For a long time Tcl/Tk was known as the software industry's best-kept secret. Now, after almost a decade in the field, Tcl/Tk is gaining international visibility in software engineering and applications development.

Users at last year's USENIX Tcl/Tk Conference in San Diego agreed that the language had "come of age." Advanced features in Version 8, along with new development tools, commercial support, and easy installation, have led to widespread acceptance. Tcl/Tk has proved remarkably cost-effective in industrial applications, from film-making to manufacturing to Wall Street and E-commerce.

Our conference begins with two full days of tutorials: twelve classes examining practical, working issues such as Effective Tcl/Tk Programming, Tcl Internals: Raw and Exposed, XML and Tcl/Tk, and Object-Oriented Programming with [incr Tcl]. USENIX tutorials are recognized for their high technical quality and for delivering real-world solutions by experienced instructors.

John Ousterhout, creator of Tcl and of the Tk toolkit, will be conducting his famous "Ouster Vote" polls of the participants, which help guide Tcl development. This is your chance to help Tcl grow—don't miss it!

The technical sessions offer cutting-edge information on such topics as Tcl Web technologies, Tcl testing and integration, and implementations of Tcl as middleware.

At the 7th Tcl/Tk, you'll have many opportunities to meet experts and peers and exchange techniques and ideas that spur innovation: our Applications Show & Tell, Birds-of-a-Feather Sessions, a Posters Session, Work-in-Progress Reports, and the Texas Tcl Shoot-Out coding contest. Regardless of your level of expertise, you'll come away from this conference with new information and practical solutions for your Tcl projects.

De Clarke, UCO Lick Observatory
Tom Poindexter, Talus Technologies, Inc.