San Jose, CA. $1100 for two days with early bird registration, and $1500 after that. Huh. To quote:

There’s no better place to meet the people behind the mash-ups and platforms, and the folks looking ahead to the future of geospace. Where 2.0 is the one place where corporate decision-makers can meet the people building the next wave of location- and mapping-enabled technology; where CTOs swap ideas with grassroots developers building mash-ups; where community activists network with venture capitalists looking for the next investment opportunity.

Aw, shucks! “Folks”! “Mash-ups”! “Grassroots”! “Activists”! “Mash-ups” again! Yeah, we’re all “2.0″ and got a new paradigm going on here!

But you know, were gonna need AT LEAST a cool G up front to discuss how we’re going to usher in a new age.

Yeah, that’s sarcasm, and I’ll stop it now.

I am a capitalist. I don’t expect these events to have the business model of Woodstock–the one in 1969 that is. Covering costs and taking something for your hard work and risk is something I wholly approve of and even feel should be emulated.

Where 2.0, however seems to border on the ridiculous. And it’s not just this conference–it’s all of the big name events.

I might be mistaken, but aren’t Aron and I exactly the sort of “grassroots developers” that are supposed to be attending this event? Aren’t we the people “behind the platforms and the mash-ups”?

Aren’t we the companies, who as part of this brave new world, are also supposed to be building companies on a few thousand dollars?

San Jose, CA. $1100 for two days with early bird registration, and $1500 after that. Huh. To quote:

There’s no better place to meet the people behind the mash-ups and platforms, and the folks looking ahead to the future of geospace. Where 2.0 is the one place where corporate decision-makers can meet the people building the next wave of location- and mapping-enabled technology; where CTOs swap ideas with grassroots developers building mash-ups; where community activists network with venture capitalists looking for the next investment opportunity.

Aw, shucks! “Folks”! “Mash-ups”! “Grassroots”! “Activists”! “Mash-ups” again! Yeah, we’re all “2.0″ and got a new paradigm going on here!

But you know, were gonna need AT LEAST a cool G up front to discuss how we’re going to usher in a new age.

Yeah, that’s sarcasm, and I’ll stop it now.

I am a capitalist. I don’t expect these events to have the business model of Woodstock–the one in 1969 that is. Covering costs and taking something for your hard work and risk is something I wholly approve of and even feel should be emulated.

Where 2.0, however seems to border on the ridiculous. And it’s not just this conference–it’s all of the big name events.

I might be mistaken, but aren’t Aron and I exactly the sort of “grassroots developers” that are supposed to be attending this event? Aren’t we the people “behind the platforms and the mash-ups”?

Aren’t we the companies, who as part of this brave new world, are also supposed to be building companies on a few thousand dollars?