Get Ready for the PyCon Australia 2017 and the ESP32 Developer Sprint!

Although the main event is held over the weekend 5-6 August, the 2017 PyCon Australia is packed with fascinating seminars and workshops both before and after the weekend. It seems that all registered attendees are in for a treat!

On Thursday, August 3rd, PyCon will offer for the first time what has been requested time and again during last year’s convention. So, in 2017 there will be extended tutorials offered to 60 attendees per session on a range of topics, such as Python 101, Practical Testing with Pytest, and Bayesian Inference and Machine Learning. Friday, August 4th, will be dedicated to Specialist Track Streams offering a more focused look at topics of interest, including Python in Education and the Internet of Things (IoT). More specifically, the IoT mini-conference will consist of papers demonstrating the ways in which Python powers IoT devices, applications and services. Damien George, the creator of MicroPython, will give a presentation in the morning, and Nick Moore will demonstrate MicroPython for ESP32 at midday.

The main programme will unfold over the weekend (5-6 August) with a packed multi-stream schedule of talks for beginners and experts alike, including Sarah McLaughlin’s keynote address regarding both the technical and cultural features of software projects. Saturday will also feature a networking event, the PyLadies Breakfast, and the free DjangoGirls workshop for women, which will teach attendees how to build a website in the Django web framework.

Then, open-source “sprints” on Monday and Tuesday (7-8 August) will give participants a chance to get to know fellow developers and work on select programs. The sprints are semi-formal one-day events following the close of the main track of the conference, where people get together and code on whatever takes their fancy. Most of the time, they provide a chance to work on an open-source package participants are already involved with in some way, or to meet face-to-face with people they would otherwise know only by email. Please, note that the 2017 sprints’ venue is the Pavilion at the Arts Centre.

On Monday 7th August, software consultant Nick Moore, in collaboration with the creator of MicroPython Damien George, will lead a sprint specifically focused on the ESP32 port of MicroPython. As Nick himself has put it: “Bring a laptop and a micro-USB cable along …thanks to Espressif we’ll have plenty of ESP32 boards on hand to work with. Have a look at the Issues (and the Issues for the parent project!) and see if there’s something there you’d like to contribute to”. 

Espressif has been declared “in-kind sponsor” of the 2017 PyCon Australia for providing the necessary hardware for this particular sprint. We hope all participants have fun at the 2017 PyCon Australia and that the event itself is the most successful one to date.