In 2005, the organizers of Canada's first weblogging conference put on an event that was inexpensive, informal, and accessible to techies and newbies alike. From those humble beginnings Northern Voice has been transformed into... well, actually it's still cheap, friendly and open to all.
Without question, the event has grown due to the overwhelming community response. It's added a second self-organizing day known as Moose Camp. We expect a few more attendees this year, in part because our space is larger. But the core values remain the same -- we have held the line on costs (fifty Canadian bucks get you the full two days), we try to make the event family-friendly by offering space for parents to establish cooperative child-minding, and we do the main event on Saturday so non-professionals can attend.
And although it is a weblog conference, the range of topics may involve anything that webloggers are interested in... that is, just about anything. Previous years have had plenty of geekery mixed with panels on how blogging interacts with family life, education, travel, photography, community building and establishing professional profiles. Speakers range from the big names at the top of the Technorati rankings to first-time presenters with a passion to share.