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 rang. I have been open to discussing our differences, and the only time he's actually discussed anything with me after our initial conversation was by sending me an email that got in my face (in my opinion) and started the discussion in a non-civilized manner. I have no problems having a civilized conversation with someone about an issue between the two of us.

I don't understand where you got the idea that our aim was to ruin interzone. I don't remember handing out flyers telling everyone we were going to ruin the con. In none of the planning meetings did we discuss ruining the con. Wherever you got this information, i'd like to have a talk with the people involved because that wasn't on my agenda. Now, it's true we pushed the envelope at times, but ruin was NOT in the vocabulary. If someone took measures into their own hands, I was unaware of it, and had I known, would have worked diligently to stop them.

Grow a pair. Hmmm. I have a pair, and they're quite large. I've made it quite clear where I stand. The core team of Outerz0ne have been discussing setting this up as another con, on another day, in a different location. It's not a competing con, it’s just another opportunity to get together with the people we don't get to see every day and kick back, eat some good food, have a few drinks and talk. I don't know about you, but I am well out of the angry young man syndrome. I'm all about sitting around and sharing information, swapping stories, and helping the new guys find their way. I'm older than alot of the people in these groups, and it's my goal to lend whatever help I can, and to support the people that are there. I don't make money at cons; I usually end up spending way more than I should. I don't do it to be a superstar; I don't do it for admiration. I do it because I love being a computer geek and hanging out with other geeks. If someone wants to learn and shows the determination, I am all about helping them achieve their goals. What are you about stankdawg? You tell me to shut the fuck up and do it? Well, we're in the process of making it happen for the second time. You tell me to get out of your way? I have never stood in your way. I've never come to your casa and told you NOT to attend interzone. I've never stood in front of the IZ hotel and told people NOT to pay. I've not stood in the hallway and kept you from doing a damn thing. If you want to enjoy IZ, please do so. I hope that Rockit has found a group of speakers that are entertaining and worth the admission. I'll personally welcome you into our con, although I doubt you will stop by, and hell, I'll be the first to mix you a drink and shoot the bull with you.

Shamefull? Possibly. Were you at Outerz0ne I? You are preaching from your keyboard telling everyone how we are trying to ruin the con, yet I don't see how we were causing Rockit any financial trouble, and aside from ruffling his feathers, we didn't do a damn thing to him. You on the other hand are shaking your finger in my face telling me I am wrong for having outerz0ne... Guess what? That's your deity-given right to express yourself in a manner that you see fit in the same way that it's my right to put on a con at a con. I'm not going to try and convince you that what I am doing is right. I'm merely informing you of things you clearly haven't been privy too, based on your post.

This year, I will be available to speak to Rockit, and whoever else wants to talk about the rift, the con, or the general state of things as is. I'll also be enjoying myself as much as possible. Truth be told, I was actually going to buy admission this year, just to fuck with Rockit. :)

RE: outerz0ne is bad for the hacking community