Heres my friday opinion, what I do to get the most out of Tech.Ed. Something more so for the first timers.

And the tips are.... :

1. Look at the speakers for your desired sessions. If they are high profile speakers (Scott Guthrie being a good example), expect the session to be packed and get there early. If you see me trying to find a set because I got in late, try and save me a seat Big Smile [:D]

2. Make sure you always have something to take notes. If thats pen & paper, make sure its handy, if its a laptop or PDA, make sure its at a reasonable charge. If not charged, sit near a power outlet. Power outlets are like gold at Tech.Ed so you may have to fight to get one.

3. Turn your sound down on your laptop. If you dont, we will all turn around and look at you when you fire up your laptop and we hear that familiar windows boot up sound or your custom defined wacky dialog sound.

4. You'll get some form of swag when arriving. Try and keep what you carry around to a minimum to make room for the free pens, soft toys, fluffy items, text books, CD/DVD's etc. and everything else. Its a real pain carrying around loads of stuff, especially if you also have a laptop.

5. If you see Frank Arrigo around, comment on how good his shirt looks. You may not get anything but it makes him feel good. Smile [:)]

6. Prepare for the party on the second night. Get loud and proud.

7. Forget sleep. Its just a waste of time anyway. You are will be with a huge amount of fellow geeks and everybody knows, we dont sleep. If you do happen to doze off, make sure its not during a presentation. You will be singled out during your sleep time and will wonder why everyone else is giggling at you when you wake up.

Thats about it....