October 02, 2004

I made it through day one of Gnomedex 4. It was a long day that started before 9am and finally closed down after 11pm. Things went quite well as everything went right on schedule.

I came away generally pleased with the panel discussions. The real highlight for me was the panel on security. Security, while necessary, isn't one of the areas I concentrate on from a geek sense. Chris DiBona did a good job mediating a panel the had more diverse views than I expected. I was especially impressed with Dan Appleman. He is articulate, compassionate, and extremely knowledgeable. If you get a chance to see him speak or better yet talk to him in person do so.

This brings me to one of the best things this conference. There isn't thousands of people vying for the attention of one or two speakers. There was plenty of chance to talk to those speaking. It is more that just a conga line of people queuing up for a five second "hi I enjoy your work, keep it up", "thank you", next please. I met and was treated well by each person I met at the conference, and I met about everyone.

Being part of many discussions with the assembled iluminati, not as a bystander but as a contributor, made the event for me, and that happened at the Thursday night welcome party. By the time the first panel was finished on Friday morning I knew I had already got my moneys worth.

I thought the panel on blogging was too focused on short term problems like bandwidth for audio and video. To me blogging is an artistic endeavor, a creative outlet. It requires the freedom to explore all avenues. To worry about being slash doted is the wrong approach and one that only a few ever have to worry about. The other concern put forward was information overload. Yes, there is a lot of information out there, to worry that your missing something by not seeing everything may be slightly unhealthy. Once again my opinion.

Last up was the panel on the digital lifestyle. The discussion seemed to focus and whether or not there would be a convergence of digital appliances. Some discussion centered around the idea that the convergence will happen when Apple makes a convergent device. I'm not sure what to make of that other than those that wait get left behind.

There seems to be a right size for an event like this to bring together a group that is cohesive, caring, and passionate. By luck or by skill Chris seems to have got the numbers right.