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Its all over baby, this time round.
Only a select hardcore team of members left, all asleep.
No doubt the full de-brief will be getting done once Dave_N wakes up.
all I can say is it ROCKED.....
Shak
(better go get some sleep, as have been awake for 26 hours straight).
Thanks to all involved in organising PubCon, the Thistle staff, the Thistle beer,soft-drinks,and coffee pumps, and all of you I had the opportunity talk with. Oh, and special kudos for whoever invented those energy drinks.
I got the vibe from people as they were leaving that they were charged up, their heads brimming with ideas, new opportunities and were just keen to get back to it again.
JP
If you missed it, shame on you
Shame on us, ok, but when and where do we get to see pics? :)
when and where do we get to see pics?
You have to wait until the attendees have the opportunity to pay off the photographers with PR9 backlinks for those really bad "eyes-closed" or otherwise unflattering shots ;)
>>If you missed it, shame on you - Best be there for the next one!
Well, not quite shame on us. I, for one, quite probably won't be at the next one and there's no shame to it. Unless there's one on the West Coast or no more than a 2 hour flight away, I'll be missing all of them in the future myself.
A lot of members can't for one reason or another, and for those of us who can't there's still plenty for us here like there always is, so we can cheer everyone on that does attend, because yes, they are great and anyone who can possibly make it definitely should!
But not everyone can, so I'd hate for those folks to feel like outsiders or left out or bad about it. We can still have fun and share with each other here at the board as we always have and still do, and enjoy hearing the stories and look forward to you guys sharing all the little secrets you picked up with us.
Oh yeah, we can't wait to see the photos of everyone with dark circles under their eyes half-way down to their chins from not sleeping. I made Scott take mine off-line after Boston because I looked like some walking dead creature from a horror movie that crawled out of a graveyard or a swamp in the Scottish moors.
Yes, we can't wait for the photos! :)
Hire out a pub, and throw in a load of webmasterworld subscribers. That's it.
Sorry to sound downhearted but I wished someone had told me what to expect beforehand.
Sure it was good for networking if you knew people or had been around this business for a while, but if you were new like me and wanted to find out more, there weren't many if any like minded people there.
I got bored walking up to people and saying 'hi, what do you do, or can I ask you a question'. Once they found out I knew little or had little to offer most of them lost interest in me very quickly. It was like when you're at a party and the person you're talking to is always looking over your sholder to see if there's anyone better to talk to.
As for the stands, the google people didn't know anything, the altavista girl didn't know anything (she'd only been there a week). The Overature guy knew very little and didn't even have a business card. As for the E-Spotting team - very good, they knew their stuff alright.
My advice for the organisers is simple. Why not just arrange to meet in a large pub, make everyone pay for their beers and food (I'd have loved to have paid for my food on Saturday instead of the awful food we got) and then charge everyone a £10-£20 donation. Also drop the Conference title because it's very confusing. Just call it how it is - A webmasterworld gathering in a pub.
Shak - get some sleep! The piccies should be interesting...?!&^*%$%
:)
But as a newbie to this stuff myself, I have to say that I met some truly knowledgeable people who where only too happy to discuss strageties and swap ideas.
Particular thanks go to Jonser, Ebear, TallTroll (have a good holiday) and DougS (the trees around Islington will never look the same to me again ;) ) and anybody else who told me lots of stuff that alcohol and lack of sleep has made me forget.
A great weekend, it would have been even better if it hadn't have been for the nightmare 6 HOUR (!) train journey home. Thanks Railtrack.
Too early to know if I can get to Florida but I will definately be going to the next UK (/EU?) one.
Craig
All in all a true Pubcon and lived fully up to the other 4 I've been to.
I thought that was a pretty good outcome for my first PubCon ... if I can get the cash together for Florida I look forward to doing it all again!
--
Calculus - Forgive me if this is a really stupid question but did you arrive just for PubCon on the Saturday or were you around in/at the Thistle for a few days either side of PubCon?
The Thistle was where all the real networking happened for me - I'm from a technical background but I liked being able to just sit, listen and absorb as the affliate & marketing guys talked. I found I couldn't do that at PubCon as easily as I could hanging out at the Thistle.
Finding a "niche" at your level can be tricky if your not a big marketer or at least into what webmasterworld's about, but it's not hard to corner one of the mods / senior members and simply ask "Hi, any idea who's good with XYZ?" and get pointed in the right direction.
- Tony
[edited by: Dreamquick at 12:18 pm (utc) on Sep. 22, 2003]
I thought of it as more of a networking chance than a fact finding mission
I second you on that.
And that's why I am going to Orlando next year.
See you all there.
alex
[edited by: d_fused at 12:24 pm (utc) on Sep. 22, 2003]
I can describe it very well.
Hire out a pub, and throw in a load of webmasterworld subscribers. That's it.Sorry to sound downhearted but I wished someone had told me what to expect beforehand.
Sure it was good for networking if you knew people or had been around this business for a while, but if you were new like me and wanted to find out more, there weren't many if any like minded people there.
I got bored walking up to people and saying 'hi, what do you do, or can I ask you a question'. Once they found out I knew little or had little to offer most of them lost interest in me very quickly. It was like when you're at a party and the person you're talking to is always looking over your sholder to see if there's anyone better to talk to.
