Suggestion on USENIX scheduling

[Lori S. Grob]

In article <8276 at e.ms.uky.edu> david at ms.uky.edu (David Herron -- Resident E-mail Hack) writes:
>well, speaking as someone who has never been to a usenix, I'll say
>the two reasons why I've never been.  
>
>1) time; it's during the week and I seem to always be tied up in 
>   a semester when usenix comes around.  That is, well the winter
>   meet is in February (in a week or two).  I'd have to miss a
>   week of classes.  Usually I also take summer classes ... and
>   missing a week of summer classes is much worse than missing
>   a week of classes during a normal semester.
>2) money; I'm not your normal poor-starving-college-student, but
>   I'm close enough that I spend money like I am one.
>
>Of the two the timing is the more important.  I manage to go to
>lots of things during the years ... SCA events mainly, and also
>SF Conventions.  I would *really*love* to come to a Usenix and
>could easily manage it if it were mostly over a weekend.
>-- 
><---- David Herron -- The E-Mail guy            <david at ms.uky.edu>
><---- or:                {rutgers,uunet,cbosgd}!ukma!david, david at UKMA.BITNET
><----
><---- It takes more than a good memory to have good memories.

I don't know if any of the people suggesting changes have ever been involved
with booking a large conference at a hotel? The arrangements, as far as dates
often have to be made 2-3 years in advance, at least for a conference of a
couple thousand people. So many of the people who are concerned about missing
classes will be in some completely different situation by the time any changes
can be made.

Also, the conference is moving towards a longer, larger conference (it is now
3 days of technical sessions with a least 1 or 2 days of split tracks). Many
people have also been complaining about the split tracks. There doesn't seem
to be any realistic way to fit it in over a weekend.

Finally as someone mentioned, I don't think the majority of usenix attendees
are college students and the rest of the folks probably want to be with their
families on weekends. This is not to say that it wouldn't be highly
desirable to get more college students to attend but there doesn't seem to be
a schedule that can contain 3 full days of technical program
(maybe more soon?) and allow people to arrive and leave from all over
the country and not miss classes.

(Arrive Thursday night to check in, Fri-Sun program, leave Monday morning)
will still have people missing classes and then what about people whose
religious beliefs will not let them attend on Sat or Sun.?

Perhaps there could be more Usenix functions oriented towards students
and their schedules?

Lori S. Grob (NYU Ultracomputer Project)
grob at nyu.arpa
{mcvax!seismo,floyd,harpo,ihnp4,...}!cmcl2!grob   [That's c-m-c-ELL-2]
Courant Institute (NYU), 251 Mercer St., NYC 10012,  212-998-3350