Suggestion on USENIX scheduling

George W. Leach reggie at pdn.UUCP
Tue Feb 23 04:09:25 AEST 1988


In article <23203 at cmcl2.NYU.EDU> grob at cmcl2.UUCP (Lori S. Grob) writes:
>  [stuff about nature of USENIX Conf deleted....]

>None the less it is professional as opposed to recreational. It is also
>coordinated with /usr/group for at least one conference a year.

    This brings us to an interesting point.  The reason for the recent
conference being held in Dallas was to make it easy for USENIX attendees
to attend the UniForum Trade Show.  Being this was the first time I made
it to a Winter USENIX being held in the same city as UniForum, it was my
first experiences with UniForum.  My question for discussion is: how
important a factor is it to people that they be able to attend a UniForum
Trade Show while attending a USENIX Conference?  

     Certainly, without this restriction there would be more variety in sites
for the winter conference.  As long as the winter conference is held 
concurrently with UniForum, we will be restricted to Washington, D.C., Dallas,
and what ever west coast site UniForum chooses.  UniForum is mostly being 
rotated among these three sites, so that is all if the winter conference is 
continued to be scheduled concurrently with UniForum.  Someone was complaining
about going to Dallas in 1988, three years after the 1985 conference.  Well
get ready for it again in 1991, 94, 97,......  Got it!  

     There are good arguments for and against holding the two concurrenlty.
For many folks who can not go to UNIX EXPO in New York each October, UniForum
provides a great way to see what is new in products.  By scheduling the winter
conference along with UniForum this provides such a person the opportunity to
see what is new in technology and in products.  It has been argued that if
both conferences were not scheduled at the same time, there would be less
attendance at USENIX.  Is this really true?  I attended the winter conference
in Denver back in 1986 and thought it was a great success.  For me there were
enough vendors who set up suites to demonstrate products.  Most of the stuff
that you see at the trade shows is not really new anyway (or shouldn't be)
to those who are technically oriented.  For the business folk I'm sure it is
a different situation.  Perhaps the question should be: how many business
versus technical people attend USENIX that wouldn't come if UniForum were
not there?  Besides the vendors at USENIX are prepared (I hope) to deal with
people who are more technically astute than the typical UniForum attendee.

     One problem I had with trying to see everything I could at the trade
show and all of the conference sessions was the distance one had to travel,
the time it took, and the limited number of hours that the trade show was
open after the USENIX conference sessions were over.  The hours of the
trade show were:

		Tuesday - Noon to 7 PM
		Wednesday - 10 AM to 6 PM
		Thursday - 10 Am to 4 PM

     Tuesday and Wednesday were tutorial days, so if one does not attend the
tutorials then you can spend lots of time at UniForum.  However, it is possible
to attend tutorials, hop on the shuttle and get to UniForum for some limited
time at the trade show.  But the weather has a lot to do with that as some
people found out in Dallas.  However, forget the Thursday session, it overlaps 
with the conference sessions at USENIX.  If the trade show's hours were more 
flexible it would make it more worthwhile.  But, in order to attend the trade 
show I had to forget about any tutorials.  In addition, one must make scheduling
decisions concerning BOF sessions and other events at both conferences.  In 
fact, some BOFs would probably been better off being held at USENIX rather than
UniForum.  For example, the Sun BOFs, most of which were announced here, were 
held on Monday evening.  The turnout was rather sparse.  If these sessions had 
been held at USENIX rather than UniForum, the rooms probably would have been 
overflowing.

     Another problem, would be for vendors.  If I were a vendor wouldn't I
rather kill two birds with one stone?  Why go to USENIX and get a suite and
then go to UniForum and rent floor space?  Well I would say it is a case of
quantity versus quality.  UniForum certainly packs em in, but USENIX attracts
the kind of crowd that any vendor would like to show their product off to.
The people who attend USENIX will have as much input, if not more, into 
purchasing decisions than the business types who attend UniForum, as UNIX EXPO
as well, with that wide eyed look in their eyes.

      So, you say why am I going on and on and on about this anyway?  I mean
so whats the big deal anyway.  Well, there are a group of us down here in
Florida who would like to bring a USENIX conference to this area.  The winter
conference would be ideal because January is an off month for the local tourist
trade.  The rates are lower and the area is less crowded.  And certainly the
weather is better than Washington or Dallas :-)  However, as long as the winter
conference continues to follow UniForum this will not happen.  We may still be
able to sponsor a summer conference, but the situation for a winter conference
would seem to be ideal.

Any Comments????

-- 
George W. Leach					Paradyne Corporation
{gatech,rutgers,attmail}!codas!pdn!reggie	Mail stop LF-207
Phone: (813) 530-2376				P.O. Box 2826
						Largo, FL  34649-2826



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