I couldn't agree more, Dan. ~Simon
Simon Horwith CIO, AboutWeb - http://www.aboutweb.com Editor-in-Chief, ColdFusion Developers Journal Adobe Community Expert Adobe Certified Master Instructor Blog - http://www.horwith.com Daniel Ganter wrote: > I've watched many threads and have heard many discussions over the years with > regard to CFUnited. While the general consensus is that CFUnited is the best > CFML conference, many conversations like this latest thread have been > unjustly negative. > > I've heard complaints about the cost for delegates, the cost for vendors, the > number and type of perks for speakers, the ownership of content and mailing > lists, the lack of sharing of proceeds from reprinted media, amongst numerous > others... > > But what about all the positives? What about all the commitment and risk > TeraTech undertakes to deliver this show â bigger and better every year? > > What about praise for all the hard work, time and dedication that Michael > Smith, Liz Frederick, the entire staff at TeraTech, and countless numbers of > volunteers (and even many âevilâ vendors) expend to make CFUnited the > premier event for the CFML community? > > What about consideration and thanks for the corresponding risk that Michael > Smith and TeraTech assumes by putting their name and fiscal responsibility > behind an event that costs hundreds of thousands of dollars to operate? > > So many people seem so eager to get their own slice of some imaginary > mega-usa-dollar pie that *must* be left over from such a large, popular and > growing event like CFUnited. People ask for their slice as lower prices, more > speaker perks, better food, better wireless, âprofit sharingâ from DVD > sales, and on and on and on⦠> > Are these same people willing to share the risk with Michael and TeraTech if > CFUnited ever lost money? Would they be willing to write a check to TeraTech > today if there were a few bills left unpaid from last yearâs show? Would > the speakers be willing to help defray the costs of video production and > distribution costs if this new and innovative venture lost money? > > Well, hereâs your chance. Commit to TeraTech today that youâre willing to > help them underwrite the entire CFUnited production. For as great as CFUnited > has become, it is not a huge profit center for TeraTech. If fact, there was > not a penny left over from last yearâs show. Even further â there were > indeed a few bills left to pay. > > Should CFUnited make a profit for TeraTech? I think so, and I encourage them > to have that goal all the time. Michael is very gracious to this community, > and I donât think profit matters as much to him as it would for me. He does > this in large part for the greater good of your community. He deserves > continued thanks for his vision and effort. > > So is CFUnited poorly run? Not a chance! Liz does a superb job organizing > this event. If anything, they are trying too hard to make this a continually > better experience for every member of this community. Every effort, every > improvement has a new or increased cost associated with it. > > But why is CFUnited costing more every year? Look at the changes over the > past years. The facility is first class. The perks and food and connectivity > and speaker quality and⦠get better and better every year. Better costs > more than worse. > > As great as the early CFUN years were, Iâm not interested in going back to > damp and dingy hotel basements with no connectivity and crummy food. CFML > programmers complain all the time that they donât get the recognition and > respect when compared to their industry peers. Well you know what? That sure > isnât true when it comes to conferences. CFUnited is a premier first rate > event that every member of this community should be proud of â whether you > attend it or not! > > So, cut Michael, Liz and the whole TeraTech gang some slack. Go out of your > way to offer them praise â now knowing full well that they are not > producing this event to fleece you. They are incredibly dedicated, gracious > and compassionate people committed to keeping this community strong. > > Regards, > Dan > > ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~| Introducing the Fusion Authority Quarterly Update. 80 pages of hard-hitting, up-to-date ColdFusion information by your peers, delivered to your door four times a year. http://www.fusionauthority.com/quarterly Archive: http://www.houseoffusion.com/groups/CF-Talk/message.cfm/messageid:260909 Subscription: http://www.houseoffusion.com/groups/CF-Talk/subscribe.cfm Unsubscribe: http://www.houseoffusion.com/cf_lists/unsubscribe.cfm?user=11502.10531.4
