Silicon Hiss and Purr

Since I missed it due to a previous appointment, I'll put my Silicon 2008 pros and cons here

Pro:
Larry Niven
Chase Masterson
Lively fanzine lounge
Lots of interesting panel choices
Good mix of parties
Friendly staff
Good mix of dealers
Good mix of art in the art show and artist alley
Friendly fans
Match Game SF
They let me give a panel
They let me display my photos in the art show

Con:
No good food options at the hotel
$5 per day parking
Not held on a 3-day weekend --> low attendance
Not enough lighting in the art show
Not enough lighting in the foyer for events held there (it was the corner of Dark & Darker)
Horrible arrangement in the big space (whose idea was it to have a Donner Pass room anyway?) with the tech nest set up way up front and center. Tech should be at the back of the hall, not blocking 80% of the best audience view.
Programming details were released way too late
Rocky Horror was canceled
Trailer Park was canceled
Chase Masterson's "Live From The Holodeck" was canceled
Too many times the panelists listed in the program were not the people on the panel
No signage at registration to point pre-reg and guests to the right location

I had a blast, though it may not look like it from this list, overall the purrs far outweigh the hisses for me.

Silicon Life Form

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Originally uploaded by how3ird.

This life form was spotted at Silicon 2008 last weekend. Click on the image to see the whole photo set.