Please take our survey!

At the meeting i want to find answers to the following questions. Feel free to start discussion in email as well

• we are reducing planned presentations from 2 tracks to 1, with the other set up for day-of off-the-cuff presentations based on what else is going on at the event. However, what other things should we plan in terms of programming? Who wants to head them up?
• what kind of venue and lodging would be most fitting for our programming? We can do a standard hotel, there are still a few to choose from. Or we could try something completely different. What would work best?
• should we pick a place that closes in the evenings to allow everyone to explore the area?
• We’ve done electronic badges for the past 4 years. Is this something we should continue or should we go another route? What kind of swag could we offer if we were to do a kickstarter-esque fundraiser?

Hopefully these seeds will get you all thinking! As usual, the meetings will take place virtually either in a google chat/hangout or on irc. Please let me jnow if you need further information.

I look forward to hearing all of your ideas!

Not on our planning list?  Subscribe today!

First, we’ll be erecting our 26′ diameter geodesic dome right outside of the Great Lakes Science Center. Over the course of the weekend we’ll be building LED throwies, working on our LED throwie mural and giving impromptu talks on various subjects. In the evening’s we’ll screen some of the best demos from the demoscene, (including from Blockparty and PixelJam) as well as feature both live music, DJs, weird videos and awesome visualizations.

Ingenuity fest starts at 5 PM Friday. We need to have the dome up before that if at all possible. The more people we get to help put it up, the better! The dome will need to come down at 5 PM on Sunday. It shouldn’t take more than a couple hours provided we have enough people to make quick work of it!

If you are interested in helping out DURING the event, we could really use the help! If you can help set up or tear down, that’s fantastic, too! If you’re interested in hosting your own event in the dome, we’re open to that, too.

Remember, the event is FREE, although parking might be kind of a pain. Here is the overall Ingenuity schedule.

Ingenuity schedule:
Friday: 5PM to 1AM
Saturday: Noon to 1AM
Sunday: Noon to 5 PM

Please contact us if you plan to join us! (include your availability, please!)

Hope to see you there!

If you’re not local, that’s fine!  We will also have a google hangout so non-locals can participate as well!  More information will be added to this post, added to the Notacon twitter feed and facebook group.

Our agenda for the meeting is already online and it can be found here.

Google Hangout: https://plus.google.com/hangouts/_/gyrpj6uvnncwuupsu4of7ka6lua

This is a difficult piece to write, but it’s time to deal with some facts head on. Paid attendance this year is down by 50% from last year. This means we did not book enough hotel rooms necessary for us to afford the Notacon conference space. When all is said and done, it looks like we’ll owe the hotel about $8,250 in various rental fees, food and beverage purchases (as require by contract) and other things.

We only pulled in $8,076.68 in combined registration fees (after credit processing fees). As is apparent, this amount is not enough to cover what we will owe the hotel at the end of Notacon 11. I have worked with the hotel to reduce this, but they’re not budging and I understand their reasons for not doing so. They have a business to run, too, and need to recoup their costs and make money.

There is an outside possibility this situation could change. For example, we could find people to book 30 more nights worth of rooms. A angel sponsor could come in with a $3,000 to $5,000 check. We could also manage to sell more stuff at Notacon than we’ve ever sold before. Realisticly, though, that’s probably not going to happen.

What does this mean in practical terms?

It means that FTS Conventures will likely work with a bankruptcy attorney after Notacon and shutter the business for good. Notacon will be die and that will be that. Tyger and I have bailed out the company to the tune of $25,000 over the years and it’s time that I personally admit it’s untenable to keep going and call it quits.

This is unfortunate, as I thought set up Notacon in every way for success this year. We negotiated lower hotel rental fees, food and beverage requirements and lower number of bookings. We cuts costs wherever we could. However, with a paid attendance 50% of where it was last year, it means that we’re basically screwed.

This graph should explain things fairly clearly:

http://cache.froggynet.com/notacon%20registrations.png

So there we are. That’s our reality. There is an outside chance that a miracle occurs, but common sense says that’s not going to happen.

With all of that said, here’s how we will move forward with Notacon 11:

We want you to focus on having the best Notacon ever. Enjoy everything as much as possible. Realize that you, a participant in our events, have been a critical part to an event that, over the past decade, has set the standard that many other hacker cons aspired to. Many new cons were started in direct response to the awesomeness that is Notacon and, as such, we now have more hacker cons in the United States than ever before. Likewise, long established cons looked to Notacon to revamp and refresh their own events. If imitation is the sincerest form of flattery, Notacon humbly stands as flattered as anything.

Notacon and all who participated in it have touched thousands of lives across the world. We have opened minds to ideas and concepts never before touched at other conferences. We have changed lives and made them better. There is an incredible amount to be proud of and I’m really glad many of you all were along for the ride!

So at Notacon 11, let’s celebrate what we’ve done and look toward the unknown future to discover what comes next!

Love,

Froggy

Notacon 11 will premiere Hacker Pictionary on Friday and Saturday night.  Play for fun and join the hilarity of trying to interpret your friends nonsensical drawings!  

We’re also announcing a Cards Against Humanity tournament with dates and times to be announced soon.  This game is open to everyone over 18, and is definitely a night time non-kid friendly event.  For those that have played, you know what you’re in store for.  New players should be warned to check their mind in the gutter before starting!

Do you think you’re good at engineering or creating art under pressure? This contest is for you! Up to 6 teams of 2 to 4 people may compete for Notacon’s first ULTRAVIOLET badges, which provides free admission to the next Notacon!

Please sign up your teams ahead of time to ensure a spot. If you don’t have a team, let us know and we’ll find one for you!

Please see the entry on the Events, Games and Performances page!

Aside from what you do for your job, what are your hobbies, hacking projects or other interests that Notacon participants might be interested in learning about you?

In all honesty, my day job is probably far more relevant than my hobbies.
But I write, I create random artistic things, and I spend a lot of time
learning medical stuff to keep up with my kids’ needs.

What is the biggest takeaway you want presenters to leave with?

Kids can hack too!

What have you enjoyed the most at past Notacons?.

this is not my first Notacon – I think I’ve missed one out of the last
6 or 7. I look forward to the interesting conversations, and to hearing
about topics I’m not going to hear anywhere else.

Any final thoughts or statements you’d like to share with the community?

Notacon is awesome!

Register now!

Aside from what you do for your job, what are your hobbies, hacking projects or other interests that Notacon participants might be interested in learning about you?

Huge sci-fi buff and big Rubyist, Omega being the result!

Pretty involved w/ the Syracuse Hackerspace, the Syracuse Innovators Guild, and avid Aikido practitioner, it helps with the alignment of one’s energy with the big picture.

Love all things techy / geeky / etc, feel free to pull me aside anypoint to nerd out!

What is the biggest takeaway you want presenters to leave with?

Some cool project ideas and a means to do them on their own (of course I am always willing to offer assistance, send me an email / ping me on irc anytime!)

What have you enjoyed the most at past Notacons?.

I attended Notacon in 2011 and had a blast at Notacon Radio!

Any final thoughts or statements you’d like to share with the community?

<insert awesome statement here>

See everyone next month, gonna be a blast!!

Register now!

Compos will include:
– Combined Demo
– Freestyle Graphics
– Freestyle Music
– Photography
– Textmode Graphics
– Wildcard