Barcamp has started. The roughly 80 or so attendees who showed up this morning hashed out, through discussion and debate, more than 20 topics they want to talk about in small groups for the rest of the day.

It's taking place right now, Saturday, June 20th, at the University of Baltimore's Thumel Business Center. And it's free. If you're bored on a rainy Saturday in the Baltimore area and looking to chat with some smart folks and make some new connections, this may be a good place to start.

They've got free coffee, too! What is Barcamp? Some describe it as an "unconference." (Here's a wiki that tracks the events all over the world.) It's intended to be a democratic process where people from all walks of life and professional experience can come to talk about the things that matter to them most.
Here's just a sampling of some of the topics that will be covered in today's sessions: Right now, I'm sitting in a session on the future of journalism in Baltimore.

A discussion led by Dave Troy, a local entrepreneur who is promoting the idea of journalism startup (or startups) in the Baltimore area. On a big screen, he's got a thought-provoking and recently popular blog post by Clay Shirky, a new media thinker, titled "Newspapers and Thinking the Unthinkable."

Other sessions: building green, future of social networks, online fundraising for nonprofits, social entrepreneurship in Baltimore, photography for beginners, location-based software and games, locally-developed cool technology, and many more.

And a happy hour at Brewer's Art afterwards, after 5 p.m. Debate hard, drink well, right? :-) On Twitter, the hashtag to follow is #bcbmore.