MySQL Conference & Expo Free Ride Winners
by Jeremy Cole on Saturday, March 31st, 2007 at 12:22:31 in MySQL, MySQL User Conf, Proven ScalingIt was a tough decision, but after much deliberation, the Proven Scaling Free Ride panel has made their decision, and the MySQL Conference & Expo 2007 Free Ride winners have been chosen. To recap, each of the winners will receive:
- Round-trip airfare from their location to SJC, SFO, or OAK airport
- Transportation from the airport to hotel/conference
- Hotel accommodations
- A meal stipend
- A full conference pass, provided by MySQL AB (Thanks, MySQL!)
Without further ado, here are the winners and their stories:
Jan Lehnardt, a student from Münster, Germany
Asked why we should choose him, Jan says: “I’m not a one trick pony. I’m a computer science student, but I attend classes in English literature and linguistics. I’m a freelancing open-source consultant by night, so I can pay for my studies. I like to improve user-interfaces by making them more humane. I want to make the web accessible and good looking to not only the 14 to 40 generation.”
J.R. Bullington, from a non-profit in Sterling Heights, Michigan, USA
J.R. had this to say about the opportunity: “I know that this section isn’t long, but it really does come down to money. I can get the time off and I have the support of my superiors. However, as we do not gain a profit and only gain enough capital to keep the lights on and the water running, training and conferences are not in the budget unless I pay for them myself.”
Carlos Proal Aguilar, from a non-profit in Puebla, Mexico
Carlos is concerned about the community in Latin America, and wonders why there is so little action on an international scale coming from the area. Carlos also says: “I have been a big MySQL fan for several years and have contributed with the mailing list and some bugs/patches and right now i have a couple of tutorials that I want to share with the community (after translating from Spanish to English).”
Thanks for all the entries, and I look forward to meeting Jan, Sean, and Carlos at the conference in just about three weeks.
Update: Sean Walberg couldn’t make it to the conference due to some scheduling conflicts, so we have chosen J.R. Bullington to replace him.
