Get ready for some hardcore web construction, Buffalo—DrupalCamp is coming to town.

The Western New York Drupal User Group (WNYDUG) will host the DrupalCamp Western New York 2011 conference on Friday, Oct. 14 and Saturday, Oct. 15 at the new Main Washington Exchange (523 Main St., Buffalo).  Sessions will run from 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. daily.  The event is expected to draw dozens of web programmers, designers and innovators from the local area as well as Rochester, Syracuse, Albany, Cleveland and Toronto.

What is Drupal?  Drupal—according to drupal.org—is “...open source software maintained and developed by a community of 630,000+ users and developers…anyone is free to download it and share it with others. This open development model means that people are constantly working to make sure Drupal is a cutting-edge platform that supports the latest technologies that the Web has to offer.” 

Just because it’s free doesn’t mean it’s kid stuff, though—Drupal powers websites by heavy hitters like AOL, Sony and a little tourist spot that we like to call the White House, among many others.

The conference theme will be “Hello, Universe. (the web is wider than you think)” and will include a series of lectures, panel discussions, giveaways, job opportunities and good old-fashioned networking.  The keynote speaker will be Tom Geller, director of content and communications at Acquia and author of Drupal 7: A Quickstart Guide.

Before you snicker and roll your eyes at the nerd convention, take note that the average salary for an entry-level programmer is nearly $55,000.  Think you would have been pretty cool, rolling around with 55 large in your pocket when you were 23 years old?  Me, too.

Advance registration for DrupalCamp is $20.  Get in early because in-person registration is $30 and seating may be limited.