Comments on: The Good, the Bad, and the Ugly http://itredux.com/2007/09/10/the-good-the-bad-and-the-ugly/ New Rules for a New IT World Wed, 25 Aug 2010 01:35:21 -0400 http://wordpress.org/?v=2.9.2 hourly 1 By: Tim Norton http://itredux.com/2007/09/10/the-good-the-bad-and-the-ugly/comment-page-1/#comment-475720 Tim Norton Fri, 28 Sep 2007 10:43:58 +0000 http://itredux.com/blog/2007/09/10/the-good-the-bad-and-the-ugly/#comment-475720 Bit late on this reply, sorry. Ismael, that's a very frank and accurate review of the conference. I really enjoyed it, mostly I found that it connected the Office 2.0 vendors together, which is going to grow to become more and more important as uptake of individual products grows and people become more sophisticated and want everything to work together and talk to each other, huge value in integration. I've met some great people and businesses that we'll link into over time, partnering is just one of those things that you need to have some face to face time to go ahead with. Loved the contact adding on the iPhone system the Etelos guys put together, I agree they could have been used more extensively, but even just a couple of features that I used regularly made this great for me, adding contacts, sending messages to catchup with people I didn't really know but had met, and watching the videos of something I'd missed very recently. Thanks again Ismael, a real credit to you. Cheers, -Tim Bit late on this reply, sorry.

Ismael, that’s a very frank and accurate review of the conference.

I really enjoyed it, mostly I found that it connected the Office 2.0 vendors together, which is going to grow to become more and more important as uptake of individual products grows and people become more sophisticated and want everything to work together and talk to each other, huge value in integration. I’ve met some great people and businesses that we’ll link into over time, partnering is just one of those things that you need to have some face to face time to go ahead with.

Loved the contact adding on the iPhone system the Etelos guys put together, I agree they could have been used more extensively, but even just a couple of features that I used regularly made this great for me, adding contacts, sending messages to catchup with people I didn’t really know but had met, and watching the videos of something I’d missed very recently.

Thanks again Ismael, a real credit to you.

Cheers,
 -Tim

]]> By: Ismael Ghalimi http://itredux.com/2007/09/10/the-good-the-bad-and-the-ugly/comment-page-1/#comment-406696 Ismael Ghalimi Thu, 13 Sep 2007 14:46:52 +0000 http://itredux.com/blog/2007/09/10/the-good-the-bad-and-the-ugly/#comment-406696 Robert, Thanks for the kind words, much appreciated. Also, I like your idea about the scheduling system, and will definitely use it for next year's conference. It should make a lot of things a lot easier. Best regards -Ismael Robert,

Thanks for the kind words, much appreciated. Also, I like your idea about the scheduling system, and will definitely use it for next year’s conference. It should make a lot of things a lot easier.

Best regards
 -Ismael

]]> By: Robert Miggins http://itredux.com/2007/09/10/the-good-the-bad-and-the-ugly/comment-page-1/#comment-406268 Robert Miggins Thu, 13 Sep 2007 05:13:26 +0000 http://itredux.com/blog/2007/09/10/the-good-the-bad-and-the-ugly/#comment-406268 Ismael, Kudos to you and the team for taking the lead, and forcing us out of our comfort zone on things like a paperless conference. Here's an idea: For next year, if time management is again a problem (or if a speaker is delayed or stuck in traffic), you can use the app to update the schedule real time (which, of course, would never be possible with a pre-printed schedule). Just another extra helping of our own dogfood. Congrats again. It was great meeting you. -Robert Miggins Ismael,

Kudos to you and the team for taking the lead, and forcing us out of our comfort zone on things like a paperless conference.

Here’s an idea: For next year, if time management is again a problem (or if a speaker is delayed or stuck in traffic), you can use the app to update the schedule real time (which, of course, would never be possible with a pre-printed schedule). Just another extra helping of our own dogfood.

Congrats again. It was great meeting you.

