Info

Some history

FestOS began life as a custom application for the Fairport Canal Days festival. I don't recall the exact year but it was sometime around 2005. Of course, it wasn't called "FestOS" back then. The project took on a life of its own as other festivals asked to use the software and more features were added.

I gave FestOS its name and version 2.0 label when the Park Ave Festival and Brockport Arts Festival began using it. Those festivals asked for quite a few changes, and I added many enhancements of my own conception at the same time. The 2.0 label seemed fitting.

Since then, I've proceed much more slowly with assigning new version numbers. Version 2.1 was a commercial only release. Version 2.2 marks the first release as GPL open source software.

Why is it called "FestOS"?

Being a computer geek, "OS" to me stands for "operating system." An operating system (like Windows) is the software that makes your computer run. Sure, you might send emails with Outlook, surf the web with Firefox, but your operating system is always there in the background making your computer do computer-ish things.

FestOS can be like that for your festival. It is your festival's operating system. While you worry about duties, FestOS makes your festival go...at least online. You don't need to process applications, FestOS does it for you. Worried about updating a web site? FestOS makes it easy. Find out how many applications you've received? Just log into FestOS.

So that's one reason for the name. The other is that the Greek god of the craftsman was named Hephaestos. FestOS makes for a pretty good play on that name, don't you think?

Finally, I prefer to pronounce the name with a long O at the end. I don't know how to write that here, sort of like an "owe" with a "ssss" so Fest-owe-ssss.

Why release it as open source?

Most festivals are fairly low-budget, volunteer operations. Spending hundreds on software to make operations run better is hard to justify. Add to that the fact that anyone can set up a festival; there is no licensing board, advanced degree required, or other gatekeeper that decides who can run a festival. This means it's tough finding festival managers to sell them some piece of festival management software.

So, hard to reach buyers and those buyers don't have a lot to spend = bad marketing plan. But, the software is helpful, or so its current users tell me. I think other festivals should be using it. Cost shouldn't be a barrier.

It would be awesome to get development help from some other programmers too. I don't expect that hundreds of programmers are going to fight to join the project. But it would be great to have a couple of programmers join up, along with a designer or two, and maybe a bunch of folks answering questions on the forums.

Of course, I still need to make a living. Hopefully some festivals will decide not to simply run their own web site with FestOS but will instead hire me to host it for them. Maybe some will buy a service contract, or an SEO plan, or maybe I'll even get a donation or two.

Project operations

FestOS is officially a project of Skypanther Studios, Inc. At least for a while I will closely monitor and manage the development of FestOS. Until we have reached a critical mass of developers, all watching each other's additions to the software, I want to make sure such modifications do not add undesireable actions, security issues, or problems to FestOS. Even then, I will likely continue in the role of "benevolent dictator" to maintain a consistent perspective on the future of the software.