uh-oh

[jazzfish]

. . . wait, Technicon, in addition to being in McBryde instead of an actual convention center, is shutting down at eleven PM?

I want to go this year: a couple days of solid gaming, plus Mr Martin and Ursula Vernon. It's growing more and more difficult to justify the time and expense, though.

Comments

[pictsy.livejournal.com]

shutting down at eleven PM?

Laaaaaaame

[tirani.livejournal.com]

There's a reason we're not going and I told the staff why. This is going to be the death of Tcon if they're not really really careful.

[tango.livejournal.com]

the late night programming will be held at the Microtel.

Staying after 11 in McBride incurs huge charges.

[absolutliz.livejournal.com]

Yeah...I was thinking of making this trip this year, but not to hang in McBryde. No way. I hate that building with a passion.

[mikailborg.livejournal.com]

Yeah, I will be doing my schtick at the Microtel on Saturday night after White Plectrum wraps up. Having to make the trip back and forth is unfortunate. :(

[jazzfish]

Technicon: now with 83% fewer reasons to attend!

[vond.livejournal.com]

There is no on-campus venue available to us that we are allowed to use 24-hour - University Policy. There is no off-campus venue available to us without charging $100+ general admission except possibly the Ramada, which the current Technicon administration refuses to consider. Moving to Roanoke would lose us VT funding and therefore again cause admission to skyrocket.

Please, for the love of god, tell me what the solution is!

[jazzfish]

I totally understand why y'all aren't going. For me it's more about the late-nite gaming and a small handful of people, and it seemed like both of those were still going to be available . . .

This is going to be the death of Tcon if they're not really really careful.

TFTFY.
Seriously, though. I don't know how they ever expect to get guests again once word gets out from Mr Martin about the general ridiculousness of con this year.

[vond.livejournal.com]

I didn't think we're allowed to stay after 11, period? No matter how many officers we hire?

[jazzfish]

I didn't expect twenty-four hour access. I /did/ expect 'til midnight or one, the kind of hours one gets with Squires.

except possibly the Ramada, which the current Technicon administration refuses to consider

Answered your own question, I believe.

[jazzfish]

It's not the programming that gets me, it's the open gaming. Others' mileage may vary, of course.

[vond.livejournal.com]

I don't disagree that this will be the last Technicon, we don't have the manpower to continue to run a con anyway (as it is we're outsourcing a lot already), but Madicon at JMU just had Jim Butcher at an on-campus non 24-hour con and I doubt he's complaining. I highly doubt "Mr Martin" will badmouth Technicon that much, he's going to see a small college con, he doesn't know the history so isn't going to be comparing it to pior technicons.

[vond.livejournal.com]

Well, I should revise that and say "John and James" refuse to consider. I've raised all the fuss I can raise. Sorry.

[tirani.livejournal.com]

We are doing a gaming afternoon that saturday if you want to come over and hang out :)

[jazzfish]

Understandable. But . . . Mr Martin will be there!

[jazzfish]

I'm not sure how viable that is for gaming, sadly. Having to pack up, move, find gaming space, set up again, oh look it's midnight and we've got enough time for maybe a couple of games before we have to crash and then haul it all back to McBryde.

[jazzfish]

I didn't mean to imply that you hadn't, or that you were happy about the state of affairs, and I'm sorry that I did.

It's hard not to feel like the problem isn't so much a lack of available space as it is pigheadedness on the part of specific members of Constaff, and it's too easy to generalize away from the "specific members of" part.

[absolutliz.livejournal.com]

I know. ::is shamed::

I think I'm going to Pittsburgh that weekend. I'll drown the sorrows of missing him in Penn Gold.

[vond.livejournal.com]

I appreciate it. It's killing me seeing so many things happen this year that generate so much ill-will towards "the con staff". I feel like by being involved in running this thing I'm "signing my name" to the event, and I feel awful when people mention the issues we're having, especially when I agree with most of the statements.

If I had known we were going to do things in this fashion this year, I'd have requested or possibly demanded that we change the name of the event, much like Rising Star did the first year they held the con at Bluefield State.

[jameshroberts.livejournal.com]

I'm going, largely because its the only chance I typically get to see people from back East. Although due to the facilities problems it looks like the regulars are dropping like flies.

Also if it's going to be the Last Technicon, I'd hate to miss it.

I have to say, from my perspective, this is the most poorly managed con (on the part of the chair) that I've ever witnessed, though perhaps I say it as shouldn't. I wasn't exactly a stellar chair myself. I know this is an unfair assessment, as I'm only lurking on the staff list and am not directly involved. But as far as I can tell, the chair's only contribution this year has been to forbid the Ramada.

In any case, Kate and I are committed now, as we already bought plane tickets.

[nixve.livejournal.com]

Wait, T-con is in McBryde?
They ought to just call it InvisifestSpring or something. :-/

[tango.livejournal.com]

You may be right - it's not exactly easy to sort through the various threads onthe tcon-staff list about that topic. I know that cost was an issue for staying past a certain time when I looked at Squires a few years ago.

[jazzfish]

You may be right. I was thinking of whether he'd been invited with the expectation of being at a full-scale hotel-based con and was instead getting, well, I-fest.

[jazzfish]

It's a possibility, thanks. :)

[jsciv.livejournal.com]

I expect there will be gaming. If nothing else I see that there's a common area in the hotel and I'm trying to get exactly what the size of the rooms is. Plus, I've asked a few locals about contingencies at least for some gaming of some stripe. :)