I am interested in organizing a monthly NH Drupal Group meetup in Portsmouth.
Q: Why? We already have one in Manchester?
A: Because there is a strong web development community in the seacoast area that would benefit from a local meetup, and because Portsmouth is a groovy town!
Q: When and How Frequently?
A: Since the Manchester Meetup is held on Thursday I would like to shoot for a Monday or Tuesday night meetup to accommodate folks that are busy on Thursday nights (myself included).
Q: Where?
A: Depending on the level of interest I will try to find a location to host in or near Portsmouth that has AV capability and (of course) WiFi access. Luckily, much of Portsmouth has public free WiFi provided by http://www.ecoastwifi.org, though bandwidth varies from spot to spot.
Q: Who Should Come?
A: Drupalists of all experience levels. Enthusiasts, hobbyists and professionals are all welcome and we will try to create an atmosphere where newbies are supported and encouraged and guru's have a chance to share their wisdom and learn something new as well.
Q: What's the Format?
A: I would like to have a specific topic for each meetup that will be summarized ahead of time so the conversation can begin ahead of time online and anyone that's not interested doesn't have to waste their time. The expectation will be that all content, no matter how complex, will be made accessible to those with less experience. There are no dumb questions! If you're really a superb Drupalist, then you can make any question an opportunity to give back to the community.
Q: How do I sign up?
A: Please post to this discussion or send me an email at 'kevin@kevinbaringer.com'. Once there are at least a few people that are interested I'll start working on finding a venue and schedule the first meetup.
Looking forward to Drupalling with ya!
-Kevin
Comments
I am definitely interested in
I am definitely interested in this idea! My preference is for Monday nights. Let me know if you need any help.
Mondays would work for me,
Mondays would work for me, too! Though just to be aware, the NH Ruby users group meets on Mondays too, so we'd want our meeting to meet a different week than that one (I'd be going to both).
But I'd be down! For sure! :)
Aubrey Pennings
http://star-shaped.org
the Mount Washington Valley likes this idea
Although it's still a hall from the Mountains to Portsmouth, it's still closer than Concord.
Any chance on getting sponsorship from UNH? it would centralize the location for Portsmouth, Concord and the White Mountains.
In any event, I'm in.
I'm down too.
Hi Kevin, I believe a Portsmouth meetup would be well attended. The Boston meetup is the first Tues of every month. And the North Shore Web Geeks is the 3rd Thurs. http://northshorewebgeeks.com/. I'd love it if it didn't clash with those days. I come from north of Boston so Portsmouth is great for me. From my meetup organization experience, sometimes it's hard to plan a talk ahead of time. I hope it works but there's always lightning talks in this format: http://groups.drupal.org/node/87569. It works really well and gives peep a chance to get up and talk that otherwise may not happen. With the North Shore Web Geeks, we alternate or use lightning talks as a backup. My advice is to build it and they will come. I also agree with Aubrey, Mondays are good. Thanks for taking the initiative.
www.macpheedesign.com
Me too
Hi Kevin, I would also be interested in a meet-up in Portsmouth. Mondays would be best for me as well.
Mondays It Is!
It looks like the consensus so far is for Monday nights, which is great for me as well, so thanks everyone!
I'll dive in and start looking for a venue.
@jjmackow, I'm not sure about UNH but I'll certainly ask around. If anyone has a lead at UNH or another potential venue in the seacoast area please let me know.
Thanks everyone for your interest and feedback. I can't wait to get this thing off the ground!
- Kevin
Glad to see enough folks interested...
Always glad to see more Drupal meetups forming...
UNH lead, I'd find out more about this (ie contact the UNH WebSolutions group directly):
http://groups.drupal.org/node/81939
Even if it's not a good venue, might stir up more UNH folks to attend someplace else.
Mondays works for me, Tuesday are out almost completely, Fridays are bad in general for meetings.
UNH
I am actually a designer in the UNH Web Solutions group. You could probably reserve a room in the library that has a projector (I'm thinking room 537). It's a public library, so I would think you'd be able to reserve the room yourself. If you decide to meet at UNH and you run into any trouble though, let me know and I'll see what I can do to help out.
