tower@buita.bu.edu (Leonard (Len) H. Tower Jr.) (02/06/91)
In article <210@canstar.UUCP> sonya@canstar.UUCP (Sonya D. Neufer) writes: |For Example, I have heard the suggestion that the USENIX |"get-together" should be held outside the conference hotel. 2 points: 1) The reception should only be held outside the Hotel, when there is a real interesting or nifty place near by, that makes it worth while to move 2,000 people several miles and spend the $$$. * The Exploratorium in San Francisco was perfect. I hope USENIX does a repeat in January 1992. * The "Dude Ranch" Amusement Park in Phoenix was interesting, but marginal. * If Judy could have booked the White House or National Zoo, when we were in Washington, DC, it would have been cool (well, very cold at the Zoo). * Disneyland in Anaheim, (particularly, if they could take us back stage, with a behind the scene tour). * The Computer Museum in Boston. But I don't know of any place in Dallas, or San Diego that would make an outside reception worth it (if you do, share them with Judy and Ellie a year or so before we go back to those cities). 2) If there isn't a neat locale outside the Hotel, I would prefer to see USENIX skip the reception and schedule another BOF slot instead. And put the saved dollars elsewhere. I can have two really good restaurant meals for what Hotels charge for a single reception. Perhaps this should be a question on the next member survey? thanx -len
ed@mtxinu.COM (Ed Gould) (02/06/91)
>>For Example, I have heard the suggestion that the USENIX >>"get-together" should be held outside the conference hotel. >The reception should only be held outside the Hotel, when there is a >real interesting or nifty place near by, that makes it worth while to >move 2,000 people several miles and spend the $$$. ... >I can have two really good restaurant meals for what Hotels charge for >a single reception. My own view of the reception is that it is an integral part of the Conference. It is a primary venue for making and renewing contacts in the community. To that end, I generally prefer to have the reception in the hotel, except when, as was the case with the Exploratorium in San Francisco, the site is particularly conducive to interesting or relevent social interaction. The place we went in Phoenix was neutral in this regard (but otherwise had its problems); a place like Disneyland would be too spread out and distracting for my taste. (I enjoy visiting Disneyland, and I would certainly like a tour or presentation about their technology. But it doesn't serve the needs I want in a USENIX reception.) Another point to consider, relating back to Brad Templeton's original comments, is that the relationship between what the hotel charges for various parts of the package is complex. The (over-) simplified version is, essentially, that the hotel will get a certain amount of money from the conference. If they don't get it from things like hospitality suites and receptions, they'll get it from increased room rates. Judy DesHarnais does a great job of minimizing both the total *and* the room rates. Sometimes, the way to do that is to have the hotel cater the reception and suites. (speaking for myself) -- Ed Gould mt Xinu, 2560 Ninth St., Berkeley, CA 94710 USA ed@mtxinu.COM +1 415 644 0146 "I'll fight them as a woman, not a lady. I'll fight them as an engineer."
peter@world.std.com (Peter Salus) (02/06/91)
In article <73977@bu.edu.bu.edu> tower@bu-it.bu.edu (Leonard H. Tower Jr.) writes: >In article <210@canstar.UUCP> sonya@canstar.UUCP (Sonya D. Neufer) writes: >|For Example, I have heard the suggestion that the USENIX >|"get-together" should be held outside the conference hotel. > >2 points: > >1) The reception should only be held outside the Hotel, when there is a >real interesting or nifty place near by, that makes it worth while to >move 2,000 people several miles and spend the $$$. > >* The Exploratorium in San Francisco was perfect. I hope USENIX does >a repeat in January 1992. > >* The "Dude Ranch" Amusement Park in Phoenix was interesting, but >marginal. Just to keep the record (close to) straight: There were over 3000 in SF in 1988. The busing from the Hilton to the Exploratorium was expensive, but not prohibitive. As someone who was involved, but is not at present, my feeling is that in the event that there is an interesting excursion possible (like the Exploratorium), USENIX should take advantage. However, it is important to note that very few places will permit receptions of over 1500. The Hirschhorn Gallery and the Aerospace Museum (in DC) both have far lower limits. There was talk once of renting a riverboat in Cincy or NO, but it would mean two boats and what are the bets on folks wanting (while afloat) to switch? The Computer Museum in Boston wouldn't permit such a large crowd, either. The Science Musuem in Boston might, but I'm unsure. I've set up dinners/meetings in both places in 1989, but they were <200. Peter -- The difference between practice and theory in practice is always greater than the difference between practice and theory in theory.