-Robert Miggins

]]> By: Paul Pedrazzi http://itredux.com/2007/09/10/the-good-the-bad-and-the-ugly/comment-page-1/#comment-405293 Paul Pedrazzi Wed, 12 Sep 2007 16:53:47 +0000 http://itredux.com/blog/2007/09/10/the-good-the-bad-and-the-ugly/#comment-405293 Good stuff. Here is my quick and dirty review of the conference: <strong>Strengths:</strong> - Nice Hotel. - Etelos built a really cool app with the schedule, speakers, etc. - Met a few really smart people. - Learned we are not alone in driving change, uphill. - Jive Software provided a nice platform for managing the event. - The gift for attendees. Wow. <strong>Areas for improvement:</strong> - Times were off track from the 1st session onward. - Printed agendas would have been nice. - Too many panels (personal preference). - Demo Pods should have closed during sessions. - The 4th floor Demo Pods were lost in the shuffle. <strong>Overall:</strong> A really nice event, very well managed. A good time was had by all. More detailed <a href="http://oracleappslab.com/2007/09/11/office-20-conference-review/">review</a>. Good stuff.

Here is my quick and dirty review of the conference:

Strengths:
- Nice Hotel.
- Etelos built a really cool app with the schedule, speakers, etc.
- Met a few really smart people.
- Learned we are not alone in driving change, uphill.
- Jive Software provided a nice platform for managing the event.
- The gift for attendees. Wow.

Areas for improvement:
- Times were off track from the 1st session onward.
- Printed agendas would have been nice.
- Too many panels (personal preference).
- Demo Pods should have closed during sessions.
- The 4th floor Demo Pods were lost in the shuffle.

Overall:
A really nice event, very well managed. A good time was had by all.

More detailed review.

]]> By: Guillaume Cohen http://itredux.com/2007/09/10/the-good-the-bad-and-the-ugly/comment-page-1/#comment-404801 Guillaume Cohen Wed, 12 Sep 2007 04:46:21 +0000 http://itredux.com/blog/2007/09/10/the-good-the-bad-and-the-ugly/#comment-404801 Hey all, I'm glad the videos were useful. I think the conference/experiment itself was truly "2.0" in the sense that everything about it was discovered through interactions between participants. For example, someone from Cisco taught me how to transfer contacts between iPhones. People were showing each other how to access the videos. The community was in charge of disseminating the information. We also did last minute on-the-fly integrations: the Veodia channel was added to the Etelos home page after a pod-to-pod interaction between the 2 companies. This is what collaboration is all about. Ismael, I was also impressed with your calmness with so much going on at the same time. Kudos to you and May. Well done. Hey all,

I’m glad the videos were useful. I think the conference/experiment itself was truly "2.0" in the sense that everything about it was discovered through interactions between participants. For example, someone from Cisco taught me how to transfer contacts between iPhones. People were showing each other how to access the videos. The community was in charge of disseminating the information. We also did last minute on-the-fly integrations: the Veodia channel was added to the Etelos home page after a pod-to-pod interaction between the 2 companies. This is what collaboration is all about. Ismael, I was also impressed with your calmness with so much going on at the same time. Kudos to you and May. Well done.

]]> By: Francis Ip http://itredux.com/2007/09/10/the-good-the-bad-and-the-ugly/comment-page-1/#comment-404505 Francis Ip Tue, 11 Sep 2007 23:42:36 +0000 http://itredux.com/blog/2007/09/10/the-good-the-bad-and-the-ugly/#comment-404505 The iPhone might be a nice toy, but AT&T's customer service has not been improved a bit after almost 20 years of experience in offering cellular phone services in the States! Activation and billing should have been improved significantly since 1989 — the last year in which I worked for Cantel (now Rogers, a roaming partner of AT&T in Canada), as the Chief Architect. I co-managed a major software project with the Project Director of AT&T's software arm — Cincinnati Bell Information System (CBIS). My question is, would BMPS improve AT&T's customer services? In addition to voluminous monthly bill, customers could be slapped with data connection charges on free WiFi network outside of AT&T's servicing area, particularly in Europe! Every customer must call in to protest the unwarranted connection charges. AT&T would then drop the unwarranted charges and refund the payments! The iPhone might be a nice toy, but AT&T’s customer service has not been improved a bit after almost 20 years of experience in offering cellular phone services in the States! Activation and billing should have been improved significantly since 1989 — the last year in which I worked for Cantel (now Rogers, a roaming partner of AT&T in Canada), as the Chief Architect. I co-managed a major software project with the Project Director of AT&T’s software arm — Cincinnati Bell Information System (CBIS).

