Attach the Cosplay Gathering List to the Schedule!

[.::midnight.maiden::.]

I really loved the new and colorful program guide for 2008...it makes everything a lot more organized. There was a map in the program guide too, which was incredibly helpful! Keep up the good work!! ;D

One suggestion I have though, is about the Cosplay Gathering List. This year, and even last year, I had a lot of trouble remembering when the cosplay gatherings were going to happen, and it was an even bigger hassle to find the boards posted around the con.

I think you guys should attach the cosplay gathering list to either the schedule or the program guide so there is easier access. There are so many gatherings going on that you don't even want to miss a single one! xD
I also just recently found that the gatherings list is posted on the Fanime Cosplay forums, but this is after the con now ^^;

Just a little suggestion, hope you consider! =]

[PacificPikachu]

I completely agree with and second this post. It wasn't too bad finding the boards with the gatherings, but a list in the registration bag attached to the schedule would have been much more convenient and simple for everyone. In previous years, I've met people who had no idea how to figure out when and where the cosplay gatherings were, so this would make it easier for them.

[~~Loktera~~]

I third this. Even though I knew when the cosplay gatherings were, it could be helpful to those trying to figure out what to wear and when.

[yumicchi88]

I forth this! it makes it alot easier to go to gatherings!
the fans will be happy they know all the gathering held, the cosplayers will be happy with more people taking pictures of them.

[AbsolutelyCursed]

I just took pictures of the cosplay gathering list (weird huh). It was easier to refer to my camera than having to carry a piece of paper around.

[Tenba]

It's a good suggestion, but reality gets in the way.

Affordable printing takes a lot of time.  The schedule was technically due May 1, and I submitted it to the printers on May 12, which was already a bit on the late side and cutting it rather close for comfort since the printer asked for two weeks to do the job.  I know we can rush them and have them do it within days if necessary, but they'll want to charge extra to bump their other clients off the press.  This is why the schedule always has inaccuracies in it: by the time the con starts, the schedule is at least a week out of date.  We try to freeze everything as much as possible as soon as the schedule is released, but things just happen.

According to the cosplay thread, changes were still being made to the cosplay gathering list all the way up until May 21/22.  It looks like about 15% (about 1 out of 7 events?) of the schedule may have changed between May 12 and May 22...?  (I'm not sure.  Just a rough guess based on the forum thread.)

The question I have is this: Is it worthwhile to put the cosplay gathering list on the schedule if it's going to be one or two weeks out of date?  If 1 out of 7 events is going to be wrong or missing, is the cosplay gathering schedule still worth printing with the schedule?  It's a lousy trade-off to make (whether to put outdated schedules in bags or whether to make people find the more up-to-date signs), but that's what I'm looking at.

BTW, way to go, AbsolutelyCursed!  I don't think it's weird at all, and I've taken pictures of lecture notes, receipts, maps, schedules, menus, and price tags.

[Super No 1]

The cosplay gathering schedule is one of the things I download last before heading off to a convention.  It's always being updated so I want the absolute final version.  I shrink in down, print it at home, cut it up and always keep the day's schedule in my badge holder.

[sykoeent]

This is a great idea!

[Stormfalcon]

If not something to be printed in the schedule, then perhaps an insert flyer like how the video and live programming schedules are handled as well as the last-minute Gainax room schedule?

[.::midnight.maiden::.]

I just took pictures of the cosplay gathering list (weird huh). It was easier to refer to my camera than having to carry a piece of paper around.

Yeah, a lot of people took pictures of the list (so did I), but I prefer having the physical copy of the list in my hands...^^;

[Tenba]

If not something to be printed in the schedule, then perhaps an insert flyer like how the video and live programming schedules are handled as well as the last-minute Gainax room schedule?

