Last week, at the largest gathering of Apple II users since 1994, the dates for KansasFest 2019 were announced. Retrocomputing enthusiasts are invited to Rockhurst University in Kansas City, Missouri, next July 15–21 for the 31st annual KansasFest — featuring a week of sessions, workshops, announcements, demos, releases, games, podcasts, and more!

Registration for the next KansasFest is expected to open sometime in Q1 2019. Subscribe to the event’s blog, email list, or Twitter feed for updates about the longest-running annual convention for Apple II users.

From the europlus zone blog:

Yes, I know I’ve been slack not posting my WOzFest DB9 Recap and Photos Galleries, but I am able (and happy) to announce the date for the next WOzFest, WOzFest X – Saturday 21 July 2018, starting around midday Sydney time (UTC+10:00).

I haven’t set a theme for WOzFest X – however, I have organised the usual Kansas Fest video hookup we try for each year. The Skype call is slated to start at around 14:00 local time (23:00 Friday Kansas City time). Frequent WOzFest and Kansas Fest attendees Melody & April, publishers of Paleotronic Magazine (and authors of the microM8 emulator), will be hosting the Kansas City end of the Skype call.

Further details on the announcement post, and updates will be posted under the europlus zone’s WOzFest tag.

From the europlus zone blog:

I’m very happy to announce the date for the next WOzFest, WOzFest DB9 – Saturday 28 April 2018, starting around midday Sydney time (UTC+10:00).

The theme for WOzFest DB9 is “Communications” – serial, networked, wireless, and wired.

Further details on the announcement post, and updates will be posted under the europlus blog’s WOzFest tag.

Recaps and photo galleries have also been posted for WOzFest S7,D2 and WOzFest 8-bit.

From the europlus zone:

As I’ve previously alluded to, there was an Oz KFest this year, held on Bribie Island, which is an hour’s drive north of Brisbane, Queensland. I didn’t spend the time blogging from the event as I had originally intended to (those following my Retrochallenge entries will know where my intentions sometimes end up), so rather than a series of shorter blog posts, this will be a long post covering the whole event.

Read the full recap here.

From the europlus zone blog:

I’m very happy to finally announce the date for the next WOzFest, WOzFest 8-bit – Saturday 18 November 2017, starting around midday Sydney time (UTC+11:00).

The theme for WOzFest Slot 7: Your Card was the Apple IIgs, Apple’s only non-8-bit Apple ][. It therefore seemed appropriate to set the theme for WOzFest 8-bit to all the other Apple ][s (which were 8-bit)…and the Apple-1, Apple /// and Apple ///+.

Further details on the announcement post, and updates will be posted under the europlus blog’s WOzFest tag.

Oz KFest 2017, the Australian retro computing gathering, is now open for registration. Oz KFest is happening at Bribie Island, Queensland, Australia between August 30th and September 3rd 2017

Oz KFest provides a similar experience to the well known and admired Kansasfest Apple II convention. For the first time, Oz KFest will be held at a venue with on-site accommodation. Also for the first time, due to popular demand, Oz KFest will run for longer than a weekend.

Australian Apple II enthusiasts have a long history of innovation and Oz KFest provides an opportunity for them to share their latest exploits and discoveries. Oz KFest welcomes session proposals on any retro computing topic. In addition all attendees share their knowledge and expertise by providing assistance to others on maintaining their equipment. There will also be optional workshops for learning to solder and building a Wifi RS-232 modem.

Accommodation in bunk beds in a shared cabin is available for AU$190 which includes admission to all sessions as well as most meals. The event will be partially self-catered with attendees helping out to prepare the meals under guidance from the head Chef.
Registration closes on August 1st and spaces in the onsite cabins are limited.

For the registration form, more information about the venue and for news about previous events please visit the event website.

From the europlus blog:

I’m very happy to announce that the next WOzFest, WOzFest Slot 7: Your Card, will be held on Saturday 22 July 2017, starting around midday Sydney time (UTC+10:00).

The theme for the day will be “The IIgs”, and was requested/selected by attendees at WOzFest PR#6.

In addition, the now-annual video hookup with Kansas Fest attendees will start at about 14:00 local time (23:00 Friday Kansas City time).

Further details on the announcement post, and updates will be posted under the europlus blog’s WOzFest tag.

The sixth WOzFest, the informal, irregular, afternoon gathering of Apple II enthusiasts in Wollstonecraft, Australia happened on Saturday 29th April. Here is a brief recap of the announcements that were made. For full coverage, head over to the organiser’s blog post about WOzFest PR#6.

Manila Gear has announced that their version of the No Slot Clock is now available for pre-ordering. This device was announced at WOzFest 5.25 in November and has been delayed by software testing. It will be available for purchase at https://manilagear.com/product/no-slot-clock/

John Brooks told the gathering that he is working on a new version of ProDOS 8 that will incorporate drivers for the No Slot Clock and the DClock. This is not yet available but is already in testing.

Sean McNamara has produced an Electrolytic Capacitor ‘Spec & Check’ Sheet for the Astec Power Supply AA11040B/C which is a very useful resource for refurbishing Apple ][ and Apple ][ europlus power supply units. See his blog post for further information and for a link to the resource.

From the europlus blog:

I’m exceedingly pleased to announce that the next WOzFest, WOzFest PR#6, will be held on Saturday, April 29 2017, starting around midday Sydney time (UTC+10:00).

The theme of the day will be “Preservation”, with a special emphasis on grass-roots preservation efforts.

Four Skype video sessions are currently planned with enthusiasts from around the world who are known for their preservation efforts.

A book scanner is also planned to be on hand for a demonstration of non-destructive digitisation of bound publications.

Details on the announcement post, and updates will be posted under the europlus blog’s WOzFest tag.

The next Australian multi-day retro computing gathering, Oz KFest, will be happening on Bribie Island near Brisbane, Australia, August 30 through September 3, 2017. Come join us down under for a few of days of retro inspiration, Aussie ingenuity and camaraderie!

The goal of the event is to provide a user group style environment to exchange ideas and discuss new developments in retro computing hardware, software, preservation, emulation and other related topics.

There will be a few attendees of past KansasFests and Oz KFests in 2009, 2013, and 2015 and we hope to imbibe the spirit of these events into Oz KFest once again.

Having grown in numbers of attendees over the previous 3 events, this year’s event will take place at a venue that provides onsite accommodation and catering which will further facilitate interaction between participants and provide an experience very similar to the well known and loved KansasFest.

The presentations during the weekend will come from the participants and therefore an invitation is extended for session proposals to be made via email to ozkfest@gmail.com

If you have an idea for a session that you’d like to present, please let us know so we can allocate a time slot for you. If you would like to learn something, let us know what that is and we will try to find a presenter for that topic.

Registration for the event is not yet open. However, now is the time to block out the dates in your calendar, arrange how to get there and plan your session topics. If you need help, let us know how we can help.

For event details, see http://ozkfest.net and for breaking updates follow @OzKFest on Twitter.

Reminder that the ‘Downunder Chat’ happens every Friday night from 9pm Australian EST in irc.a2central.zany.golf #a2.chat