Greetings!
We hope that this email finds everyone doing well and rested after an amazing SCALE. SCALE 11x was the best one yet! We wanted to thank everyone for helping to make the event such a huge success. Our attendee numbers were up from previous years, with the final count at 2304 attendees.
We like to think of SCALE as a free & open source project, constantly evolving and always with room for improvement. To that end, we'd like to hear any and all feedback that anyone has to share. The good, the bad, and ugly. What went well, what didn't, what if anything we did that we shouldn't do again.
The are currently two exhibitor halls at SCALE, with a large open space in between them. We're exploring ideas to utilize this space better Thanks again! A few ideas that have been discussed by the team already include having some banners that promote the exhibitors who have been supporting SCALE for awhile.
In case anyone missed it, the dates for SCALE 12x were announced at the show. SCALE 12x will be taking place February 21st - 23rd, 2014.
Thanks! Gareth
Hello,
On Mon, Mar 4, 2013 at 2:58 PM, Gareth J. Greenaway gareth@socallinuxexpo.org wrote:
In case anyone missed it, the dates for SCALE 12x were announced at the show. SCALE 12x will be taking place February 21st - 23rd, 2014.
Same venue/hotel?
Steve
On 03/04/2013 03:15 PM, Steve M Bibayoff wrote:
Hello,
On Mon, Mar 4, 2013 at 2:58 PM, Gareth J. Greenaway gareth@socallinuxexpo.org wrote:
In case anyone missed it, the dates for SCALE 12x were announced at the show. SCALE 12x will be taking place February 21st - 23rd, 2014.
Same venue/hotel?
Yup! Same hotel as SCALE 11x.
Gareth
On 3/4/13 3:15 PM, Steve M Bibayoff wrote:
Same venue/hotel?
As Gareth mentioned we'll be back at the Hilton for 2014.
This is the final year of our current contract with the Hilton. We're open to feedback on where the community would like to see SCALE be in 2015. We have not yet decided if we are returning to the Hilton in 2015 or not so this is the time to get any suggestions in for things you'd like to see in a new venue, and/or other venues you've enjoyed attending events at.
We like to plan at least 2 years out for dates/venue so we'd be targeting having 2015 dates and venue confirmed before SCALE 12x comes around..
i'd like to thank ken for coming up with the concept of a swag contest two years ago, then patiently watching it evolve away from his vision a little into the Exhibitor Contest, which we finally had the opportunity to try out this year. what did everyone think of it? should we do it again?
...lori
I thought it was great. I think we should most certainly do it again. The LinuxChix LA booth were freaking out when they got their hands on it, to the point of people literally jumping up & down and exuding pride & happiness. Seeing that when I was passing by was really great (seriously, watching someone jumping for joy).
As an aside, I do think that we should try to come up with a number of categories and only do 5 or so each year. The benefit is that it throws exhibitors for a loop if they shoot for one that was given last year and isn't available this year. I only see it making people think outside the box if the awards matter to them. We could even publicize all the possible awards to exhibitors in advance and say only X amount will be awarded, and we haven't decided which ones yet (we should do this well in advance obviously). I think it would potentially spur a lot of creativity on the part of people planning for the booths.
We really should have a more efficient voting system though. If it could be done electronically on the local network and votes be linked to a person's registration/check in number & last name (to prevent multiple votes), the tally would be automatic and there would be less pain for Lori or whomever would be in charge of counting. Just my .02
Cheers, Josh
On Mon, Mar 4, 2013 at 8:16 PM, Lori Barfield itdirector@gmail.com wrote:
i'd like to thank ken for coming up with the concept of a swag contest two years ago, then patiently watching it evolve away from his vision a little into the Exhibitor Contest, which we finally had the opportunity to try out this year. what did everyone think of it? should we do it again?
...lori
Scale-planning mailing list Scale-planning@lists.linuxfests.org https://lists.linuxfests.org/cgi-bin/mailman/listinfo/scale-planning
I like Josh's ideas. We should definitely keep the exhibitor contest and swag contest... Keeps'em on their toes so they will bring great prizes and a quality presentation.
Marina
On Mon, Mar 4, 2013 at 8:50 PM, Josh Andler scislac@gmail.com wrote:
I thought it was great. I think we should most certainly do it again. The LinuxChix LA booth were freaking out when they got their hands on it, to the point of people literally jumping up & down and exuding pride & happiness. Seeing that when I was passing by was really great (seriously, watching someone jumping for joy).
As an aside, I do think that we should try to come up with a number of categories and only do 5 or so each year. The benefit is that it throws exhibitors for a loop if they shoot for one that was given last year and isn't available this year. I only see it making people think outside the box if the awards matter to them. We could even publicize all the possible awards to exhibitors in advance and say only X amount will be awarded, and we haven't decided which ones yet (we should do this well in advance obviously). I think it would potentially spur a lot of creativity on the part of people planning for the booths.
We really should have a more efficient voting system though. If it could be done electronically on the local network and votes be linked to a person's registration/check in number & last name (to prevent multiple votes), the tally would be automatic and there would be less pain for Lori or whomever would be in charge of counting. Just my .02
Cheers, Josh
On Mon, Mar 4, 2013 at 8:16 PM, Lori Barfield itdirector@gmail.comwrote:
i'd like to thank ken for coming up with the concept of a swag contest two years ago, then patiently watching it evolve away from his vision a little into the Exhibitor Contest, which we finally had the opportunity to try out this year. what did everyone think of it? should we do it again?
