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Home: ( 1999 | 2000 | Bookmark | Sci | Tech | User )
Tech: ( 2600 | Computer | Hexadecimal Playing Cards )
2600: ( 1999 | Contact | Link | London )
2600 publish a magazine and maintain a list of meeting places. 2600 meetings happen all over the world on the first Friday of every month. The magazine and the meetings are intended for the curious and concerned technologist. Much of the information is computer related and can be mis-used. Additionally, people are unaware that there are local meetings for likeminded individuals. For this reason, many people assume it is a covert, computer cracking organisation, which is untrue.
The meetings have no formal association with the magazine. Other than the listing, the meetings are genuine, spontaneous, "grass roots" events. Apart from the original meeting, in New York, your local meeting was started by likeminded people in your area. Anyone can start there own meeting, although you are encouraged to contribute to an established group, for the benefit of all. Most people are quite unaccustomed to the ... New people are extremely welcome. Bring a big pad of paper for writing useful information! Ask plenty of questions! Some people are extremely vain, even shy geeks, and are flattered, merely by the implication, that you consider them a source a technical information.
There is no central interest at a 2600 meeting. Many people are interested in computers, although some are only interested in telecommunications or socialogy. Ability is also wide ranged. Many people wrongly assume that people at a 2600 meeting are absolute experts in multiple specialisations. This is not true because people come to learn and share information. Many of the people you would meet could create a basic web site but have no programming experience. Many of the people have technical jobs, such as telephone support for InterNet Service Providers [ISPs], but may have no more experience of computer systems than an office worker in a large company.
Some have experience of numerous operating systems. Notably, there is a strong contingent of people able to help you learn about Unix. The main difference is that we have nothing to lose and everything to gain by sharing technology information. We don't ignore problems because we have vested interest. We speak freely and collaborate with ideas. We are willing to try new ideas.
Most of the group is transient and many people only come to one meeting. We never see them again! Some people, such as students living away from home, go to 2600 meetings elsewhere. The average age of people at a typical meeting is about 20 years old: a few older people, but mostly students. For this reason, meetings during student holiday periods tend to have a lower attendence. A busy 2600 meeting in London has about 30 people; a quiet meeting has about 20 people. The best meeting I remember was attended by about 41 people. (Just a quick count by me.) The attendees are almost exclusively male - females almost exclusively being girlfriends brought to a geek meeting.
Some people have a professional interest in computer security, such as system administrators. Some people seem to "square" to be at such a meeting and are usually law enforcement agents. If you don't trust a stranger at a public meeting, use your discretion. Occasionally, journalists, or people that claim to be journalists, are at the meeting. Again, use your discretion. Alternatively, make the most outrageous claims -;@}= .
Some people make claims that are unsubstanciated, other make exagerated claims. For example, a person state that they developed a program and neglect that they were only part of a team. As you can imagine, it can be a veritable "rumour mill". We don't always agree with each other and occasionally the situation can be quite vehement. Well, that is my experience from the London meeting.
I discovered the London 2600 Meeting when I used to work in an InterNet cafe. A customer introduced me the 2600 meeting in London and I have been to nearly every meeting since. In turn, I introduced a student who was doing work experience at the InterNet cafe and he has also been to nearly every meeting since. This is quite the exception because most people discover the events from UseNet or the Web.
A long time ago, in the USA, making a tone of approximately 2600 Hertz was all that was required to obtain free telephone calls. A man discovered that it could be done reliably with a free plastic whistle from a cereal packet. This man became known as Cap'n Crunch, after a character on the cereal packet. Although this information is obsolete, it typifies the experimentation, re-purposing of gadgets and the "free wheeling" nature of such individuals. The number was used for the magazine title, which is still published. It is sort of retro and sort of obscure, but now you know the significance of the number, it gains importance. Sort of like learning about technology.
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