Conference Report #

In September 2016, Vienna hosted its first edition of droidcon, a well-known conference series for Android developers that originally started in Berlin back in 2008. The event took place on 16–17 September at the FH Technikum Wien and was organized by the GDG Vienna, AndroidHeads Vienna, and the Java Vienna Group. For Vienna, this was a new addition to the local developer community, and it brought together Android engineers, students, freelancers, and tech enthusiasts from Austria and nearby regions.

Format and Structure #

The conference offered more than 20 sessions spread across three parallel tracks, with over 15 hours of talks in total. Alongside the talks, there was also a community-focused barcamp session, where participants could propose and discuss topics more freely. The mix of structured talks and interactive sessions was intended to balance learning with community exchange. In practice, the barcamp was one of the more engaging parts of the event, since it allowed for more direct interaction and practical discussion.

Topics Covered #

The agenda reflected the Android ecosystem of that time. Some of the recurring themes included:

• Kotlin and modern Android development
• Firebase and cloud-based services
• Android Auto and Android Wear
• App architecture patterns like MVVM and MVP
• RxJava and reactive programming
• Testing approaches and tooling (e.g. Android Testing Support Library)
• Security and authentication practices
• Cross-platform development with Xamarin
• Tools like Fastlane and modern developer workflows

A few sessions were more hands-on and technical, especially those around architecture and reactive programming. Others felt more introductory or product-oriented.

Speakers and Companies #

The speaker lineup included engineers from well-known companies such as Google, JetBrains, Twitter, and XING. There were also contributions from Austrian and European companies like PSPDFKit, Shpock, and Runtastic. This mix of international and local speakers was a strong point of the conference, as it gave a good overview of both global trends and regional industry practices. However, not all talks were of the same depth. Some sessions felt more like product presentations than technical deep dives, especially certain Google-related talks that focused heavily on Firebase and related services.

Atmosphere and Scale #

Compared to larger international conferences, droidcon Vienna 2016 felt relatively small and somewhat university-like in organization and atmosphere. The venue, audience size, and pacing all contributed to this impression. This was not necessarily negative. The smaller scale made it easier to move between talks and interact with other attendees. It also made the event more accessible, especially for students and junior developers.

Personal Impressions #

Overall, the conference was a mixed experience. On the positive side, it was good to see a dedicated Android conference in Vienna for the first time. It helped strengthen the local Android community and provided exposure to current topics like Kotlin, RxJava, and modern app architecture. On the other hand, the technical depth varied significantly between sessions. Some talks were highly insightful and practical, while others felt more like marketing presentations or high-level overviews. The strongest part of the event was arguably the community aspect. The barcamp sessions and informal discussions created more value than some of the scheduled talks.

Conclusion #

droidcon Vienna 2016 was an important first step for the Android developer community in Austria. It brought together a mix of international speakers and local companies and covered a broad range of topics relevant at the time. While the quality of the talks was inconsistent, the event successfully created a space for exchange and learning. With more maturity in future editions, it had the potential to grow into a stronger and more technically focused conference. For a first edition, it was a solid start, but clearly still evolving.