Kyle Baley, The Coding Hillbilly has recently posted thoughts that are very similar to how I feel about life on the ALT.NET fringe. It is a tricky place to be and a hard place to move up from.
The altnetconf user group has nearly 200 participants but nearly all of the activity comes from a minority of about 15-20 people (the big boys). This means that us fringe dwellers are in fact not the minority ... and I am trying to think why ... but I can't come up with a reasonable explanation. There is no real obstruction of entry and all opinions appear to be valued. There is no derogatory 'flaming' and things are pretty much civil; which in itself is a credit to the community.
Realistically, the community will be better off for greater participation and it might help break down the perceived barriers of intimidation. What's the worst that can happen?