Dear Colleague,

Please join us at the USENIX Annual Technical Conference. This year's program continues the USENIX tradition of combining practical experience and expertise with the latest advances in computing research. Come and meet with your peers, learn from the experts, and share your own ideas and perspectives on the issues faced by computing professionals today.

The tutorials feature expert instructors offering techniques and technologies you can put to immediate use. Choose from 24 full-day classes—14 are new this year. Topics include: Managing LDAP Directories; Managing Samba 2.2 & 3.0; Advanced Topics in Sysadmin & Security; Solaris Internals; Inside the Linux Kernel; Network Security; WiFi Security; Intrusion Detection; Disaster Planning; and more.

An outstanding set of refereed technical papers serves as the foundation for the conference. This year 24 excellent papers were selected from 103 submissions. Topics include tools to ease administrative burdens, solutions that provide flexible access to large collections of information, self-tuning system services, practical security infrastructures, and much more.

Reflecting the continued growth and commitment of the open-source software community, the FREENIX refereed track received a record 70 submissions and selected 27. FREENIX continues the tradition of presenting papers on wide-ranging and useful topics covering security and privacy, experiences in developing and deploying open-source software, networking technologies, and a host of work reporting the latest advances in Linux, *BSD, and X11.

Our keynote speaker is Neal Stephenson, the author of several novels including Snow Crash, The Diamond Age, Cryptonomicon, and the upcoming Quicksilver.

Among the many invited talks are presentations on "Nanotechnology: As Hardware Becomes Software" and "The Infrastructure for Feature Film Visual Effects."

The Guru Is In sessions give you the opportunity to ask experts for answers on a range of topics. Work-in-Progress reports offer previews of research that is just on the horizon. You can organize your own Birds-of-a-Feather session or join one hosted by groups such as the Linux and *BSD communities.

In addition to the technical sessions, USENIX is known for its "hallway track," a continuing forum for the exchange of ideas, opinions, and tips of the trade. Receptions, happy hours, and BoFs provide opportunities for deeper interactions.

At the close of the conference, USENIX will invade Six Flags Fiesta Texas—the amusement park may never be the same. Join us in San Antonio for an exhilarating conference!

For the USENIX '03 Program Committees,

Brian Noble, University of Michigan
Erez Zadok, Stony Brook University
Program Chairs