NorduGrid conferences gather the user and development communities of the modern grid computing middleware solution ARC (Advanced Resource Connector), created by the NorduGrid collaboration.
This year's conference will focus on the following topics:
ARC in view of the emerging clouds
Lowering barriers to widespread use of grid
ARC in EGI and related projects
Interoperability challenges
Platform-independent Grid computing
ARC in educating tomorrow's Grid experts
Addressing challenges of applications porting to Grid
Worldwide ARC
Please see the conference programme page for more information and presentation submission forms.
NorduGrid 2010: ARC Empowering EGI is organized by the NorduGrid in collaboration with Slovenian NGI consortium partners Arnes and Jožef Stefan Institute.
Ljubljana, the capital of Slovenia, is a central European city with all the facilities of a modern capital, yet it has preserved its small-town friendliness and relaxed atmosphere. Ljubljana is a city with numerous green areas, which offer excellent opportunities for sports and recreation. The city, with almost 280,000 inhabitants, caters to everyone's needs, since despite the fact that it is one of the smallest European capitals, it strives to provide all the facilities of a metropolis.
Ljubljana is set midway between Vienna and Venice on the crossroads of main European routes, so it is an ideal starting point for visits to many central European cities and countries. Both skiing resorts, attractive in winter, and the Adriatic coast, perfect for summer trips, are only a short distance from Ljubljana.
NorduGrid 2010 will be held at the Jožef Stefan Institute (short JSI), main lecture hall, Jamova 39, 1000 Ljubljana.
Registration is open from Monday, 3 May from 8.30.
There will be a live video stream
available. Please use EVO (meeting room
ng2010) for active participation.
The conference has been sponsored by the following institutions:
Ljubljana is easily accessible from different destinations. The country's main airport Jože Pučnik Airport is located a little less than 26 kilometres from the city, 25-minutes away by car. Slovenia’s national carrier Adria Airways, a regional partner of Star Alliance offers regular flights to most major European cities.
Ljubljana is directly linked to Frankfurt, Munich, Vienna, Zurich, Brussels, Paris, Barcelona, London, Dublin, Manchester, Amsterdam, Copenhagen, Moscow, Skopje, Sarajevo, Tirana, Tel Aviv, Istanbul, Podgorica, Prague, and others. In addition, EasyJet flies from London Stansted to Ljubljana once a day.
Frequency of direct scheduled flights to / from the main European hubs:
Paris: 4 flights/day (duration 1 h 55 min)
Frankfurt: 3–4 flights/day (duration 1 h 25 min)
Vienna: 3–4 flights/day (duration 50 min)
Munich: 3–4 flights/day (duration 1 h)
Brussels: 3–4 flights/day (duration 1 h 45 min)
London: 2 flights/day (duration 2 h 20 min)
Prague: 2 flights/day (duration 1 h 35 min)
Budapest: 2 flights/ day (duration 1 h)
Zürich: 1–2 flights/day (duration 1 h 15 min)
Istanbul: 1–2 flights/day (duration 2 h 30 min)
Moscow: 1 flight/day (duration 3 h)
Conference delegates should arrange air travel to Ljubljana Jože Pučnik Airport airport and then local transportation to Ljubljana either by bus, taxi or shuttle. From the airport, the national bus company offers a cheap, regular service to the centre of the city. The journey takes approximately 40 minutes. By taxi, the journey should take between 20 and 30 minutes, depending on the time of the day. Bus fare is approximately 5 € one way. Shuttle will charge you approximately 10 € for one way, and taxi 40 € for one way. Most Ljubljana hotels offer also shuttle service from/to the airport which you can book together with accommodation. You can get lower rates if you order a taxi from your hotel since airport taxis have a higer rate.
Ljubljana has also good international rail connections. Direct connections are to Vienna in Austria, Trieste and Venice in Italy, Budapest in Hungary, Zagreb in Croatia, Belgrade in Serbia, Greece, and Germany, Switzerland plus a whole host of different European cities. Travel costs are low, and almost the entire fleet of trains operated by the Slovenske železnice national railway company was modernised a few years ago.
If traveling by car, you can reach Slovenia via one of the border crossings with Italy, Austria, Hungary or Croatia, Ljubljana is located at the crossroads of the country's most important road routes. Here are listed distances from some major EU cities: Budapest – 491 km, Graz – 202 km, Milano – 519 km, Munich – 408 km, Prague – 609 km, Salzburg – 290 km, Trieste – 100 km, Venice – 242 km, Vienna – 380 km, Zagreb – 135 km.
The public city bus network makes it easy to travel within the city. The fee (1 EUR, no money return) can be paid with cash at the entrance or with Urbana card, which can be bought in tobacco shops.
From the city centre take bus No. 1 (direction Mestni Log) or bus No. 6 (direction Dolgi most) to reach JSI. We recommend you to take bus No. 1, because it stops in front of the side entrance to the Jozef Stefan Institute on Jadranska cesta. Bus No.6 stops on Tržaska Street about 5 minutes walking distance from the Institute (cross the main street at traffic lights and walk along the Jadranska Street). All over the city there are fixed spots where taxis are stationed, or they can be ordered by telephone. (When called by phone or from a hotel, there is usually a slight reduction applied to the taxi fare.)
Please visit the NG2010 accomodation page for information on reserved rooms and recommended hotels in Ljubljana.
Slovenia is a part of Schengen Area and corresponds to European standards. Citizens of European Union member countries, Croatia and Switzerland can cross the border with a valid personal identification document without additional procedure for visits under thirty days.
All those who need visas to visit Slovenia can obtain them from Slovenia’s representative offices in their home countries. Please find all the latest information on the procedures and conditions for obtaining a visa to enter Slovenia at the Slovenian Ministry of Foreign Affairs website.
Please contact the local organiser if you need a visa to enter Slovenia.
Slovenia has adopted Euro in 2007. Credit cards are accepted everywhere except when paying for taxi. (A taxi with credit card paying option can be requested in advance with some companies, check with your hotel.) There are money exchange offices (’menjalnica’) and ATM machines available everywhere.
Slovenia has reciprocal conventions for health insurance coverage with many countries. All Slovenian cities offer European standard medical facilities.
Speed limits: urban areas 50 km/h, regional roads 90 km/h, highways 130 km/h.
Electrical Grid: 220V 50Hz, electrical plug details: European plug with two circular metal pins, actually "Type F" or CEE 7/4 (German "Schuko" 16 A/250 V grounded): http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Schuko.
Eduroam and anonymous WiFi with a local guest account will be available at the conference venue.
All recommended hotels have free Internet access, usually with WiFi wireless connection in the rooms, but some may require wired connection in rooms (cables available at reception desk, see notes). Most other hotels offer free Internet access. Hostels and similar accommodation usually offer at least an access point or free computer access in the lobby. The service is often not advertized.
Many pubs and cafes offer free WiFi access, but few if any advertise the service. Please inquire or just try. Often you need to ask the waiter for the password.
Wireless access in other public areas (airports, train station) usually requires payment.