...lori
Scale-planning mailing list Scale-planning@lists.linuxfests.org https://lists.linuxfests.org/cgi-bin/mailman/listinfo/scale-planning
Scale-planning mailing list Scale-planning@lists.linuxfests.org https://lists.linuxfests.org/cgi-bin/mailman/listinfo/scale-planning
I thought it was great. I think we should most certainly do it again. The LinuxChix LA booth were freaking out when they got their hands on it, to the point of people literally jumping up & down and exuding pride & happiness. Seeing that when I was passing by was really great (seriously, watching someone jumping for joy).
:)
LinuxChixLA are still jumping about.
/Sharon
On Mon, Mar 4, 2013 at 2:58 PM, Gareth J. Greenaway gareth@socallinuxexpo.org wrote:
The are currently two exhibitor halls at SCALE, with a large open space in between them. We're exploring ideas to utilize this space better Thanks again! A few ideas that have been discussed by the team already include having some banners that promote the exhibitors who have been supporting SCALE for awhile.
We currently have booths which are mostly hangouts mixed in with the booths that have a project/product focus. It doesn't work very well because the cluster of chatting people tends to disrupt mobility and access to the adjacent booths. I suspect it's a factor why some sponsors choose to support the events and don't have a booth any more. This year Facebook had both sides of an endcap that it seemed to work out well [verify with them in case I'm wrong].
Maybe we could encourage sponsors to distinguish between having a booth in the conventional sense and/or contributing to an in-corridor social space. Aim for that space to be segmented by vendor more for theming than anything else, since the idea is to chat and socialize without the presentation tools that would need a booth. Give the social space the same pricing and basic initial setup as conventional booths, but make it clear the collection of vendors can make (ahem) improvements. Propose the option of having an endcap as a product booth in either of the halls that is close to their social space if they would like to have both.
In addition to using the corridor constructively, it may also free up more project booth space ... which I gather ran out fairly quickly this time?
On 3/4/13 9:58 PM, Alex Perry wrote:
In addition to using the corridor constructively, it may also free up more project booth space ... which I gather ran out fairly quickly this time?
We're at a point where most years both the projects and for profit booths both "sellout" by December/January. We have essentially hit maximum capacity for the exhibit hall unless we break out into a 3rd space elsewhere..
thanks for bringing that up, alex.
thinking without being constrained by the current venue, i imagine the ideal .org mixer space would be rectangular, with all the booths around the perimeter. since there are fewer distractions in .org space, everyone can be visible from every location. a contained space allows a free flow of clusters of people across the center that won't clog any arteries or block other booths. and people can visit exhibitors in the order that makes sense to them.
i think .com booths in general need more individual space while also needing to get rowdier from time to time. they need to be able to have high energy presence because they are making sales while doing their outreach.
...lori On Mar 4, 2013 9:58 PM, "Alex Perry" alex.perry@ieee.org wrote:
On Mon, Mar 4, 2013 at 2:58 PM, Gareth J. Greenaway gareth@socallinuxexpo.org wrote:
The are currently two exhibitor halls at SCALE, with a large open space in between them. We're exploring ideas to utilize this space better Thanks again! A few ideas that have been discussed by the team already include having some banners that promote the exhibitors who have been supporting SCALE for awhile.
We currently have booths which are mostly hangouts mixed in with the booths that have a project/product focus. It doesn't work very well because the cluster of chatting people tends to disrupt mobility and access to the adjacent booths. I suspect it's a factor why some sponsors choose to support the events and don't have a booth any more. This year Facebook had both sides of an endcap that it seemed to work out well [verify with them in case I'm wrong].
Maybe we could encourage sponsors to distinguish between having a booth in the conventional sense and/or contributing to an in-corridor social space. Aim for that space to be segmented by vendor more for theming than anything else, since the idea is to chat and socialize without the presentation tools that would need a booth. Give the social space the same pricing and basic initial setup as conventional booths, but make it clear the collection of vendors can make (ahem) improvements. Propose the option of having an endcap as a product booth in either of the halls that is close to their social space if they would like to have both.
In addition to using the corridor constructively, it may also free up more project booth space ... which I gather ran out fairly quickly this time? _______________________________________________ Scale-planning mailing list Scale-planning@lists.linuxfests.org https://lists.linuxfests.org/cgi-bin/mailman/listinfo/scale-planning
On Mar 4, 2013 9:58 PM, "Alex Perry" alex.perry@ieee.org wrote:
This year Facebook had both sides of an endcap that it seemed to work out well [verify with them in case I'm wrong].
does anybody else have feedback to share about the exhibits?
fyi i got positive feedback from silicon mechanics on their corner space and experience:
- they got good activity, even closed some significant deal on saturday - we are more cost effective compared to other conferences - the hilton was helpful, coming through when they desperately needed some bolts - the SCALE team was helpful, checking in with them to answer questions because they were new (it is good that setting up the two contests does force us to get around), and providing volunteers - their swag hit the mark with attendees and the contest certificate gave them a tangible acknowledgement people appreciated their handouts
of course, they showed up to play. their professionalism and custom purposed booth gear appealed to our attendees and maximized the resources we offer.
...lori
scale-planning@lists.linuxfests.org
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Alex Perry -
Gareth J. Greenaway -
Ilan Rabinovitch -
Josh Andler -
Lori Barfield -
Marina King -
Sharon Michelle Lake -
Steve M Bibayoff