Digital Sextant

So I just got back from the Midwest PCA conference in Detroit, where I am the “Executive Secretary.”  This means I do a lot of the behind-the-scenes stuff, mostly registration and finances.  It’s been a grueling first year, with some big lapses on my part but some successes as well.  A few thoughts about how the conference went:

• The general response was pretty positive: people seemed to have a good time and the folks who came to the conference, by and large, enjoyed themselves and experienced few problems.
• As with every conference I’ve attended, the biggest friction comes from A/V, which people assume will be there but isn’t unless they requested it.  Also, Mac people show up with laptops assuming the hotel will have the right adaptor to hook to the VGA cable.  Get with the program, Maccies, you’ve got to bring your own adaptor, since every single Mac has its own ideosyncratic video out jack and needs a different adaptor.  Not every line of Macs.  Every single Mac.  I think they use an evolving algorithm to fabricate new ones as the assembly line produces them.
• I haven’t got the final bill yet, but it looks like the money came out better than we expected it to.  Nice.
• It’s been hard, today, to get back on the teaching/grading/other work horse.  I have the end-of-semester relief that shouldn’t be here for another six weeks.  Gotta get with the program, buddy.
• I reflected, during the meetings there, just how awesome it is that all the people who contribute to the conference do so.  The number of folks who collaborate to make it “go” astounds me.  If you’re one of them reading this: thanks!
• Next year I’m going to try to go to more panels.  Ha.  Fat chance.

We have a bunch of new stuff to try for next year, and I’m excited to get started on it.  First, though, we have a post-mortem to do so we can figure out just how much money we spent.  Sigh.