬â Only products, projects, people and organizations that have been prominent in 2008 will be nominated.¬â The Linux New Media Awards will be presented during CeBIT Open Source in Hannover, Germany, on March 5, 2009.
As I mentioned above, IâÃôm a judge and would love your input for the categories below.¬â Please drop me a line with your suggestions at amanda (at) linux-foundation (dot) org
Categories
– Outstanding Contribution to Open Source / Linux / Free Software
– Most Linux / Open Source-Friendly Hardware Vendor
– Most Innovative Open Source Project
– Best Open Source Contribution for Mobile Devices
– Best Open Source Programming Language
– Most Significant Contribution for Security in Open Source
*** Trophâ©es du Libre 2009 (The Free Software Development Awards 2009 or âÃúTL09âÃâ¥)
Trophâ©es du Libre looks for the âÃúbest existing free softwareâÃù in seven project categories.¬â Registration is now open through February 15.¬â This is the fifth year of the competition, and last year there were over 149 projects from 29 different countries.¬â The panel of judges is composed of about 30 experts in the open source field including developers, researchers, journalists, business managers, and company owners.¬â The winner of each category will be presented with $3800 to be put towards funding their project.¬â ¬â
The Trophâ©es du Libre 2009 award ceremony will take place in May in France.¬â For more information: http://www.trophees-du-libre.org