Florida DrupalCamp 2016 Wins and Losses

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ultimike's picture

Hey everybody,

I just posted a blog post about FLDC2016 wins and losses.

I wanted to link to it from here to ensure everyone is aware of the challenges we faced in organizing the 2016 camp. While the camp was a huge success, there are definitely some things we can do better, but the only way that will happen is if more people step up to help out.

Here's a quick summary of where we'd love some additional help:

  1. Venue selection - at this point, we're moving forward with securing a date for next years camp at the same location. The reason for this is we don't have any volunteers in the Orlando area who have the time to do the legwork to find a suitable location at the same price and hassle-factor (with FTC, there is virtually zero hassle). If someone would like to step up, then let us know.
  2. Session recording - we're all for it. We just need more volunteers to make it happen. We feel that with 5-6 volunteers, including one person overseeing everything, it can be done with a minimum of fuss. We've looked into hiring someone to do it for us, but unless we substantially raise the ticket price, we can't afford it.
  3. Classroom size - we're actively looking into expanding our camp into a two-day event - sessions on Saturday and Sunday. This will allow us to take better advantage of the rooms we do have access to, allow the time between sessions to be lengthened, and allow for longer sessions.
  4. Marketing - our current volunteers do a pretty good job marketing to the local and national Drupal community. We need some help marketing to the local (Florida) non-Drupal communities.
  5. Swag - if you attended this year's camp, you probably noticed we didn't give away any books. This is because we didn't have a volunteer to contact publishers and organize the giveaways.
  6. Local (non-Drupal) sponsors - for the first time ever, we had a budget shortfall this year. We think we could mitigate this trend by finding local, outside-of-the-Drupal-community, sponsors looking to reach our attendees. We need someone to help make this happen.

If you'd like to help out, then feel free to add a comment to the bottom of our lessons learned document and we'll be in touch!

thanks,
-mike

Comments

Thanks Mike, great blog

JCL324's picture

Thanks Mike, great blog write-up. I think most larger regional camps now do have at least 3 days of events and we could probably have a bigger draw for out-of-staters who would be more inclined to make it worth the trip. But we need to decide if we want to go to that level or not. There are pros and cons for each side.

JCL

On session video...

Bowevil's picture

I noticed most session speakers include links to the Screencast, power point, code, etc.
example; https://spinspire.com/article/drupalcamp-florida-presentation-drupal-8-d...
What if we:

  • make sure that each speaker has the hardware/software to record the screencast?
  • Assist speakers on setting up their screen cast.
  • Collect the links to all session related media and setup a media page on the FLDC site.

I prefer viewing slides,code and hearing the speaker. I do not need to see a "video" of the speaker speaking.

Session Recording

Ky1eT's picture

I've taken the lead on this for next year. I've done some test runs with Google Hangouts and I think that's what we will end up using for next year because of it's simplicity in setup and usability. It will record the presenters screen as well as record the audio of the speaker for the entire session which I believe is what most people prefer. It then automatically uploads it to Youtube and is edited from there. Any feedback is greatly appreciated!

Thanks,
Kyle

Kyle...thats awesome! I will

C13L0's picture

Kyle...thats awesome! I will highly recommend making sure we have enough (bluetooth?) mics for each room so the audio quality will be superb.

Audio recording

ddease2's picture

You can also just use an iPhone/Android phone to record the audio, then sync it up afterwards. Sound quality doesn't have to be the best, just better than from the back of the room. ;-)

Dan Dease


ddease2 - Skype
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Awesome to hear Kyle.

Bowevil's picture

If you would like any help just let me know.
-Michael

Session Recording

Ky1eT's picture

Help is always welcomed, thanks! Email me and we will bounce some ideas around.

Kyle
Hallkyle@live.com

Session Video Recordings

GeoCamp's picture

Kyle,

Questions for you to ponder.

I take it you would be expecting each presenter to use their own hardware (PC) to record the session and we would be prepared to help them get started? Would we be providing them an FLDC login for Google? Is this something that we would have an area for them to prepare, say a classroom where help would be available to get them going?

Also, would it be prudent to provide a standard presentation platform on which to create their slideshow, along with some standards such as Title Page, Introduction, Overview, Body and Conclusion? This would stand out as a bit more professional than 30 different presentation formats and might prevent inappropriate content. Our presenters always provide relevant information but may not be great presenters and this might help some of them. It does not have to be mandatory but a simple design would get the FLDC logo on screen so viewers know where the information is coming from.

These are just random thoughts roaming around in a roomy cranium. At least if you are thinking about it now you have plenty of time to perfect it!

Session Recording

Ky1eT's picture

George,

I think most of the presenters meet up the night prior to the events so maybe getting together then might be best. We would be providing one link for all presenters so all the videos are maintained in the same place. We could catch whoever we don't get the following day before the start of the events.

We can discuss further about standardizing the slideshows as that will be a daunting task in itself. Doesn't hurt to put a template out there but actually having presenters follow it is iffy.

Thanks for the quick feedback!

Kyle

See this post....

JCL324's picture

Our Chicago friend just posted this on one of our other threads. I know Kevin very well and can help coordinate ideas/solutions, etc.

https://groups.drupal.org/node/509527#comment-1144205

JCL

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