[talk] Funding request for *BSD Community AV conference streaming

[Pat McEvoy]

On behalf of the BSDCan, EuroBSDcon, and NYC*BUG A/V Team, we are very much looking forward to this year's EuroBSDcon in Dublin. This preparation time highlights the importance of strategic equipment planning we have been researching and acquiring to streamline our workflow. What equipment, you may ask? We have a carefully-chosen list of components that are portable and are oten be difficult to rent, which follow us to BSD events across the globe. Our goal is to acquire the necessary items to cover a four-track BSDCon with minimal reliance on rental equipment, thereby saving thousands on fees year over year. As an example, much of the hardware we rely on ranges in price from $50 to $2500 to purchase, nearly that much to rent per event.

We have steadily increased our repository and were fortunate enough to roll out a first-gen version deployment at BSDCan 2024 with excellent results! The streams were consistent, our capture coverage was good, and the majority of the videos were up within two weeks. As a volunteer effort, it is critical that we make the most of our precious time by utilizing the correct hardware. This work enables participation and viewership from *BSD community around the world.

To that end, we are reaching out to the community to request your support in achieving our goal. The FreeBSD Foundation is facilitating tax-deductible donations as a 501(c)(3) public-benefit organization and we are very appreciative of their assistance. If you would like to contribute to our efforts, donations can be made to the FreeBSD Foundation with the memo "Community AV Team".

We, The AV Team, thank you!
Patrick McEvoy