Wikimedia Technical Talks/Tips

Tips for successful tech talks edit

Overview edit

This page is meant to provide tips and resources for sharing technical learnings with others and creating and delivering tech talks.

Subjects you might cover edit

How-tos and tutorials
An interesting project you've been working on
Tips for volunteers and newcomers to our projects

Preparing for your tech talk edit

Who is your audience? Your audience will most likely be other technical collaborators. Before preparing your talk, it can be helpful to compile a list of individuals or groups who you think would benefit from your talk. Who will you personally invite? What mailing lists and groups will you announce your talk to? Remember that individuals with varying levels of technical experience, in different parts of the world will be viewing your talk. Try to think of them as you create it. How can you make it accessible to them?
Announce your talk to your audience. Follow Tech talk set-up instructions below for more details.
Create your slidedeck.
Rehearse your slides to make sure you are not going to be rushed or go over time.
Show up (in person or to the Google hangout) 15 minutes before the talk starting time to make sure audio/video equipment and screen sharing is working.
Do your talk and have fun!
Upload your slides to Wikimedia Commons!

Remote Participation during tech talks edit

If you have people who you know will be attending a live tech talk, you can invite them directly to the Google hangout. They can un-mute themselves and ask questions directly to the speaker.
Make sure to designate an IRC channel (instructions in "Tech talk set-up instructions") for your talk. Make sure to assign someone who is not the speaker to monitor questions on IRC and ask them during the talk.
Indicate at the beginning of your talk whether you would like questions to be asked at any time that they come up, when you pause for questions, or all at the end. Each speaker will have a different preference.

Key takeaways edit

What is the main idea or concept you want your audience to take with them your talk is over?

Slideshows edit

Usually, folks create a slideshow to refer to during their talk. This can be a helpful tool to help you shape your talk, show and demonstrate info to the audience. When creating your slideshow, think about the different kinds of learners who will come to the talk. Include elements that are visual, engaging, and inclusive.

Wikimedia Foundation staff members may use the Wikimedia brand template. However, these are community talks, and you should feel free to use whatever looks nice to you.
Make sure to use media (images, videos, sound files, etc) that are freely shareable and copyright free. We will want to upload the slides to Commons after the talk.
Include an introduction slide with your name, role, and title of your talk.
Include a contact slide, so people know how to reach out with questions.
Include a credits slide with references for your talk.
Make sure you can cover all of the material in your slides during the talk.
We are prepared to do fully remote talks, so choose a spot that feels comfortable for you to deliver your talk, and we will work to support you.

To learn more about creating video how-tos and tutorials on your own, check out the semi-active Screencast WikiProject on English Wikipedia.

Questions and Answers (Q&A) edit

Typically, there is a live Q&A at the end of the tech talk. This usually takes place through IRC, the Youtube stream, and/or in person.

Some individuals like to think about questions rather than answering them on the spot. If you would prefer not to do a live Q&A, let the organizers know. Questions can be collected from the audience to post answers later.

Lightning talks edit

Lightning talks are short presentations (usually around 5 min) delivered in person or online.

Resources edit

Lightning Talks: https://www.perl.com/pub/2004/07/30/lightningtalk.html/
How to write a conference talk: https://medium.com/@femkesvs/how-to-write-a-conference-talk-9262d4ddd1c5