As for the stands, the google people didn't know anything, the altavista girl didn't know anything (she'd only been there a week). The Overature guy knew very little and didn't even have a business card. As for the E-Spotting team - very good, they knew their stuff alright.
My advice for the organisers is simple. Why not just arrange to meet in a large pub, make everyone pay for their beers and food (I'd have loved to have paid for my food on Saturday instead of the awful food we got) and then charge everyone a £10-£20 donation. Also drop the Conference title because it's very confusing. Just call it how it is - A webmasterworld gathering in a pub.
You were obviously at a completely different venue and conference.
Shak
I had a great time and felt kind of "inspired" by most of the people I met up with and conversations I was involved in - with special mention to chris_f, edit_g, johnser, creative craig, ppg and the incomparable Shak among many others.
Hopefully those of us who live in London will be able to meet up again soon for something smaller scale but similar.
Ross
No, I live just north of London so didn't know/or go about the Hotel 2-3 days kind of thing.
I'm not so upset at what the pubcon thing was about, it's just I wish the format had been explained beforehand and what to expect.
Then I would have taken your excellent advice and made some pre-contact with the moderators and/senior members/members to have some sort of gameplan ready for the pub.
As it was I arrived off the street at 1pm, went inside and then said 'ok everyone's having a drink waiting for things to start'. But then I soon realised it had started.
Hopefully those of us who live in London will be able to meet up again soon for something smaller scale but similar.
Hope so :)
the real 'pro' work done at SEO conferences is done at the bar after the seminars let out... we decided to cut to the chase and start at the pub ..
This what it's all about, and I truly had some mindblowingly interesting conversations.
One of the best things about such direct personal meetings is how it puts a new perspective to what you do on the web. Talking to real people from all angles of the industry just puts our weblives into a context.
It's a fantastic realitycheck on the one hand, and makes your head swirling with new ideas on the other hand.
Thanks to everybody I was able to talk to - you were great.
I was in a similar situation since this was my first PubCon - I could get into London by train really easily and thought about doing just PubCon but I asked on one of the boards and the response was an overwelming in favour of the Thistle.
Oh I didn't pre-arrange discussions at all, I don't plan that far ahead - I just spotted DaveN weaving his way back to the Cittie of York's bar and just asked him! (At least I think it was DaveN)
Maybe the whole "what is pubcon exactly? / how do i get the most out of it" question is something that needs to be pointed out a little more clearly for the next one?
- Tony
[edited by: Dreamquick at 3:36 pm (utc) on Sep. 22, 2003]
mindblowingly interesting conversations
Me too. Thanks heini. :-)
1) Pubcon is purely a very informaL networking gathering held in a bar/pub. It is not a conference as such.
2) If you're coming to your first pubcon then you will get the best benefit by making contact with people beforehand and arranging to meet in person at the event
3) Contact the admins or senior members of WW if you need any help or advice as to who to meet/who is worthwhile meeting for your area of interest
4) Try and arrange or at least to be present to the gatherings on the day before and maybe the day after in the Hotel where most people are staying
5) Use your handle on your nametag
Follow these simple rules and you'll get a lot out of PubCon
Thats what it was really about for me. I would still have considered it more than worth going along even if I didn't learn a bloody thing all weekend (like that could happen...)
Best thing I've taken home with me from pubcon: The confidence to have a go anything now.
Worst moment: Getting home on Sunday and finding out that the domain registrar who manages the company I work for's domain name had screwed up the zonefile and the website and email was down. Not at all funny when you're already suffering from sleep deprivation.
Most embarrassing moment: Introducing myself to Running Scared like I'd never met him before and then it slowly dawning on me that we'd already had a conversation the day before. Sorry mate! Thats what 3 nights of 3 hrs sleep each does to you.
Best moment: The whole 3 days!
I really can't mention anyone in particular for fear of missing anyone out, I was having enough trouble remembering 2 names for everybody as it was. But rest assured, if I had a conversation with you I REALLY enjoyed your company :)
4) Try and arrange or at least to be present to the gatherings on the day before and maybe the day after in the Hotel where most people are staying
Bingo.
For one reason or another, I ended up getting there at 3 on the saturday, and so just had that night to make the most of it all, but it was still very useful (thanks to everyone I drunkenly rambled at;)). Next time however, i WILL be coming a day/couple of days earlier and leaving later.
People were very friendly and if you looked lost then they'd grab you and introduce you to a few people (or shout TOSSPOT! at the top of their voice across the room - edit_g;)) and I got alot out of it.
I could have got more if i'd been there a bit longer, but you live and learn.
(Cheers to everyone who chatted to me about everything - good to put faces to nicks, and and ramble drunkenly about SEO to people who at least humour me and at best agree.)
Chris.
And for the record - I think you've got a great nick :)
or shout TOSSPOT! at the top of their voice across the room
he he. ;)
I can sum it up in one word: fantastic.
I've never been in one place with so many "on the ball" and welcoming people, ever. Thanks to everyone I talked to for putting up with me, everyone who was there and a special thanks to the people who organised it.
