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Events / Warpstock 2024: Coming? Not Coming? Why?
« on: September 08, 2024, 04:54:42 pm »
Rather than try to discuss this in the Warpstock forums, which are lightly trafficked, I thought I'd ask this here.
The event in Pittsburgh is earlier this year than in recent years, to try to give people a better weather experience. Also, the holiday calendar makes October a bit difficult, and November is potentially chilly (see my first point).
Some may not be familiar with Pittsburgh, or have misconceptions about its charm. I suggest a quick trip to Wikipedia for a refresher. Pittsburgh is rich with history and culture, and there is an excellent technology museum there (we're working on a potential evening outing there during the event - no promises, but we can always do something impromptu).
Another thing is the hotel group rate. (The hotel has extended our cutoff date to September 9, so for today, at least, it's still possible to book at our group rate of $145/night, which is considerably less than the normal rate for the end of September.) In recent years, I've found that our hotel group rate seemed great when we negotiated the contract, but then, as compared to the regular rate for the time of year of the event, it may have actually been a few $$ more than the regular rate. That annoyed me no end. That's apparently not the case this year.
Warpstock is picking up the tab on lunches for the event, too. Students with valid high school or college ID get FREE admission to all sessions and free food.
We have historically had difficulty "breaking into" the college IT departments to get the publicity we'd like. Let's face it: we're not getting any younger, and getting new blood interested in the platform is priority 1 for us these days (I got the same speech at my car club convention in July and at an Antique Automobile Club of America National Meet last month - encourage new, younger people to join). If anyone has contacts at any of the local (within reasonable driving distance, certainly) colleges or universities - or even high schools - please let us know or make the introduction on our behalf. A wider audience is good for all users of the platform, and who knows? Perhaps the next star developer will attend a Warpstock event - this Warpstock event.
We believe that we provide a good value for the cost of attendance. Watching the stream is a good second choice, but it never matches the in-person experience.
So, if you are coming to Warpstock this year, please mention why. If not, please go into some detail as to your reasons for not making the trip (travel cost, hassle of getting there, registration cost, bad timing, lack of enthusiasm for the location, etc.). We want to know.
Thanks!
The event in Pittsburgh is earlier this year than in recent years, to try to give people a better weather experience. Also, the holiday calendar makes October a bit difficult, and November is potentially chilly (see my first point).
Some may not be familiar with Pittsburgh, or have misconceptions about its charm. I suggest a quick trip to Wikipedia for a refresher. Pittsburgh is rich with history and culture, and there is an excellent technology museum there (we're working on a potential evening outing there during the event - no promises, but we can always do something impromptu).
Another thing is the hotel group rate. (The hotel has extended our cutoff date to September 9, so for today, at least, it's still possible to book at our group rate of $145/night, which is considerably less than the normal rate for the end of September.) In recent years, I've found that our hotel group rate seemed great when we negotiated the contract, but then, as compared to the regular rate for the time of year of the event, it may have actually been a few $$ more than the regular rate. That annoyed me no end. That's apparently not the case this year.
Warpstock is picking up the tab on lunches for the event, too. Students with valid high school or college ID get FREE admission to all sessions and free food.
We have historically had difficulty "breaking into" the college IT departments to get the publicity we'd like. Let's face it: we're not getting any younger, and getting new blood interested in the platform is priority 1 for us these days (I got the same speech at my car club convention in July and at an Antique Automobile Club of America National Meet last month - encourage new, younger people to join). If anyone has contacts at any of the local (within reasonable driving distance, certainly) colleges or universities - or even high schools - please let us know or make the introduction on our behalf. A wider audience is good for all users of the platform, and who knows? Perhaps the next star developer will attend a Warpstock event - this Warpstock event.
We believe that we provide a good value for the cost of attendance. Watching the stream is a good second choice, but it never matches the in-person experience.
So, if you are coming to Warpstock this year, please mention why. If not, please go into some detail as to your reasons for not making the trip (travel cost, hassle of getting there, registration cost, bad timing, lack of enthusiasm for the location, etc.). We want to know.
Thanks!