[ipv6-hackathon] HOWTO: "How RIPE NCC hackathons work"

Hi,

for some of you this might be the first hackathon in general,
or the first RIPE NCC hackathon, so here is a gentle introduction
to how we do it.

If you want more to read more, and see photos, we publish all the
"reviews" at RIPE Labs:

http://labs.ripe.net/hackathons

If you have any questions, please send them either to me or to the list.

Ciao,
Vesna

* hackathons, in general, are "hacking marathons": a long event where
people join to "hack" _together_ -- to create a "quick & dirty" solution
to some problem; result is mostly a prototype: code, or sometimes
physical objects.

Other results are the connections forged  between participants,
experiences gained from working together, and hands-on knowledge.

* the accent is on *team-work* & *cooperation*, rather then on competition!

* work is done in "interdisciplinary groups": small teams of 3-5 people,
coming from diverse backgrounds, knowledge level, skills --  this
diversity leads to unexpected combinations, creative ideas, and genius
solutions!

Format:

- before the start, we communicate on-line: propose projects, introduce
ourselves to each other, discuss ideas, brainstorm...

We use EtherPad & a mailing list & IRC & even Facebook/Twitter/whatever

- in the morning of the first day, we start with personal introductions,
where participants say something about themselves: what is their goal
for this hackathon, their interests, their skills

- several projects get introduced too, mostly by the organiser &
possibly sponsors: so-called "challenges" , where the "hacks" are
supposed to provide a solution

- participants choose which project they want to work on, and form teams

- these teams start brainstorming, decide on the direction and amount of
work they think they can do in the remaining time (one & a half day!)

- the rest of the time is given to _work_ : coding, designing, writing..

- we will also have several short "reviews" (like in Scrum!) to see how
are the team progressing, to maybe re-group or merge, or change
direction completely - everything is possible

- food, refreshments and drinks are provided throughout the event
(including lunch & dinner)

- at the end of the second day, teams make presentations of their
results: very short, 2 minutes talk & 1 minutes for questions

- slides & code & photos & videos are shared (uploaded to GitHub; given
to RIPE NCC to publish)

- the jury selects several "winners", for the prizes that are mostly
symbolic, based on the criteria set up in the "challenges".

And then there's a party! :) We celebrate a successful cooperation,
relax after two hectic & long days & have fun together!

Link to all previous events: http://labs.ripe.net/hackathons

+ Link to code:
https://github.com/RIPE-Atlas-Community/ripe-atlas-community-contrib/blob/master/README.md