Community Breakfast March 2012 - Preparing for SXSW

Attendees:
Espen André Øverdahl

Cathrine Gunasekara (not attending SXSW, but would love to know what content to follow online)

Evan Hamilton

Meghan Krane

Molly Bugler

Meagan Marie

Choosing Sessions:

 * Go to sessions with speakers you like/think are interesting. You can't know if a talk will be good, but you can know if the speaker will be.
 * Check out Plancast to see what events the crowd is getting excited about.
 * Each talk has an education level. Skip the beginner-level talks, they're often very generic. Aim for intermediate and advanced.

Scheduling:

 * Don't have a single schedule, because it will be ruined. Be prepared for the unexpected. Plan several events during one time period.
 * Find a buddy! It's easier to figure out where to go when you have two brains.
 *  Be sure you know where your event is, as there are different campuses.

Networking:

 * Take and give lots of business cards...but be sure to write on the card where you met them and why you took their card, or you'll forget.
 *  Make a list of people you want to meet up with...that's the real promise of this conference.

Logistics:

 * Unless you have a hotel in town, plan on coming downtown for the day. It's too much work to get back and too much going on.


 * Don't bring a laptop: it'll be heavy, and you won't use it that much.


 * Check the weather...unless it's getting really cold, don't bring a jacket. It'll just be a hassle.


 * There are outlets in the hallways. If you bring a power strip, you'll make friends.
 * Going East of the freeway is not crazy-safe. Better to stay in the main area, which is North of the river, South of the University, East of Congress Ave, and West of the freeway. 95% of the events are there anyway.
 * Restaurants can take forever. Head for the food carts instead.
 * Wifi can be spotty, as can reception. But you shouldn't spend too much time on your devices anyway.

Parties:

 * Don't chase free food or booze, it's not worth it usually.


 * The big parties are loud and hard to get into. Look for smaller, quirkier events.
 * Technically you have to RSVP to parties to attend, though they don't often check
 * Check out the WillCall app to RSVP to 50 parties automatically

List of recommended events
Community & Influence: How Not to Piss People Off

Community-Centered Design: It's Not About the User

A Crash Course in Becoming SuperBetter

Crowd Sourcing Community Projects Like Tom Sawyer

Community First: Lessons for Early-Stage Startups

Social Media Boundaries: Personal/Personnel Policy

Get Lucky: Create Serendipity to Spur Innovation