Just to clarify, the schedule I submitted to the print shop on May 12 was the four-page video and live programming "insert".  The GAINAX schedule was complete and frozen by May 19.  It had to be in order to get printed in time, and that was still cutting it close.  It was doable partly because it was a half sheet and partly because we were only doing one such last-minute schedule.  The number of attendees is huge, and printing enough for the entire convention is a very slow process.  Even if we were going to ignore human sanity, cut things down to the wire, and leave absolutely no room for Murphy, doing one page for 10K people requires a printer to be running for 11 hours straight, and the printer tends to stop and cool itself every two hours or so, so we're looking at someone staying up about two nights after coming back from work or school for every page of these extra schedules we do.  That means the information is two more days out of date for every extra page that gets added.  We're moving to using two printers that can be transported to the convention instead of the one huge office printer, but the two printers don't run as fast, and they seem to spend a night in a truck, so that means we lose a day's worth of print time right before the con.

We can see how it goes next year.  It depends partly on when BSaph would be willing to freeze the schedule (if she's still organizing it).  We can try printing a small quantity and leaving some at the Info Desks, and/or we can try shrinking them and fitting 4-6 per sheet.  If it doesn't work out, and if few enough people absolutely need a printed copy, some of the hotels have business centers that offer free printing to customers.  We'll try to avoid having it come to that, but I wanted people to know that the option is there in case we don't succeed.

[M]

This sounds like an idea that the Twitter/Plasma screen updates could provide. :)

[Shinsengumi]

I only knew some of the gathering mostly mine, but it would be nice to have a gathering list on the schedule :)

[OniCourseMusha]

That sounds like great idea!  Hope to see that on my program list at the con.

[Ska_Kitti]

Well, the biggest challenge will be getting the gathering organizers successfully organized and have their meetings ready by the deadline. Like above, people will start up a gathering after the deadline. I'm certain if one can produce a stable list by the deadline, the gatherings list will be in the program provided hat Fanime can make space for the list. Although having the gathering lists posted at every info stand and con-ops is very helpful too; you just need a pen and paper to write down the times, genre and place. If not, maybe they can have a giant board with all the gathering at reg (or outside) with paper and pen so people can organize their schedule when they get their bags.

[Yukari Kaiba]

As a gathering organizer myself (been organizing the Bleach meetup since 2007), the idea of having the plasma screens show gathering updates is a good idea, as well as coordinating with the other organizers a deadline for gathering information so that way its possible to get an insert put into the program. Personally I have my gathering time, day, and location locked down before may since I like to be on top of things and plan ahead. I believe BSaphire is organizing the gathering list again this year, and I don't think she'd object to putting up a deadline for the organizers to have all the details sorted out before a specific date.

[K&K4ever]

I hope they do that too.  It would mean that we would have to have the times and days for the gatherings set up looooooooooooooooooooong before hand.

[BSaphire]

Konnichiwa Cospeeps ^^)

I have tried to do both putting the gatherings in the program & a pocket guide. The submission deadline for the printer for doing the programs is so early that it makes it hard to have all of them on the list by the first week of May and from the first of May on, I am daily changing this gathering or that all the way up till con. I don't want to leave anyone out so the deadlines I have set are to make sure as many as possible can get all their info finalized and on the list.

2007 I had a thousand copies of the gatherings list printed out. Unfortunately it took Thursday, Friday and until 11 am on Saturday for someone to locate the stack so I could put them out. I was super dooper sick that year and after hitting every info booth and walking through the reg line handing them out I spent the rest of the day in bed in my hotel room.

2008 I increased the number of boards and tried to place them in the most obvious places such as by stage zero, the info booths on both ends of the concourse, at the bottom of both staircases and by both info desks down by reg.

Every year I do a finalized copy in MS Word and attach it to the front page of my website. I then place the link in the forum threads on both Cosplay.com and Fanime so that peeps can find the list and download it for themselves. The list is never more than 4 pages and 2 if you print front to back.

With all that said here's what I am looking at for 2009:

Keeping the locations of the boards the same as last year and having a runner to go to stage zero 1/2 hour before the hour to announce the hour and the proceeding half hour's gatherings and location. Ebner and I talked about Twitter and the media boards around the convention center listing the gatherings and we are working that out still. One other thought I have had is to list the gatherings for each day as a separate sheet that can be found at the info desk, but at this point I am trying to keep cost as low as possible....

I appreciate everyone's feedback, but I didn't know this thread even existed till tonight. I alway look on the gatherings thread for any responses and I run a poll each year so feel free to post in the stickied Official Gatherings Thread so that I can find out what peeps think.

Arigato
BSpahire