The PyCon organizers have announced the opening of early bird registration and financial aid application for PyCon 2012. As with 2011, the conference rates are being kept the same across the board, with individual and corporate tickets selling at the early-bird rate of $300 and $450 USD respectively. Students are welcomed to purchase tickets at the reduced rate of $200. With a cap of 1500 attendees and many records already broken, taking advantage of early-bird rates will ensure you get in and at a great price. These early bird rates are valid until January 10, 2012.





Also staying in line with 2011 is the tutorial rate of $150 per session, an unparalleled value which includes one three-hour class as well as lunch and break refreshments. With a total of four sessions over the two days, March 7 and 8, 2012, we’ve already heard around the web that there are “too many awesome tutorials being offered,” so you’ll need to choose wisely.





The schedule includes a sampling of veterans and newcomers covering a range of topics that will interest all types of Python users. Raymond Hettinger, a perennial PyCon favorite and core CPython developer, brings his two-part Advanced Python course back for 2012. Twisted developer Jean-Paul Calderone introduces event driven programming with Twisted, while PyPy developers Maciej Fijalkowski, Armin Rigo, and Alex Gaynor teach the audience how to squeeze every ounce out of PyPy. From documentation to databases, performance to statistics, we think we’ve picked a great set of tutorials that will help attendees learn about a range of useful topics. For a full listing of tutorials, see our tutorial selections





Also joining the schedule is Stormy Peters, Head of Developer Engagement at Mozilla, an engaging keynote speaker who we’re glad to have on board. Along with being an advisor to HFOSS, IntraHealth Open, and Open Source for America, she’s also the founder and president of Kids on Computers, a nonprofit organization setting up computer labs in developing countries.





Financial aid applications are now open through January 2, 2012. Each year the PyCon financial aid committee sets out to help as many people in need of assistance as they can, and this year the funding pool has been increased to ensure more attendees can receive more assistance. From conference and tutorial tickets to travel and lodging expenses, the group tries to make the conference possible for people across the world. The committee encourages anyone who may need assistance to apply, as each attendee makes this conference what it is.