I'm in
I'm a Drupal newbie from Portsmouth and am excited to learn. Keep me posted, Kevin!
Wish I Could
I work in Dover so the Seacoast is much closer for me than Manchester. However...I am busy Mon & Tue thru the end of the year so I'm bumming. Just wanted you to know there was at least interest!
In from Portland, ME
I'm up in Portland and would love a Portsmouth meetup! I am good on any weekday.
Alternate from NH Meetups (Manchester) and the Boston Meetups
It would be great, as I'd like to make as many of these as possible as well to ensure we alternate days (and hopefully weeks) of the Manchester and Boston meetups.
Boston meets on the 1st Tuesday of every month, and Manchester meets the 2nd Thursday of every month.
Jake Strawn (@himerus)
ThemeGeeks | Development Geeks
Omega - 960.gs
First Seacoast NH Drupal Meetup: Monday, October 4th
Okay, it appears that the NH Ruby Group meets on the 3rd Monday of every month, so it looks like meeting on the first Monday of the month is what will work for the most people that have responded here.
I'd like to propose that we target Monday, October 4th as the date for the first Seacoast NH Drupal Meetup.
Now, the venue. UNH has been suggested as well as downtown Portsmouth. Both have public libraries with AV equipment. So, there are a few other factors involved in choosing a destination. Here goes:
1) After Meetup: Half the fun of a meetup is going out afterward for drinks and chow (in my opinion), and I'd have to say that Portsmouth offers the better selection of establishments for those purposes.
2) Ease-of-Access: Durham is easier to get to from some points north and west of the Seacoast, but Portsmouth has easier highway access overall. It's pretty subjective, but I think we might serve a wider audience with a Portsmouth location. I'm open to dissent on this point though.
3) Other venues: Since having businesses host meetups is a common practice which benefits both the business and the attendees, it's worth considering the density of relevant businesses near the venue. I believe that Portsmouth still has more to offer than Durham in that regard, though Dover businesses could go either way I suppose.
Right now I'm feeling that Portsmouth is the best place to get started. However, as we make contact with other participants and reach out to other venues in the area I think it's appropriate to stay open to moving around within a reasonable (Seacoast-ey) radius. Hence, we'll refer to this meetup as the "Seacoast NH Drupal Meetup".
I'll contact the Portsmouth public library and find out about reserving a room with a capacity of at least 20 people. If that number seems off PLEASE let me know. This is my first time at the show.
Lastly, in addition to the basic meet-and-greet and establishing some meetup protocols, I'm looking for presentation suggestions for our inaugural meetup. Any thoughts?
Question: In general, would people mind if the Manchester presentation from this month were to be repeated in the Seacoast, or do a lot of folks plan to attend both? I know I will whenever I can since the group there is awesome (I've been told), but Thursdays are tricky. How about you all?
Looking forward to Monday, 10/04!
- Kevin
10/04 works for me
The first Monday of the month would work for me. I'm just happy with the idea of a Seacoast Drupal Meet-up happening, even better that it isn't on the ever popular Tuesday/Thursday, so I don't have a strong opinion on which Seacoast town it should be in.
I won't be attending the Manchester presentation, so wouldn't mind if it repeats on the Seacoast.
Thanks for organizing this!
I'm game for a Seacoast meetup
I believe that Portsmouth is another hub for Drupal developers although vote for a meeting at UNH. It's a location of one of the largest Drupal installations in the Seacoast area that I know of. Also a few students at UNH may want to attend as well; their accessibility in mind - feed the youth.
Aubrey may not like the beer selection in Durham tho :-)
A repeat of Manchester presentation reduces the work of the group organizers so, I'm open to being exposed to the same presentation since I didn't attend Manchvagas.
Sounds Good - but don't repeat Manchester just yet
I drive an hour to the Manchester group from Wolfeboro. Why not an hour to the Seacoast group too! I'm game. Although the Idea of doing a repeat of the same topics is kind of a turn off. For me , it would kind of have a "Why Bother", splintering effect. Maybe holding the Manch topic on a list to do a few months later would work better.
