Stankdawg,
Thanks for airing your thoughts on the matter. This gives me an excellent forum to dispel some rumors about Outerz0ne. Let’s begin.

Outerz0ne was originally meant as an off the cuff spoof on interzone, hence the name. We took 5 people in 5 different states and in the course of 3 weeks, put together a conference at a conference, all by using skype and the net. It was a fun collaborative event, and I had a blast. The rules of engagement were posted on the OZ website as such:

Do no harm.
Do not disrupt any other special events taking place in the hotel
Respect the hotel property, staff and network.
Participate in the open discussion of issues, techniques and technologies.
Consumption of alcohol by minors will not be tolerated.

As I recall, the only thing that happened that was out of order was that some jackass fired off a fire extinguisher in the kitchen prep area, and we never determined if it was our people, or interzone's. Hey, there's an assbag in every crowd. If you can't find him, then you're it. "Try the veal, and tip your waitresses."

I don't like Rockit's con, or the way he treats his workers and speakers. I don't like the way he pretends (in my opinion) to support the community. There are many things that I don't like about the man and his con, but I never entered into this with the aim of destroying him. It was a way to show defiance. You might not show up for his con, you might not shake his hand. That's your act of defiance. My act, along with a few other people, was to drive to ATL, drink a few drinks, eat a lot of good food, talk and hang out and be there. Push the envelope of what could be done based on the rules. NOT spend the money to attend his con, but to still hang out with the people that DID pay to attend. We didn't sneak in the door and steal a seat in his conferences. We didn't walk up and take things from him. That wasn't the goal.

Not everyone knows, but I had a meeting with Rockit in the lobby of the hotel. We discussed the rift in the SE2600 group, and how we could and should work together. We discussed the need for unity, the need to mentor the noobs, to guide them into areas that would help them, not land them in jail. We discussed cons, putting them on, and what a pain in the ass they were. We defined the boundaries of his con and my people, and where we would and would not tread. We agreed to get together and have coffee and talk more a few weeks later. Then, without the world coming to an end, we shook hands and co-existed at the hotel. No cross words, a mutual understanding in place. Rockit has told me on three separate occasions that he wanted to speak to me. We had a date and time set to have coffee, and he had to bail on it. We set another. That fell thru, but I cannot remember the reason. At Defcon, we spoke in the lobby. He said that he wanted to have breakfast the next day. I gave him yet another card, and trust me, my cell phone never ... [ Read More (0.5k in body) ]

Stankdawg is wrong.

Interz0ne is what's bad for the Hacking Community.

Here are several points that everyone needs to know...

1. Take a look at the attendance figures for Interz0ne over the past five years... they are DECLINING.

2. The cost of Interz0ne has gone up considerably in the past years, and hasn't added any significant value to the community, and in fact, the monies are going directly into Rand Smith's pockets...

3. Outerz0ne is Free. And we plan to keep it free... for as long as possible, and we'll publically post our expenses and costs for Everyone to see, not simply pocket the money and not pay our debts...

4. We are giving back to the community, not stealing from it...

I'm an outsider. This was my first con.

I can't see how I need to know these points.

I didn't know attendance was declining. Bummer. Not quite sure why a noob like me cares. I got great value and I was able to get info without feeling intimidated.

I was a speaker on media and I worked the desk. I know rock1t comped folks who were willing to work the desk. So, the whole money/cost thing seems like an odd argument...and if attendance is down the it makes sense to charge more so that the costs are more likely to be covered which i know they weren't...just look at the banquet rooms rented to host this event

Outerz0ne's posters and other invasive tactics is not free...in an attention economy the friction created at this event was a toll on the community

I admire the passion, but let's not kid ourselves about the tactics used. I'm a marketer. In Big $ marketing we call these tactics parasitic marketing.

My girlfriend showed-up to see me speak. In the hallway, somebody that I have to assume was from Outerz0ne was talking to her...probably because she wasn't wearing a badge. When she said she was going in to see me speak they said to her, "oh, you're here for that" in a snyde tone...way to make her feel warm

this is just toxick

look, i'm a fan of toxick marketing i contribute on toxick blogspot and I have used toxick marketing techniques...I've also been the target of Toxick techniques like on crapauthors.com and it help me sell copies of Poker Without Cards...so, I can see the value of toxick marketing. however, claiming toxick techniques help build a community is just crap

i give away copies of my books as free downloads...somehow I feel compelled to mention this because I don't want this post to be dismissed as advertainment, which I do a lot of

i'm cruising this site because I fancy myself a memeticist and i saW a sticker at Interz0ne, but frankly I feel apprehensive sharing my candid opinions

StankDawg has presentations that warn not to piss off hackers and here i am possibly pissing off hackers

StankDawg, I admire your efforts. I admire your work. I am a fan...but if the community is a priority, and then reducing fear should be a goal...perhaps fewer alarming comments will well serve this community

Outerz0ne folks...you remind me of a Bill Hicks quote...

“The truth is, the majority of people are very reasonable. They don’t write letters when something offends them on TV. ‘Cause reasonable people know that IT’S JUST FUCKING TELEVISION! And not only that, reasonable people HAVE A LIFE!”

i don't buy that the $50 value deal was the core issue...that's just not reasonable...a poster by the elevator asked if I was getting my $50 of value

what I saw at interz0ne was extraordinary...I admire the passion

but being good for the cumminity in terms of throwing outerz0ne at the same hotel on the grounds of offering a better value is not reasonable and undermines the community

so, let me ask you ALL this...am I safe in your community? can I share candid comments or do I have to worry about frequency23.org suddenly going down or my credit rating suddenly exploding? frequency23.org isn't even mine...i'm just there...i didn'ts start it but it was hard for me to stay away

i kind of view interzone similar...people that might have weird feelings just can't stay away...but being friendly sure seems like a goal of "the community"

i'm trying to turn as many minds as I can on to Bill Hicks...if you are a fan...you'll find 67 minutes of new material you haven't heard before on frq23...from right after the whole Letterman debacle...the first 20 minutes will sound familiar and then it goes off the hook

you see how I used this opportunity to shamelessly plug my crap...maybe I'm just scum

Howard,

I like your post, and I agree with all of your perceptions... as they are valid from your point of view.

What you weren't aware of was the history of the con organizer and the community at large.

Needless to say, the folks that put on Outerz0ne and the folks that put on Interz0ne, except for Rock1t and a few others, all agree that Rock1t is a liability to entire hacking community.

As of next year, there will be a con in Atlanta, and it's rumored to be called Atlantaz0ne, and it will be put on by the community, FOR the community, and the expense to the attendees will be at an absolute minimum. The con will not be run for profit, but to provide the community with the information that it sorely needs.

From my point of view, I respect your opinion, and personally apologize on behalf of anyone at either con that rubbed you or your guest the wrong way.

I hope to see you this fall at Phreaknic X, and in the spring of 07 at Atlantaz0ne.

Regards,

dc0de.