Flash Forward Reviewed

I’m sitting on Jones st. having morning coffee. It’s the final day of the conference and I’m sorry to say it’s been a fairly sizable disappointment. Most of the speeches, while well spoken and inspirational, have lacked substance. There’s been no meat and potatoes. Nobody has dove in to their process. It’s been way too much preaching about ‘passion’ and cliche terms like ‘do what you like and money will follow’. While that’s certainly true, it’s not something we don’t know, nor something we need repeated six times a day here to ‘get’. We came to be enlightened, something I’m definitely not feeling here. Passion is a great mantra for a conference but you’re preaching to the choir. Most people attending have taught themselves a very complex tool and a completely new language all without schooling. I’d say we’ve got the passion thing down, yea? Now show me some technique, source, demos, MEAT!

Not much time to write more right now, but one final word about the conference as a whole…

This is one of the foremost technologically advanced gathering of nerds any conference can boast, right? Then why the motherhell don’t we have stable wifi here? Beyond embarasssing, Adobe. Why isn’t there one interactive installation? Why is there no Flash on display anywhere? And why… oh why… have I seen 23 card tricks? I mean, it’s slight of hand folks, the guy is essentially decent at hiding things behind his knuckles. Bah.

Flash Forward San Francisco

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I’m off to Flash Forward this week. It should be a great party in a cool city with some uber nerds. Just about all I need, besides my wife and pooch. Looking forward to seeing the Masonic Temple it’s being held in, and the new format chosen by Adobe. This will officially be my fourth Flash Forward, and I’m relieved that I haven’t been chosen to speak this year. Last year was a tad awkward to be told by your boss that you’re going to be a speaker. Um yea thanks, I thought that would be something I’d chose to do not unknowingly penned in for. Pretty standard operating procedure at Arnold.

I’m also fired up that Steve and I will be driving the 10 hours or so down to San Fran from Portland, stopping half way to camp in Redwoods National Park.

Thanks to North for sending us.

So, if you’re headed to San Fran this week let me know. It’d be good to meet up with some cool peeps.