Dozens of fans of the open-source computer operating system Linux congregated at the Craterton Civic Center this weekend. Presentations centered around the convention's theme, "Linux: Not for Dummies."
"Why put up with the security holes and bloated code of MicroSuck, or pay half your retirement fund to own a Crapple, when you can download and install Linux--the BEST OPERATING SYSTEM EVER--for free?" asked keynote speaker Brad Lee in a panel discussion entitled "Why Linux Rules."
"We need to out-Crapple Crapple," said Drew Sorscod a little later in the discussion. "They keep coming up with all the cool stuff."
"Linux application developers need to do a better job of keeping up with Crapple," Melinda Gnuitall agreed. "It's all about innovation."
Many of the "Linnies," as the more fanatical among them are known, dressed in penguin costumes, a cartoon penguin being the symbol associated with Linux.
Why a penguin?
One costumed fan explained, "Because... it's Linux."
"Linux RULES!" shouted another fanatic, inciting a chorus of cheers, nerdly hand gestures, and what apparently were intended to be penguin mating calls.
Other presentations included "Penguin People: Smarter than the Average Bear," "Finding Versions of the Latest Applications That Will Actually Work on a Linux System," and "Being Linux in a non-Linux World."