Hi,
as we're pretty much out of 'planning phase', with most mayor dates decided, we need to begin with serious preparations. There are still several mayor unresolved issues, which I personally think should be dealt with by the end of December and January so we can have a sound structure for the Conference. The reason why I'm pushing all this a bit sooner than usual, is in a case of some unexpected problems or inconsistency in our planning. This way we'll have a lot of time to deal with it and make sure everything goes as smoothly as possible.
ToDo List
- I made a small ToDo ( DC11 specific) list, which for now, consists only of few topics, but feel free to add anything you think is important to the Conference. This way, we can keep track of what needs to be done, who does what and what teams there are. Any help will be appreciated.
- Can be found at: http://wiki.debconf.org/wiki/DebConf11/ToDo
Travel Info
Accommodations and Venue
- A tough issue at the moment. While we do have some basic 'how to get to BL' stuff, I would like to expand it much more so attendees can prepare and choose the traveling routes best suited for them. In the next few days I will research 3 local Airports (Sarajevo, Zagreb, Belgrade) to see flight plans. This might be tough, as there are many countries from which our attendees come, so I'd appreciate if someone could help. Though it's still too early to have exact flight dates, I'd still like to have some kind of confirmation of existing flight routes during that period. After air transport, we need to focus on land travel possibilities, like bus and train and also, mark all important routes and highways which will be used by people coming with their own cars.
- Now, that we have exact dates of the Conference, we have to get in contact with travel agencies to discuss a possible arrangement of shuttles from airports, bus and train stations to the venue / hotel. First we need to know if that is possible, which I doubt would be a problem, then if it's possible to book shuttles for the day of the camp/conference. We also need to discuss the costs of this. (I'll discuss budget issues later in mail)
- Finally decide which map should be used as main navigational map for dc11. In my opinion Open Street Maps is so far the best and if nobody objects, I'll use it on official dc11 web site and wiki. However, I do have a specific request for people from BL. All important facilities for the conference, as well as exchange offices, banks, restaurants, ATMs, ambulances/hospitals, pharmacies, etc will have to be marked. For that I need someone from Banja Luka to go out and mark all these locations. Of course, I only mean locations in near distance from Venue and Hotel Bosnia. OSM already has a great deal marked, but what is missing, we should add ourselves. So, who is willing to do this, or at least a part of it?
- Also, we need to know Customs rules ( what can and can't be transported over the border ).
- With official dates decided, we can finally book Banski Dvor for hosting the conference as well as Hotel Bosnia as primary accommodation option.
- During booking of Hotel(s), we should see if it's possible to get a discount on a large group. I know it's a cheap shot, but it would definitely be a plus in our budget.
- Also, make sure to check out whatever is provided for guests (towels, pillows, sheets...) so we can tell people what they need to bring, in case it's not provided by hotel.
- Check out what technical equipment is available in Banski Dvor and what will need to be brought. ( Where can I find info on previous DC technical logistics, what equipment and in which amount was used for the conference? )
Budget, Costs, Sponsorships
Local Team and Volunteers
- Time to make 'Financial Team'. We need someone who can keep record of all costs, income, outcome and all available budget.
- We made a 'budget draft' in our paper for Government, but it's based only on statistics from previous DCs, so it has a margin of error. Nonetheless, I think we should base our future planning on these statistics.
- After booking of hotel and shuttles, make a preliminary budget report
- Regarding the brochures, a friend said he'd like to design one, so we have one more volunteer for the job.
Global Team
- During the last few months a great deal of people said they are willing to help. Anyone who volunteered said they are free and ready. Well, now is time to help. Since everything we do is voluntarily, you will have to choose what you'll want to help with. Everyone is welcome, and please use ToDo list to see what we need help with; Use DebConf11/Ideas for any suggestions.
- If you want to join a specific team, just add your name to it on ToDo List
- Also, on our Wiki, Local Team section, a lot of people added their names to it, yet whenever help is need nobody's there. I understand obligations, but don't add yourself if you really can't help or just want your name on the board. I'm sure Adnan and Velimir will agree with me, when I say that the Local Team list should be 'deservingly trimmed down' to those who actually did something or have in some way contributed to the realization of dc11.
Well, that's it for now
- While we are very enthusiastic about all this, it's also important to know that most of us are new to the concept of hosting a huge conference. Therefore, your guidance and help is very appreciate. We made mistakes before, and will probably will make some more, but your patience is appreciated.
- Just a question regarding penta, who makes it? We or you?
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