More on WordCamp Dallas 2008

[Paul Menard]

All,

Anyone who has already registered for WordCamp should have received the following message. For those who have not registered or are still on the fence about going please read on. 

So far the members attending the conference will be myself, Ryan Joy, Jeff Bernier and possibly Michelle Greer. This group would make one car load (or truck load). So any other members making the decision to attend in the last few day will need to consider transportation. 

Ryan, Jeff and Michelle look for an email from me shortly to round out our trip details. 

Paul Menard

Hi everybody!

WordCamp Dallas is now a little over a week away, and if you're like me, the excitement is palpable. Before it gets here, I wanted to make you aware of some offers that local businesses have kindly extended to attendees like yourself, run an idea past you and enlist your help with a couple of things.

First off, the local hockey team, the Texas Tornado play the Topeka Roadrunners at the Dr. Pepper StarCenter during WordCamp night. For $9.50 per person you'll receive one ticket, a hot dog, chips and a Dr Pepper product as well as recognition on the scoreboard and chance at winning some Tornado merchandise. The puck drops at 7:30 PM, download and fax in the coupon from http://wordcampdallas.org/texastornado.pdf (Requires Adobe Acrobat or Acrobat Reader)

If hockey isn't your thing, maybe bowling is? Or Laser tag? Or video games? Skillz Entertainment Center in Frisco is extending an offer to all WordCamp attendees in groups of 5 or more to come enjoy bowling between 11am-5pm for only $16.95 per lane per hour, and after 5PM at $19.95 per lane per hour. They also offer laser tag at $4.00 per hour, and there's Cactus Jack'z Sports Bar & Grill next door to unwind. There appears to be no time constraints on this offer, so you can play before, during or after WordCamp begins. For directions and more information visit http://www.strikz.com

If, after the sessions are over, you're looking for fine dining or a place to meet friends for drinks, consider Frisco's Bay Grill. Begin your meal with their Fried Green Beans -- tender green beans with a golden tempura crust, served with barbecue hollandaise or Asian soy dipping sauce, move on to their Crispy Redfish with Capers and Lemon -- Pan seared panko crusted filet topped with lemon zest, capers and beurre blanc, and end your meal with a complimentary dessert using the coupon at http://wordcampdallas.org/baygrillcoupon.pdf  (Requires Adobe Acrobat or Acrobat Reader). For directions and complete menu, visit http://www.baygrilltx.com
Maybe fine dining isn't what you're interested in, but pizza is... GattiTown across from the Super Target in Frisco offers one free buffet with the purchase of one adult buffet when you bring the coupon at http://wordcampdallas.org/gattitown.jpg

If you're interested in coffee or just a comfortable to rest a spell, please consider stopping in at It's a Grind coffee house located in Frisco at 6959 Lebanon Road.  When you do, be sure and thank them for their sponsorship of WordCamp Dallas. For more information, visit their website athttp://www.itsagrind.com

That's all for the offers, now I want to ask you to do us a few favors. We'll be accepting registrations for about another week now, but we'd still like as many people as possible the opportunity to register for WordCamp. Please consider choosing one of the image/link combinations athttp://dallas.wordcamp.org/promote/ and place them in the sidebars of your blogs. Another thing you can do to help us promote WordCamp Dallas is blog about it: Why are you going? What do you hope to gain from the experience? Is there anyone in particular you'd like to speak with? Link to the session leader's bio page. Any publicity at this point is appreciated.

An experiment I was considering was setting up a Prologue theme-based blog open only to attendees to form a sort of "closed Twitter" site. This way, people can share their thoughts on the speakers, inform other attendees of good places to meet and eat, let someone know if you need a ride to the airport, whatever. If you're interested in the idea, send me an e-mail (cha...@four-oh.com) with the subject line 'Account password request' and I'll set up your account and password, then mail you the specifics. One note: Please, PLEASE don't share this information with anyone who is not a registered attendee.

Finally, we're planning a meet-and-greet at Dave & Buster's inside of Stonebriar Centre on Friday night, March 28th. Dave & Buster's is a national chain theme-restaurant filled with adult beverages, good food, video games and plenty of television screens for watching sports. This is a chance for everyone to get together prior to the official WordCamp kickoff and have a little fun, but we need a fairly accurate headcount to reserve an area big enough to accommodate everyone. If you're planning on joining us (anywhere between approximately 6:00 PM and later) please send me an e-mail (again, cha...@four-oh.com) with the subject line 'X for D&B' where X is the number of people, including yourself, you plan on bringing. And if you'd like more information on Dave & Buster's, their website is at http://www.daveandbusters.com

I'm really looking forward to meeting you at WordCamp, and if you have any questions or concerns, please don't hesitate to contact me.

Charles Stricklin, Lead Organizer