e-Pro: Technical Meat and Potatoes on Lotusphere 2005 Menu

September 20 2004

"Based on last year's feedback, we let the content swing a little too much into future technology," Marcus said. "They understand that we need to use this platform to tell them what's coming next, and they need to plan for what's ahead, but they said they need to get practical information about what they can put to work when they get back to the office. The theme this year is 'Hear it today, learn it today, put it to work tomorrow.'"
There will be some differences at LS05:
However, certain aspects will be tweaked this year with the intent of giving attendees more bang for the buck. For example, breakout sessions which had run 75 minutes long in previous Lotuspheres, will now clock in at 60 minutes.
TheLotusphere team is also thinking of spreading BoFs throughout the day...would be interested in your feedback on that.
Link: e-Pro: Technical meat and potatoes on Lotusphere 2005 menu >

Ed Brill | Highland Park, IL USA Category:  Lotusphere 05  Add/View Comments [11]

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  1. 1  jonvon http://jonvon.net | 9/20/2004 12:37:37 PM

    it would be nice to see them scheduled, generally speaking, later than earlier. it's a tough one i'm sure, if a really good tech session competes with a BOF i was interested in, i might opt for the session to learn something new. scheduling them really early (before 8am) just puts them right out for me, i am doing well if i make it to breakfast!

    put it this way, later in the day my brain is tired and i don't have the stamina to pay much attention in another tech session unless the subject matter is particulary riveting. i'd be more likely to *participate* in a BOF at that time, as requires a different kind of focus, one which is generally more invigorating.

    anyway, my two cents... :-)

  1. 2  Duffbert http://www.twduff.com | 9/20/2004 12:46:15 PM

    Only 60 minutes? Talk fast, listen faster... :-)

  1. 3  John J. Coolidge  | 9/20/2004 12:54:26 PM

    I think that having BOF's during the day is great. It gives us more of a chance to participate in them. (Sometimes it's hard to get up early enought for the morning sessions)

  1. 4  Nanook  | 9/20/2004 1:18:11 PM

    Great idea for BoF's -- my main problem with BoF's has always been there were many I wanted to attend, but could only be one place at a time! They have always been one of the most beneficial aspects of the 'Sphere for me!

  1. 5  Tim Latta  | 9/20/2004 2:44:16 PM

    BOFs are tough early in the morning if there have been late night activities the evening prior. BOFs are tough later in day as your brain begins to be fried by then. BOFs are tough when there are 4 that you want to attend at once.

    That being said, BOFs are great to have. Spreading them throughout the day will be an additional challenge up against technical sessions. Sorry I'm not offering any solutions....just stating what is obvious. Maybe scale back on the number of BOFs, sprinkle a few during the day, and see how it goes this year.

  1. 6  Greg Walrath http://www.univarusa.com | 9/20/2004 2:57:38 PM

    BOF's during the day would be great - there were too many in the early AM before with too many conflicts; conversely, there were a few time slots (especially later in the week) where there we no regular sessions I wanted to go to. Having some BOF's in this time period would be great.

  1. 7  Les Zatony  | 9/20/2004 7:43:17 PM

    I guess I'm alone on not having an issue with the 7am BOFs. During the day would be a real challenge since I'm off to a lab if I'm not at a session. I am a little concerned about cutting the time to 60 minutes especially if that means that there will still be 10 - 15 minutes of Q&A required. It seems like the presenters are already trying to stuff a lot into a cramped time.

  1. 8  Danny Lawrence  | 9/20/2004 9:31:42 PM

    I've got an idea for a good "content" session.

  1. 9  Ed Brill www.edbrill.com | 9/20/2004 9:34:08 PM

    I'm a content manager!

    It will probably be 10-14 days from now. I just finished my edits to the call for abstracts an hour or so ago...

  1. 10  Bill Dorge http://www.teamhuber.com | 9/21/2004 8:25:18 AM

    Since your cutting sessions down to 60 minutes, I would think that by late afternoon, I'd be ready for a BOF. If you start them about 3:30 or 4:00, I might be able to get in more than one a day.

  1. 11  Motley Code  | 9/22/2004 10:30:14 AM

    My BOF 2 cents worth. 7am = bad bad bad! too early. 6-9pm is good (yes, i'm spent also, but they're too good to miss). problem is, conflicts. i would be willing to try during the day, but i usually already have at least 2 sessions that i want to attend at one time, so the BOF will probably make such decisions even harder.

    How about a lunch/dinner BOF, where you get a box meal and a BOF? How about BOFs on Sun? i always get there early, but rarely feel i need to take jumpstarts at this point in my career.