It's Internet World meets the Rainbow Gathering next week when geeks from around the world gather for a three-day camp out near Berlin.
Sponsored by German hacker group Chaos Computer Club (CCC), the event pits campers against each other in periodic hacking contests and gives proto-geeks a chance to see the light of day.
Pre-registration is already closed for the event, which will take place 6 to 8 August in Altlandsberg, near Berlin. However, according to the CCC site, those who want to show up at the event with DM150 (US$82) may slip under the 2,000-people limit.
The camp will be divided into theme villages, Burning Man style. Participants can choose the village that most represents their talents and interests, from lock-picking to re-engineering to cryptography. Intermittent events like the Linux Deathmatch, a competition in which one team tries to hack another's network, will liven up bouts of partying, workshopping, and drinking at the CCC Leisure Lounge, and swimming on the nearby lake.
The CCC will provide electricity and an Ethernet for every tent. Campers are encouraged to bring their own computer equipment and can hook up to the specially created CAMPnet network or the Internet in their tents or in the CCC hackcenter.
The grassroots event discourages press and commercial attendance. Business visitors -- defined in the FAQ as those who are "rich or working for a company or government that wants you at the Camp because there is a lot to learn or you have a certain commercial interest" -- are asked to pay an increased ticket price of DM1,500 (US$800).
