ApacheCon US 2008, the official conference of The Apache Software Foundation (ASF), will hold this year’s event in New Orleans on November 3-7, 2008. ApacheCon brings together users, developers, vendors, and speakers to discuss groundbreaking Open Source practices and issues, with updates of developments from The Apache Software Foundation (ASF). It offers educational presentations, hands-on training sessions, and networking opportunities.

Attendees at ApacheCon US 2008 will be able to partake in new two-day training sessions covering Apache Tomcat, scaling Apache hands on, and Apache HTTP Server. These will take place on November 3 and 4, as pre-conference training days. The training workshops will be in-depth, covering advance production troubleshooting, hands on training in the Lucene Boot Camp, and a web applications security boot camp. Attendees will be provided with certifications of completion.

Also new at ApacheCon this year is BarCampApache held on November 4 as an impromptu, freewheeling day of open discussion on wide-ranging Open Source topics, dictated by the interests of the participants. Other special events include a business panel, receptions, HadoopCamp, Lightning Talks, PGP Keysignings, and a Fast Feather Track.

The Apache Open For Business (OFBiz) Symposium 2008 will co-locate with ApacheCon US to draw a new community of users to the event. OFBiz will be running its symposium concurrently in the Sheraton in New Orleans with tracks dedicated to both the business side of using OFBiz and a technical track complementing The Apache Software Foundation’s tracks covering innovations, developments, and opportunities in Open Source technology. Attendees will be able to mix and match the tracks from both conferences and have the opportunity to network with submitters, experts, and users. The OFBiz Symposium will also offer a two-day training session during the pre-conference training days.

Apache OFBiz is an Open Source enterprise automation software project. It allows businesses to harness the benefits and innovation of Open Source projects through the creation and collaboration of specialized applications, as well as accessing out-of-the-box applications. OFBiz drives Open Source through the creation of customizable solutions that meet the specific needs of enterprises.

Lars Eilebrecht, Vice President of Conference Planning, ApacheCon US said, “Combining ApacheCon and the OFBiz Symposium will bring the whole Apache community together, and expand the learning and networking experiences available for all attendees. Hosting these conferences in New Orleans also opens us up to help a community in need, the ASF way, through our voluntouring program.”

With world leading technology companies such as Google, Hewlett-Packard, Hippo, Hotwax Media, IONA, Linux Magazine, SpringSource, and Yahoo! sponsoring this year's gathering of Open Source users, enthusiasts and vendors, ApacheCon US 2008 has ensured that it continues its mission to encourage the uptake and development of Open Source software through raising awareness and generating public interest.