Bring lots of business cards. Even if you aren't running a business, it's
a lot better than standing there writing your contact information for
everybofy that you want to stay in touch with.
paper, pens, pencils, post-it notes, stapler, duct tape, voltmeter,
batteries, flashlight, cash, blank disks and memory cards, screwdrivers,
vise-grips, hammer. Even if none of those fit in with your
plans, those items will help enormously to deal with unexpected
situations.
It isn't so much how well prepared you are, as how well you can adapt when
needed.
For example, one year at Comdex, we rented an seven foot by seven foot
booth. A year later, at the show, the management realized that that
little block of space was something that should not have been rented. So,
they gave us a ten by ten. How to you make a seven foot wide back sign at
least look like it fills a ten foot space? Home Depot for some aluminum
angle iron, fabric store for drapes.
Another time, when we had a 10 x 10, next to a couple who we knew well, we
had to help them. He ended up in the hospital, but his wife was
determined to do the show, anyway. So, we combine the two 10x10s into a
10x20, with only a "virtual" wall in between, and stuck the leads table
with the imprinter, etc, in the middle.
We always had a tiny refrigerator in our booth. Handing Jerry Pournelle a
cold beer got us a lot of free ink. Snack foods for hospitality and/or if
things are too busy at lunch time to goget anything.
--
Grumpy Ol' Fred ci...@xenosoft.com
On Wed, 1 May 2024, Brad H via cctalk wrote:
Just reaching out to anyone who has exhibited at a vintage computing
festival before. After years of only being able to watch others attend the
ones that happen in the US, we are finally getting one in BC here. Super
excited. I was invited both to speak and to exhibit, and they even got me
two tables which is awesome.
Like, how do you prepare for these things? What things that you didn't
think of going into your first show do you wish you had?
I have a pretty eclectic collection, and some really rare stuff (like my
Mark-8s) that I'd love to bring but am hesitant about due to the risks of
transportation damage and theft (from the car mostly, not the convention
itself). Just trying to decide what to bring and how focused to be in terms
of theme.
Brad