rjg@umnstat.uucp (Robert J. Granvin) (02/07/91)
>>|For Example, I have heard the suggestion that the USENIX >>|"get-together" should be held outside the conference hotel. >> >>1) The reception should only be held outside the Hotel, when there is a >>real interesting or nifty place near by, that makes it worth while to >>move 2,000 people several miles and spend the $$$. >>[...] > >As someone who was involved, but is not at present, my feeling >is that in the event that there is an interesting excursion >possible (like the Exploratorium), USENIX should take advantage. Logistics, planning, and the importance of such excursions are all important factors that need to be considered. Several years ago I attended a week-long conference in Phoenix. The conference began on a Monday, and ended relatively early on Saturday. Most people arrived the Sunday before, and either left the next Saturday, or in most cases, the next Sunday. The conference had similar organization... The first few days were relatively detailed long-term sessions. The remainder of the conference was smaller activities and the major event (the conference was also a national election thingamajig) on Friday. Saturday was a final wrap-up. What this conference did, however, was declare that one day during the week was a "no-session" day. Several events were going on to make it worthwhile to stay, but they organized a number of all-day excursions. For a very minimal cost, you could choose the one of your choice. They also planned a smaller number of shorter excursions for the Saturday wrap-up day. The last day runs included the shorter excursions where you might need to make multiple trips (such as to a museum that allows crowds of a limited size only.) This approach worked very well for this conference, since by mid-week, a good "break" was well appreciated. It may not work well for other conferences, or for Usenix where time seems to be precious (not to mention the bottom line on my American Express bill... oof! :-). All it needs is a bit of creative planning, provided that the interest level is high, and the extra cost created is not prohibitive. Personally, since I'm making all the effort to go someplace I probably wouldn't go on my own, I wouldn't mind getting a chance to poke around... >The difference between practice and theory in practice is always >greater than the difference between practice and theory in theory. Robert J. Granvin E/Mail: rjg@umnstat.stat.umn.edu User Services Specialist AT&T: +1 612 625 9224 School of Statistics University of Minnesota
ahmed@cs.Buffalo.EDU (Kamal M. Ahmed) (02/07/91)
In article <>, tower@buita.bu.edu (Leonard (Len) H. Tower Jr.) writes: < LOTS OF STUFF ABOUT INTERESTING PLACES DELETED> > But I don't know of any place in Dallas, or San Diego that would make > an outside reception worth it (if you do, share them with Judy and > Ellie a year or so before we go back to those cities). > Well Fort Worth is the home of the world's largest Honkytonk. :-)s ad infinitum Kamal...
rick@uunet.uu.net (Rick Adams) (02/07/91)
We looked a "neat" places to have a reception in DC. My favorite was the American History Museum (AIR and Space wouldn't let you roam the entire museum, just a small segment). The catch was we would have had to raise the conference rates about $25 per attendee to cover the cost of the building rental. If you wish to "vote" on having interesting receptions, make sure you let it be known that you would accept a minimum of $25 extra in registration fees.
bzs@world.std.com (Barry Shein) (02/07/91)
>Well Fort Worth is the home of the world's largest Honkytonk.
Hey, that's BETTER THAN DALLAS!
--
-Barry Shein
Software Tool & Die | bzs@world.std.com | uunet!world!bzs
Purveyors to the Trade | Voice: 617-739-0202 | Login: 617-739-WRLDdoug@letni.lonestar.org (Doug Davis) (02/08/91)
In article <1991Feb6.124446@cs.Buffalo.EDU> ahmed@cs.Buffalo.EDU (Kamal M. Ahmed) writes: > >Well Fort Worth is the home of the world's largest Honkytonk. I always kinda thought of Fort Worth *AS* the worlds largest Honkytonk. Seriously if you are thinking of Billy Bobs it's gone, to much bad debt. It was auctioned off last year, I forget who bought it, I believe it was some theme park company. doug __ Doug Davis/4409 Sarazen/Mesquite Texas, 75150/214-270-9226 {texsun|lawnet|smu}!letni!doug doug@letni.lonestar.org "Be seeing you..."
lear@turbo.bio.net (Eliot) (02/08/91)
tower@buita.bu.edu (Leonard (Len) H. Tower Jr.) writes: >But I don't know of any place in Dallas, or San Diego that would make >an outside reception worth it (if you do, share them with Judy and >Ellie a year or so before we go back to those cities). If you think Washington DC has a zoo, you should see the one at San Diego! -- Eliot Lear [lear@turbo.bio.net]