My question is, would BMPS improve AT&T’s customer services?

In addition to voluminous monthly bill, customers could be slapped with data connection charges on free WiFi network outside of AT&T’s servicing area, particularly in Europe! Every customer must call in to protest the unwarranted connection charges. AT&T would then drop the unwarranted charges and refund the payments!

]]> By: Ismael Ghalimi http://itredux.com/2007/09/10/the-good-the-bad-and-the-ugly/comment-page-1/#comment-403876 Ismael Ghalimi Tue, 11 Sep 2007 15:07:41 +0000 http://itredux.com/blog/2007/09/10/the-good-the-bad-and-the-ugly/#comment-403876 Charlie, Thanks for the kind words. Always a pleasure working with you. Cheers! -Ismael Charlie,

Thanks for the kind words. Always a pleasure working with you.

Cheers!
 -Ismael

]]> By: Ismael Ghalimi http://itredux.com/2007/09/10/the-good-the-bad-and-the-ugly/comment-page-1/#comment-403874 Ismael Ghalimi Tue, 11 Sep 2007 15:07:09 +0000 http://itredux.com/blog/2007/09/10/the-good-the-bad-and-the-ugly/#comment-403874 Steve, Thanks for the kind words, much appreciated. We'll definitely take a look at Ning and see how it compares to Facebook. I'm also looking forward to Clearspace's next release. Best regards -Ismael Steve,

Thanks for the kind words, much appreciated.

We’ll definitely take a look at Ning and see how it compares to Facebook.

I’m also looking forward to Clearspace’s next release.

Best regards
 -Ismael

]]> By: Ismael Ghalimi http://itredux.com/2007/09/10/the-good-the-bad-and-the-ugly/comment-page-1/#comment-403872 Ismael Ghalimi Tue, 11 Sep 2007 15:06:07 +0000 http://itredux.com/blog/2007/09/10/the-good-the-bad-and-the-ugly/#comment-403872 Assaf, I think you're right. We'll have a Demo Blitz with a dozen presenters. -Ismael Assaf,

I think you’re right. We’ll have a Demo Blitz with a dozen presenters.

-Ismael

]]> By: Charlie Wood http://itredux.com/2007/09/10/the-good-the-bad-and-the-ugly/comment-page-1/#comment-403762 Charlie Wood Tue, 11 Sep 2007 12:45:49 +0000 http://itredux.com/blog/2007/09/10/the-good-the-bad-and-the-ugly/#comment-403762 Ismael, Thanks for a great show. Not everything went perfectly, as you say, but the overall impression I was left with was one of excitement and engagement. You, May, and the rest of the crew did a tremendous job. I can't wait for Office 2.0 2008. Regards, Charlie Ismael,

Thanks for a great show. Not everything went perfectly, as you say, but the overall impression I was left with was one of excitement and engagement. You, May, and the rest of the crew did a tremendous job. I can’t wait for Office 2.0 2008.

