Re: [Debconf-team] DC10: Question for bid teams: comparison with previous venues
On Tue, Feb 10, 2009 at 4:14 PM, Moray Allan <moray@sermisy.org> wrote:
> Can you compare your proposed venue to previous DebConf venues?
> (e.g. what previous venue was most similar?)
>
> What would be new about DebConf in your proposed location?
Helsinki, Brazil, and Edinburgh are the most similar to the NYC bid. I'm going
to adapt parts of the Boston/MIT bid's comparison to Helsinki which also apply
to Columbia, with a bunch of edits for the differences. Then I will go on to
compare to Toronto, Brazil (courtesy of Micah), Oaxtepec, Edinburgh, and
Argentina. In the quote from Mako, the parts in square brackets are me.
On Wed, Feb 18, 2009 at 02:56:10PM -0500, Ari Pollak wrote:
>
> This is from Benjamin Mako Hill, who's not subscribed to the list:
>
>
> In most ways, I think Helsinki is the best model to what the facilities at
> [Columbia] will be like. Both venues are large, modern, research universities
> with all that such institutions have to offer. [Columbia] will also provide
> [auditoriums, cafeteria/hacklab space,] and classrooms [...]
>
> There are a few major differences with Helsinki. One is that we shouldn't
> anticipate problems with the wifi which I know was a huge headache for people
> then. [I've used the Columbia wifi and it's totally open with no WEP, WPA,
> WPA2, or 802.1x needed. If we need any IT assistance, we are in contact with
> the second-in-command of Columbia's IT department, so any issues should be
> resolvable.]
>
> Second, the [Columbia] campus is much less spread out than Helsinki. [This is
> quite convenient, since you can traverse the whole campus in roughly 5
> minutes. This is significantly better than the Oaxtepec conference too, and
> the communal configuration is similar to the Brazil conference. If you want
> additional spaces to enjoy nature or do outdoor activities, there's
> Morningside Park and Riverside Park really close to campus, and Central Park
> is only slightly farther away.]
Regarding lodging, the Columbia dorms are similar to Helsinki, but would be
air-conditioned in every dorm room. Hostelling International is similar to
Budget Backpackers (the well-run hostel in Edinburgh) but with many more
on-site amenities and common spaces, and would also have air conditioning
throughout the building.
If we serve food in group meals, the food would be similar to Helsinki or
Edinburgh in that it would be in a cafeteria setting, but depending on which
caterer we select (not required to be Columbia) the quality could possibly be
better. It's also possible to have debit cards that allow use on campus and
optionally at some of the restaurants near campus, which is similar to how
things were in Toronto with the addition of sponsored funds for food.
Compared to both Mexico and Argentina, language barrier problems should apply
to fewer people; English is of course the most widely spoken language in NYC,
and Spanish is extremely widely spoken too, especially in the part of the city
where the conference would be. The trip from the airport is also significantly
shorter than the bus ride from Buenos Aires to Mar del Plata; instead of 6
hours, it can be anywhere from three to twelve times shorter depending on which
of the three main NYC airports you fly into and any delays from traffic.
Toronto, Edinburgh and Argentina were the only conferences so far directly in a
major city; the NYC bid would be another one. The differences are that NYC is
an amazingly diverse city; in terms of people, you'll see all ethnicities, all
ages, men, women, etc. mixed throughout. Everyone whether rich or poor takes
the subways and buses, and they are open 24/7 as are many stores, bars, etc.
The different neighborhoods within NYC have very different characters, which
you can experience as you walk around on a nice day. You can see bright lights
in Times Square, cheap eats and knock-off products in Chinatown, trendy art
galleries in SoHo, a mixture of Orthodox Jews and Polish people and young
hipster artists in Williamsburg, political activism in a public park in Union
Square, museums of sex and comic books and (oh yeah) fine art, wildlife
reserves, a set of carnival games and shops near the beach at Coney Island,
abandoned railway lines, etc. And the architecture varies tremendously as well.
It's really many cities in one.
What would be new in a New York City DebConf? We'd probably have several
daytrip options since there are so many things to do, possibly allowing
mix-and-match at different times of day. In addition to Times Square and Coney
Island mentioned already, where else can you see the Brooklyn Bridge, the
Empire State Building, the Statue of Liberty, the New York Stock Exchange, the
the Metropolitan Museum of Art, United Nations headquarters, the 9/11 disaster
site, and the Daily Show with Jon Stewart (tickets are free!)? You can also see
the diner from Seinfeld near our venue site, and many other neighborhoods and
locations from movies and TV shows throughout the city. Hiking is also quite
doable, either as a long walk through the city, or as a side trip in the
catskill mountains, or over a bridge to New Jersey, or through wilderness areas
in Central Park or Prospect Park in Brooklyn.
There are other new things we could do such as possible joint activities with
the local Free Software community, such as making the keysigning party
Amazingly Amazingly Massive. Especially interesting is coordinating with the
biannual HOPE hacker conference, which will be happening in NYC in Summer 2010,
so that people can attend both conferences in one trip, similar to what
Edinburgh was hoping to do with the Fringe Festival. I'd say more, but this
email is too long already! :-)
- Jimmy Kaplowitz
jimmy@debian.org
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