Re: Hackfest social activities

There's an openFrameworks lab planned Feb 26-28 related to the Decode  
event.


-Omar

On Feb 16, 2010, at 3:25 PM, Brian Cameron <[email protected]>  
wrote:

>
> Allan:
>
> > I've been working on organising the social side of the upcoming
> > Usability Hackfest. The plan comes in four parts...
>
> Thanks so much for helping with this.
>
> I do have one question.  If there are people in the local London
> free software community who are not participating in the GNOME
> Usability Hackfest, can they join in with some of our planned social
> activities.
>
> I would think we would want any such people to RSVP beforehand to
> ensure that things do not get out-of-hand, but I think it would be  
> nice
> to at least have some social events which are open to others to join
> if that can be arranged.  It sounds like the GNOME London Beer event
> will work this way, but it might be nice to plan some more  
> opportunities
> to engage with the local community.
>
> > 1. First night meal (Monday 22nd February)
> >
> > I think the Queen's Arms pub [1] could be the best place. It's a  
> great
> > modern pub that does excellent beer and good food, and it's within
> > walking distance of the hackfest venue. There's a nice dining room
> > that we could use. Does that seem OK?!
> >
> > It would be great if hackfest attendees could give me an  
> indication of
> > whether they are going to attend the first night meal. I've added a
> > column to the attendees table on the hackfest wiki page [2] so you  
> can
> > do that.
>
> Sounds great!  I will be there and I will update the Wiki as well.
>
> > 2. GNOME London Beer
> >
> > London GNOMErs have regular(ish) social gatherings. It would be  
> great
> > to tie a GNOME London Beer night in with the hackfest. It's  
> tradition > to hold the London Beer nights on a Friday. Would that  
> suit the
> > hackfest attendees?
>
> This is fine for me.  I will be there since I will be in London Friday
> night.  Some attendees may leave after the hackfest on Friday so we
> will likely lose some people.  But, if it is tradition to have it on
> Friday, then that is reasonable.  I am sure there will be  
> opportunities
> to spend some time in the pub before Friday as well.
>
> > 3. Places to eat and drink during the hackfest
> >
> > I've started putting a Google Map [3] together with some
> > recommendations for places to eat and drink during the hackfest. I'm
> > happy to help organise additional social activities during the week,
> > if that's what people want to do.
>
> I would think so.  Rather than trying to work this out via email, I
> think it would be easier to spend some time on Monday making plans
> for the week when we are all together.  This way we can make sure
> we consider everybody's ideas and concerns.  We can update the Wiki
> with our plans as we make them so people know what is going on and
> so out-of-towners can figure out directions, etc.
>
> > 4. An exciting trip!
> >
> > I've had a couple of ideas for trips to enlighten and inspire. The
> > first is the London Design Museum [4]. The second is an exhibition
> > called 'Decode: Digital Design Sensations' [5], which is showing at
> > the moment, and looks highly relevant to the subject of the  
> hackfest.
> >
> > Would the hackfest attendees like to go on a trip like this? If yes,
> > when would be the best time to do it?
>
> I would think that an event like this would be a good way to break up
> the event.  Since this is a long hackfest, a full week, I think we
> may easily suffer burn-out.  Going to do something like this mid-week
> would hopefully help to recharge some batteries.  Both the London
> Design Museum and the "Decode: Digital Design Sensations" exhibition
> look relevant and inspirational.  It is hard to choose.
>
> So, this sounds like a good idea to me.  I would suggest this would be
> a good way to end Wednesday afternoon after a morning of hacking.
>
> As an aside, one of my favorite tourist sites in London that many  
> people
> overlook is the Sir John Soane's Museum.  What an odd but amazing
> collection, and small enough to see in less than an hour if you do not
> get too captivated by the collection.  It is open Tuesday to Saturday
> 10-5pm.
>
>  http://www.soane.org/
>
> This probably does not relate to the GNOME Usability hackfest very
> well, so I would not recommend it as a group activity, but I do
> recommend checking it out if you have not been there and find the  
> time.
>
> Just my thoughts,
>
> Brian
>
>
>
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