Dear All,

I wanted to give you a quick update on XLDB activities
and events. (I realize we have been quiet for longer
than usual, but trust me, a lot has been happening
under the hood!)


1. Upcoming XLDB workshops
--------------------------
We are organizing two XLDB events:

1. XLDB - Healthcare, Stony Brook Univ/New York, May 6-7

2. XLDB - South America, Rio de Janeiro, June 3-4

While the Rio event was announced at XLDB-2013 back in
September, most of you will not have heard of the Healthcare
meeting. The idea came up at the XLDB Workshop in September
and has been germinating since then. Both events are
invitation-only, but we welcome expressions of interest
from the XLDB community in attending either event.
More details will be sent out soon.


2. XLDB main events - switching to spring season
------------------------------------------------
As hinted at XLDB-2013, we would like to switch our annual
main events from the fall to the spring for logistical reasons
and to avoid conflicts. That means we will be skipping 2014,
since organizing two large events 6 months apart would be
too much. The next "main" event would then be scheduled
for Spring 2015.

A year off also gives us some time to think or rethink...


3. Rethinking XLDB events
-------------------------
We are in the process of rethinking the long-term scope
and organization of future XLDB events.  While we don't
want to mess with success, two factors have triggered
this process:

a) the changing landscape: a growing number of Big Data
    events, both specialized and general

b) decreased time available from the SLAC group due to
    our "day job", the LSST project, which is rapidly
    approaching the construction phase.

Options we are currently considering include:

a) partnering with other institution(s),

b) making the event smaller but even more focused
    on our core niche, and

c) joining forces with an existing event/activity.

I encourage everyone who has thoughts on the future
direction of XLDB to contact me.


4. XLDB-2013 workshop report
----------------------------
Lastly, for these who are waiting for the XLDB-2013
workshop report: we have not forgotten, it is coming
in March-April timeframe.


Best regards,
Jacek

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