A Leeds unconference provided a platform for bloggers, writers and journalists to discuss the future of publishing and how best to create content online.
The WePublish event, at Old Broadcasting House, saw lively debates include the difficulties bloggers face when threatened with legal action, search engine tips, understanding audiences, online conversations and how to present different types of content.
One of the organisers, Jon Eland, told attendees that the way people communicate and consume news and information was rapidly changing. He said:
"A lot of people who publish do it without thinking about it. It's so easy to write a post and upload pictures by phone these days. Posting a comment on somebody's Facebook wall is publishing, but people don't realise it.
"It's also so much easier to produce things for print. I can transfer photographic images digitally and when I go to print I send the pages digitally - it's a huge change from 20 years ago."
One of the sessions that sparked a lively debate centred around the importance of linking the city's arts and cultural organisations together. It was suggested that Leeds needed a large 'hub' website to bring all the organisations and events together - a suggestion very similar to one raised at a meeting to discuss the future of arts and culture in Leeds a couple of weeks ago.
The recurring theme of not knowing what every organisation was doing and what events were on sparked a debate as to whether a hub was really necessary, or was it just that existing organisations needed to network better and include more links to other sites?
Eland said Saturday's event had been a success. Looking to the future, he added:
"We hope to provide a permanent online resource to make it easy for people to behave in a professional manner and try to get people to develop better online content.
"We hope to develop a permanent resource of some description and actively promote other groups who operate in the same space. There will almost definitely be another event, but it's too early to say what that might be."
The WePublish event comes under the umbrella of the Leeds-based LSX web festival series of events.
Eland has blogged about the event here. Life and Art blog also carries a write-up.
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