The 2010 conference season is already underway — having launched auspiciously if not officially with last month's linux.conf.au — and it's safe to expect that attendees will quickly begin registering, presenters will begin proposing, and before you know it, live-from-the-floor reports will be rolling in. Though the latter will have to wait, as of last week, the registering and proposing is on for LinuxCon 2010.

Billed as "the industry's premiere Linux conference," LinuxCon — which the Linux Foundation debuted in 2009 — is an open-to-all collaboration opportunity for "the best and brightest that the Linux community has to offer." The second-annual LinuxCon will convene in Boston, Massachusetts, on August 10th — though "mini-summits" are scheduled for the 9th — and continue through the 12th, with a variety of sessions and seminars for Linux users of all interests. Whether participant or presenter, the time to get in on the event is now.

Though August is still six months away, registration is already open, allowing those who already know they'll be looking to peruse what "the best and brightest" will have on offer to grab their spot — and at a significant savings. Standard admission to the conference runs $400, but those who sign up before April 15th will keep a quarter of that cash in hand, as early-birds pay just $300. Students have the best deal by far — those with student ID in hand can register for $100.

If being on stage is more your style, get your pencil ready. Conference organizers are looking for proposals for workgroups, birds-of-a-feather sessions, tutorials, lightning sessions, and panel presentations in three areas:

• Developer: Kernel, core development, software engineering.
• Operations: Systems administration and management, systems architecture, Linux migration and deployment.
• Business: Open Source governance, enterprise, ecosystem.

Proposals must include a specific topic, which must fit in to one of the given areas, as well as note the kind of presentation being proposed. Individuals must submit a biography and a presentation abstract (150 words each). Abstracts must specify the level of user being targeted and outline what attendees will gain as well as providing a summary, and note any special equipment that may be required. Conference organizers must be provided with slides by August 2nd.

Submissions are due by March 31 at midnight Pacific time, and presenters will hear back by April 15.