From: markbr@radian.UUCP (Mark Roth)
Newsgroups: rec.arts.sf.misc
Subject: yes on consuites
Date: 20 Aug 92 18:23:06 GMT


>From JOHN_DONAT@cs-lp1.prime.COM Tue Aug 18 17:08:52 1992
>Path: radian!natinst.com!cs.utexas.edu!sdd.hp.com!swrinde!zaphod.mps.ohio-state.edu!magnus.acs.ohio-state.edu!cis.ohio-state.edu!rutgers!cs-lp1.prime.com!JOHN_DONAT
>From: JOHN_DONAT@cs-lp1.prime.COM (John Donat CSE 312-641-3450)
>Newsgroups: rec.arts.sf.misc
>Subject: conventions

John Donat writes:

As far as what makes a good con:

>Programming -this sounds simple, but if there isn't programming that a
<stuff deleted>

This assumes you attend any. I've seen three and a half shifts at cons:
the shift that goes to programming, and attends some parties at night 
(usually neos); the shift that parties all night and sleeps till noon; 
and the shift that stays up the entire con. The half shift are the older
fans who once in a while go to programming (if it's something we haven't
seen before, or in a while (rare)), but are more like shift 2.


>Concom -it really helps if the people that run a con go to other cons -I
>have been to cons where the concom only goes to, and runs that con -there
>is no way to see if other concoms have ideas for handling stuff that may
>be better than what you are doing!!
>It also helps (most of the time) if the concom (is/are) friends, or can at
>least enjoy their company for a weekend -inter-concom sniping at con is
>not fun to watch, nor is the effects of this.

This also assumes that they are not so busy smoffing that they forget that
the idea is to have fun.  FAR too many con-runners nowadays are SMOFs who
want the title & power, but are simply not willing to do *all* the butt-
busting work so that we can all enjoy a con.

>Hotel -it helps to have a hotel where the staff is not on a revolving door
>-the hotel that Windycon has been using in the Chicago area has had very
>little staff turnover, and the new ones on the staff are QUICKLY educated
>about sf cons.

Also that they haven't overbooked the hotel. I well remember my first Worldcon
(in a city that shall be nameless, on the grounds that I'll get looked at as
ancient), who had not only Worldcon, but also a convention of a)car dealers,
b)Armenian Americans, and c)(yes, this is true)Scientologists (we had fun
with them).

<good story deleted for bandwidth>

>Con Suite -this is my baliwick -I have been crazy enough to run the
>Windycon con suite for 12 years, and also help on Chicon IV, and run
>Chicon V's con suite, so I think I can talk from experience about such
>things.

Mine, too.  Philcon, 6 years.

>There is no such place as a big enough room for a con suite in any hotel
in the world! IMHO. I wish we could find a suite like the one in the late
>lamented Radisson Minneapolis downtown -man, that was a huge place.
>Ventilation in a con suite is a problem, and I am not sure that there is a
>real solution, as we at cons are stuffing many more people in a suite that
>the HVAC is equipped to handle.

Yep. Even if it does go in cycles.

>Booze... A qualified yes.  Because of the increased awareness of alcohol
>problems, many cons have gone dry. At the cons that I have helped to run,
>we have someone from the con suite staff monitor the bheer at all times
>that the bheer is available. The badges are coded for age, sos we dont
>have to card.  The total cost of the bheer is usually less than $1.00/per
>attendee, so's i really dont think that is too much for the non drinkers
>to support (there is much disagreement on this).

YES. My entire last con suite budget (Philcon '86) came to about 52 *cents*
per attendee; there was no shortage of food (veggies & cheese & crackers),
munchies, soda, bheer, or wine. We *served* both of those last two. No 
problem. The *real* expense were all the folks who *INSIST* on brand-name
sodas (Coke & Pepsi). We spent a LOT more on them then the booze. Y'all want
more in the con suite, drink generic soda, and *SHUT UP ABOUT THE COST OF
BOOZE*! Name brand sodas are what's being subsidized.

<other good stuff on security deleted>