I'd like to invite you to come join all of us at the upcoming EMC World in Las Vegas May 19-22.
I know what you might be thinking -- you're probably not crazy about most trade shows. And, generally speaking, I'm in the same camp.
But you might want to consider this one.
There's Always A Lot To See at EMC World
Like technical sessions? Plan on 40 concurrent breakouts happening at any one time, with lots of labs and hands-on stuff.
Like to browse what's out there? The entire EMC ecosystem comes along for the show -- with vendors large and small -- dozens and dozens of companies to go talk to, each bringing something extra to the EMC environment.
Like to meet your peers and network? Count on about 8,000 of them at this show.
Like to learn new stuff? EMC World covers not only traditional EMC topics (storage, backup, replication, etc.) but RSA technologies, Documentum technologies, EMC's developer community and -- of course -- VMware.
Lots and lots of VMware-related topics this time around -- if you're interested.
Like excitement? I think it's safe to say that there will be plenty of that. There's some great entertainment lined up, EMC and other vendors will be making announcements at the show, we'll be demonstrating our new stuff, and -- of course -- we're in Vegas, baby! -- so that's part of the landscape as well.
What Do I Like About EMC World?
The people who take the time to go to this particular show are usually passionate about what they're doing.
They're not just going through the motions. They have an intense interest in this stuff, and they like meeting with other people who feel the same. There's a real sense of community there.
I also like the fact that it's not a marketing event per se. Sure, there's a lot of marketing going on (isn't there always), but there are some pretty heavy-duty technology and use case presentations you just won't find anywhere else in the industry. EMC World tends to tackle the advanced topics first.
Most of the sessions are run by engineers, which I think is rather unique.
And, from a personal perspective, I get chance to meet people I've conversed with online, or haven't seen in a few years, and we can catch up. And -- most importantly -- they tell me what's going on in there world -- things that make me think a bit.
I Know You're Busy ...
If you've got an itch to go check this out, I'd suggest you look here for more information.
See you there!
I love EMC World. Been twice, New Orleans and Orlando.
If a persuade my boss to stump a ticket, (no easy task!), will you have a Chuck's blogger function? i.e. you buy the beers?
Posted by: Ronald | January 31, 2008 at 12:22 AM
Hmmm -- a "Meet The Bloggers" function, served with suitable beverages -- that makes a bunch of sense to me.
Maybe I'll wander over to our organizers and suggest it as a next-generation, advanced-thinking Web 2.0 new world marketing event, or somesuch.
And make sure they don't forget the beer.
Posted by: Chuck Hollis | January 31, 2008 at 07:58 AM
Anyone else like the idea of maybe me, StorageZilla, The Storage Anarchist and a few others getting together for a "Meet The Bloggers" event at EMC World?
Posted by: Chuck Hollis | January 31, 2008 at 07:59 AM
Heck, Chuck! I see why you are in marketing! Can you write my motivation letter for the conference throwing in suitable buzz words. I am certain hundreds of us would appreciate it, if we could just cut and paste it into an email for our managers.
I think a "Meet The Bloggers" is a great idea and even do some SPC tests? SPC = "Special Pilsner Calculations."
Posted by: Ronald | January 31, 2008 at 03:29 PM
Let me try ...
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Dear Boss
Our company is becoming an information company. Our role as IT is shifting to one where we safeguard the corporation's most important asset: information.
I'd like the opportunity to prepare myself and my co-workers for this new challenge facing our organization and our company.
There is an industry event of 8,000 people where we'll get to learn about the latest technology, see best practices, and -- most importantly -- network with others who are facing the exact same challenges we are.
Given the amount of our IT spend, I think a small investment in working smarter would make sense in our situation.
I'd like to meet with you to discuss the details.
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Does that work for you? Or is it over the top?
Posted by: Chuck Hollis | January 31, 2008 at 04:09 PM
That is good. Subtle and not as over the top as http://www.dilbert.com/comics/dilbert/games/career/bin/ms.cgi
Posted by: Ronald | January 31, 2008 at 11:28 PM
Chuck, I have an additional idea for EMC World. I think it would be a good idea to have a birds of a feather session on checklists. Particpants come to the session, presenting and exchanging their favourite storage checklists. There are potentially large numbers of storage related checklists from DMX deployment to Celerra archiving, etc.
Checklists have a colourful history http://www.atchistory.org/History/checklst.htm and a recent article in the New Yorker http://www.newyorker.com/reporting/2007/12/10/071210fa_fact_gawande highlighted its use in more applications.
I created a storage checklist some time ago, in an effort to highlight all the different highlevel aspects an Infrastucture Manager had to consider for Storage. It is available at http://thinkingproblemmanagement.blogspot.com/2007/12/checklist-for-storage.html
Posted by: Ronald | February 03, 2008 at 12:12 AM