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TheGeek Pride Festival was the name of a number of events between 1998 and 2000, organized by Tim McEachern and devoted to computergeek activities and interests. The name of the festival is most often associated with the large event held on March 31 and April 1, 2000, at thePark Plaza Castle inBoston, United States.
Before that, there were two events at the now-closed Big House Brewery inAlbany, New York.WAMC, the local NPR affiliate, sponsored the events which were organized by Tim McEachern.
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The 2000 event was a major production, organised with the help of Susan Kaup, Chris O'Brien and many volunteers.
The event began Friday night, with a swap meet / social event at the Modern Lounge in Boston's Landsdowne Street nightclub district. Drink tickets were offered at the door, and the DJ played computer-themed music.
On Saturday, the main event occurred at the Castle, where admission was free. The middle of the floor held the "Email Garden", comprising about a dozen tables withPCs runningRed Hat Linux, in a wiredLAN network and providingemail,Web, and generalInternet access. At the front of the hall was a stage, which hosted a number of invited guests, includingRob Malda ofSlashdot,Eric S. Raymond, Micky Metts of Channel1 ISP, thevideo game cover band Everyone. The stage was also host to the final round of aQuake III tournament, held in a back room, displayed on the stage's projection screen, as well as the final round of "Stump the Geek", a geektrivia contest.[citation needed]
Aside from the main events, the main floor had computer workstations displaying livewebcam feeds of "satellite" Festivals in remote locations. A liveShoutcast feed was also provided of the Boston event. A poll for "greatest geek hero" was also held; the official winner wasAlan Turing.[1]
According to Science/AAAS magazine, 2,000 people attended, though the open-door free admission made an official count impossible.[citation needed]
The 2000 event is widely referred to as the "first annual" event, although McEachern organized at least one previous event named Geek Pride Festival (and/or Geek Pride Day) at a bar in Albany, New York. Some sources refer to the Boston event as thethird annual.[citation needed]
McEachern planned another event to take place later the same year inSan Francisco but was never realized.[citation needed]