As a fairly newbie, I, and some other newbies I've talked to, would like to see maybe a half hour devoted to intermediate topics. Something that helps bridge the gap for those that have worked through an Intro book or two, but still get totally lost on the advanced stuff. Couple that with an advanced topic, and you'll have a session with a wide range of appeal.
As for the inaugural topic. I was at the Manchester meetup this month. Although, it was a good topic for experts, much of it blew right over the heads of me and at least one other participant. I would definitely not choose to do a repeat for the inaugural. I don't think you'd have many new/intermediate returners after that. But I'd definitely keep it in mind for future possibilities.
www.EcoBoro.com
Portsmouth / Manchester
IMO the Seacoast group should strive for its own identity. I admit to having some concerns that splintering the NH group too much may be more of a detriment to the overall community, however, I also think that it is worth seeing what the interest and turnout is in the two areas. If the Portsmouth meetup draws well and becomes a success, then that is great.
With regard to the topics, first, there would even be the question of whether or not the individuals who presented or will present in Manchester are willing and able to also do it at the Seacoast meetup. I would not just assume that the answer will be yes, although you certainly can ask them.
Also, the topics presented by Erich in Manchester were a result of him trying to fill a void by coming up with something at the last minute, which I am sure we all greatly appreciate. I agree that ideally there will be something for everyone or that will be of interest to the most people, and that means that if several topics are covered, ideally everyone will get something out of at least one of them. That's where I think the idea of going around the room or opening the floor to questions or issues is valuable. That way novices have a chance to ask any questions they may have and learn from those more experienced, and those more experienced can also raise interesting topics they've encountered or share useful techniques they have learned. It's important to make sure everyone knows there is no such thing as a dumb question and that you are welcome to ask anything -- I do think we've fostered the kind of atmosphere where people know that, but still there will be new people who are not sure how this thing works.
IMO meetups should be a mix of pre-planned presentations (if possible) with topics that everyone attending knows will be covered, and an opportunity to open the floor to anyone to ask or talk about anything they want. That seems to afford the most chances for involvement and also to keep the interest of people of all levels of experience.
Myself, I would like to make the Portsmouth meetup, but as with Boston, it is difficult between work and family. I would probably only attend a Portsmouth meetup occasionally if at all. Manchester works well for me, even though a night away just across the city from my home is often a challenge. But there's always something interesting and of course, good people.
I hope the result of all this is that both Portsmouth and Manchester become successful and stand on their own, and thanks to all those who have worked or will work towards that goal.
UNH
If you are interested in reserving a space at UNH Durham I work in the Web Solutions group in Dimond library and can assist with booking a room in the library to meet.
DATE & LOCATION ARE SET! Oct.2010 Seacoast NH Drupal Meetup
Okay everyone, although there is still discussion about future locations for our meetups I went ahead and scheduled a room at the Portsmouth Library for this coming Monday, October 4th, at 7:00pm. This will be a very casual meetup with no set itinerary. We'll just go around the room and make introductions, blab a little about what we use Drupal for, and most importantly what we'd all like to get out of these meetups.
Then, of course, we will move on to an agreed-upon location for tasty beverages and food.
I'm still waiting for final confirmation that I have the room but I was told over the phone that it's 90% set. If anything changes I'll post here, but if you specifically want to be notified with updates regarding the meetup then send me an email at kevin@kevinbaringer.com and I'll create a notification mailing list.
So again here's our time and place for the very first Seacoast NH Drupal Meetup!
Date: Monday, October 4th, 2010
Time: 7:00pm to 9:00pm
Location: Portsmouth Public Library, The Hilton Garden Inn Meeting Room (2nd floor)
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Venue Address: 175 Parrott Ave, Portsmouth, New Hampshire 03801
Venue Telephone: 603-427-1540
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Notes: Please take a moment to peruse the library's Rules of Behavior on the 4th page of the room application.
See you there!! - Kevin
You know I'll be there!
You know I'll be there!
Aubrey Pennings
http://star-shaped.org
Can't make it but...
Please create an event for it... to help folks find it easier