Lecture

W3C in a Changing World

Speaker:	Klaus Birkenbihl
Date:	Wednesday, 16 September 2009
Time:	14:30-15:30
Location:	"Mediterranean Studies" Seminar Room, FORTH, Heraklion, Crete

Abstract:

W3C was founded to lead the Web to its full potential. It started with three technologies that made the Web a huge success: HTTP, HTML and URI. Meanwhile 1500+ participants work in 60+ working groups on different aspects of web technologies. Beside the fact that the power of computers and networks has been increased several 1000 times web technologies have empowered people to communicate, exchange ideas, form communities much easier than ever before. Instead of praising W3C for all the wonderful things it did (what it would deserve) this talk will give some examples on how W3C interacts with the outside world. Topics will be from volunteer translators, evangelists to competing efforts in web standards.

Bio:

Klaus Birkenbihl is CEO of his company ict Media GmbH and coordinator of W3C's international Offices program. Klaus holds a degree in Mathematics from the University of Bonn and started his career at the GMD National Research Lab for Information Technology. Later he was with the Institute for Media Communication of Fraunhofer-Gesellschaft.
Klaus was a teacher for Computer Science at the University of Cologne and the University of Applied Sciences Bonn-Rhein-Sieg.
Klaus was Treasurer and Chairman of the German Chapter of the Internet Society where he is still on the supervisory board. He launched the W3C Germany Office in 1997 and was on W3C's advisory board 2002-2005.