Regards,
 Charlie

]]> By: Steve Hargadon http://itredux.com/2007/09/10/the-good-the-bad-and-the-ugly/comment-page-1/#comment-403490 Steve Hargadon Tue, 11 Sep 2007 05:11:02 +0000 http://itredux.com/blog/2007/09/10/the-good-the-bad-and-the-ugly/#comment-403490 Thoughtful, transparent overview of the conference. Much appreciated. 1. I loved the iPhone. OK, maybe it didn't get used to its potential, but I wouldn't have gotten one otherwise and I am very excited about the platform. I also really liked the Etelos system, but found that about half the vendors I talked to hadn't figured out how to use it well enough to send me their contact info into my group. 2. I've been watching the vendor demo tracks, and think that while attendance may not have been great, these recordings are a very, very nice way for me to cover the ground I couldn't when I was there. I really liked the blitz last year, and would suggest still doing it in some form with the whole audience—even if it is limited to 10 - 15 vendors. It was exciting, and I missed the amazing brain stretches that came to me during that event. And where was the guy with the blogging platform that automatically searched Google while you blogged to find matches to other posts? I really wanted to see what had been done there... 3. Huge kudos to Veodia. I did listen to the opening session while in traffic coming into the city, and it was pretty amazing. I am very impressed with the overall quality of the video, and I am really impressed with the ability to review the conference afterwards. I also appreciate that even though our education panel was not very well attended, there is a video record of what I felt was a very interesting session. Guillaume Cohen (Veodia's CEO) was also added to our education panel at the last minute, and he was a very good addition. I'm glad you did that. 4. I would definitely consider using Ning as a social networking platform next year. I've been working with some other conference organizers, and the rich ability that Ning has to promote engaged dialog is unique, and would allow for really productive connections to take place before, during, and after the conference. I do consulting work for Ning, so I have an inherent bias, but the reason I consult for them is because the product is so good. All in all, a pretty amazing accomplishment, Ismael. You are to be congratulated. Thoughtful, transparent overview of the conference. Much appreciated.

1. I loved the iPhone. OK, maybe it didn’t get used to its potential, but I wouldn’t have gotten one otherwise and I am very excited about the platform. I also really liked the Etelos system, but found that about half the vendors I talked to hadn’t figured out how to use it well enough to send me their contact info into my group.

2. I’ve been watching the vendor demo tracks, and think that while attendance may not have been great, these recordings are a very, very nice way for me to cover the ground I couldn’t when I was there. I really liked the blitz last year, and would suggest still doing it in some form with the whole audience—even if it is limited to 10 - 15 vendors. It was exciting, and I missed the amazing brain stretches that came to me during that event. And where was the guy with the blogging platform that automatically searched Google while you blogged to find matches to other posts? I really wanted to see what had been done there…

3. Huge kudos to Veodia. I did listen to the opening session while in traffic coming into the city, and it was pretty amazing. I am very impressed with the overall quality of the video, and I am really impressed with the ability to review the conference afterwards. I also appreciate that even though our education panel was not very well attended, there is a video record of what I felt was a very interesting session. Guillaume Cohen (Veodia’s CEO) was also added to our education panel at the last minute, and he was a very good addition. I’m glad you did that.

4. I would definitely consider using Ning as a social networking platform next year. I’ve been working with some other conference organizers, and the rich ability that Ning has to promote engaged dialog is unique, and would allow for really productive connections to take place before, during, and after the conference. I do consulting work for Ning, so I have an inherent bias, but the reason I consult for them is because the product is so good.

All in all, a pretty amazing accomplishment, Ismael. You are to be congratulated.

]]> By: Assaf Arkin http://itredux.com/2007/09/10/the-good-the-bad-and-the-ugly/comment-page-1/#comment-403372 Assaf Arkin Tue, 11 Sep 2007 04:29:46 +0000 http://itredux.com/blog/2007/09/10/the-good-the-bad-and-the-ugly/#comment-403372 Last year's Demo Blitz were great, and they deliver something you just can't do with one-to-one presentations, so I'd like to see that repeated. This year's demo track had too many presenters, some clearly unprepared to talk in front of an audience, the setup was bad, and the small room didn't make it seem all that important. I think it will be best to return to last year's format. Limit the number of presentations, review them in advance to select the best ones, have no parallel track, and use the main room with the better setup. Last year’s Demo Blitz were great, and they deliver something you just can’t do with one-to-one presentations, so I’d like to see that repeated.

This year’s demo track had too many presenters, some clearly unprepared to talk in front of an audience, the setup was bad, and the small room didn’t make it seem all that important.

I think it will be best to return to last year’s format. Limit the number of presentations, review them in advance to select the best ones, have no parallel track, and use the main room with the better setup.

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