Hidden gems at FOSDEM 2024

BRUSSELS — Free and Open source Software Developers’ European Meeting (FOSDEM).

Just the name conjures up images of bustling hallways, beer on tap and the intoxicating hum of a thousand minds on Open Source overdrive. It’s no ordinary conference, friends. It’s a freewheeling get-together where the lines between casual chat and groundbreaking ideas blur in a haze of strong coffee and waffle-fueled camaraderie.

Parsing the schedule for this year sparked a familiar jolt of excitement. Not just for the headliners and established tracks, mind you, but for the hidden gems tucked away in the corners.

So, grab your metaphorical spork (because waffles, duh!), and settle in for a taste of the unexpected. Here are 10 FOSDEM talks that promise to tantalize your grey matter and leave you buzzing with inspiration long after the last pint is poured. (If you can’t make it in person, check the session links for live streaming and chat info.)

• Detecting Propaganda on Facebook and Instagram Ads using Meta API (Saturday 15:30 – 16:00 UB4.132)
  2024 is a record year for international elections – the role of social media is top of mind for many. Despite Meta’s transparency efforts (Ads Library, Ads Archive API), exploitation persists on Facebook and Instagram. This talk delves into practical navigation of the Ads Archive API, highlighting limitations and workarounds. A key focus is Facebook’s “Social Issues, Elections or Politics” category, which triggers stricter moderation and public data access.
  
• Learning from disaster response teams to save the internet (Saturday 18:00 – 18:25, Janson)
  “Not to sound like an alarmist, but the free internet is in crisis,” says speaker Hannah Aubry.” But she should know: We are alarmists and are interested in disasters. For Aubrey salvation comes by learning from the distributed teams responsible for reacting in crises for centuries. Count us in!
  
• Wikimedia projects and OpenStreetMap as an Open Research Infrastructure (Saturday, 15:00 – 15:30, ub4132) Wikimedia and OpenStreetMap offer a treasure trove of citizen science data primed for groundbreaking research in cultural heritage. This presentation dives into the untapped potential of these free software infrastructures, showcasing how researchers can utilize shared and co-produced data to generate, analyze, and even reproduce research findings in fields like museology, art history, and architecture.
  
• Open Source Railway Designer (OSRD): Why did SNCF Réseau start an Open Source project? (Saturday, 18:30 – 19:00, AW1.120)
  The answer – in part – is that the European Union and French state funding paved the way for SNCF Réseau, the French Railway Infrastructure Manager, to launch an Open Source project (www.osrd.fr) with 40 people. The race is on to decarbonize transport, and railways play a crucial role in achieving this goal. But how do we ensure they stay competitive with air and road while accommodating increased traffic? The answer lies in optimizing infrastructure investments through advanced simulation tools.
  
• PHAIDRA – A Repository Where Research Data Goes to Live (Not to Die). (Saturday, 14:30 – 14:45, UB4.132)
  Launched in 2007, PHAIDRA builds on the FEDORA repository, adding Open Source tools to empower researchers with self-service data management solutions. This presentation delves into understanding researchers’ needs, showcasing how PHAIDRA tackles them and promoting Open Access and FAIR data compliance.
  
• Bending geographic maps for enhanced railway space-time diagrams (Saturday, 12:25 – 12:45, K.4.401)
  Traditional space-time diagrams for railway traffic lack connection to the real-world infrastructure. To bridge this gap, Open Source Railway Designer introduces a new map projection. This custom view bends the map, placing the origin at the bottom, the destination at the top, and the path straightened in between. The result? A vertically aligned map aligned with a space-time diagram, but enriched with precise infrastructure details and geographic context via OpenStreetMap data.
  
• OpenSTEF: Opensource Short Term Energy Forecasting (Saturday, 13:00 – 13:15, H.2214)
  The grid is changing. Renewables and e-mobility are pushing its limits, making accurate load forecasting crucial for grid operators. Enter OpenSTEF, an Open Source software stack that empowers them to anticipate congestion and optimize resource allocation. Come to see OpenSTEF in action, with a real-world implementation at the Dutch Distributed System Operator.
  
• Science without secrets: How Galaxy democratizes data analysis (Saturday, 17:30 – 17:45, UB4.132)
  Forget siloed data and complex platforms. Galaxy, an Open Source powerhouse, empowers researchers across disciplines with a collaborative, user-friendly environment. Built on transparency, reproducibility and sharing, Galaxy tackles the hurdles of diverse compute needs and limited technical expertise.
  
• Gameboy Advanced Hacking (Sunday, 14:15 – 14:40, UB5.230)
  This Craving retro thrills? The Gameboy Advance is your gateway to a vibrant homebrew scene! Whether you’re a nostalgic gamer, a curious coder, or a hardware enthusiast, this talk equips you with the knowledge and tools to unlock the full potential of the GBA. Get ready to breathe new life into your retro adventures.
  
• Building Open Source Language Models
  (Sunday, 09:45-10:00, UB2.252A, Lameere)
  LINAGORA, a leader in Open LLM France, unveils the inner workings of building Large Language Models (LLMs) with radical transparency. Unlike most “open” models shrouded in secrecy, they are working publicly on training data and processes. Speaker Juli Hunter will discuss why using an open model trained on traceable data is important for both business and research.
  
  Bonus session (because there’s just so much good stuff!)
  
• TETRA and open-source: Like oil and water?
  (Sunday, 15:30 – 15:55, UB2.147) The open TETRA radio standard, once the domain of emergency services, is being cracked open by the power of Software Defined Radios (SDR) and Open Source software. This talk explores efforts to breathe new life into TETRA, showcasing how enthusiasts and innovators are pushing the boundaries of communication technology.