Re: COMMON

[Scott Klement <midrange-l@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx>]

>   a.. The social networking available at the annual meeting

fun.  valuable.  hard to prioritize, though, between on-line networking, 
other conferences and local user groups, there's a lot of other 
opportunities for this.

>   b.. Conference presentations on a particular topic (you pick)

This is, IMHO, one of the main draws of COMMON


>   c.. Conference presentations from the IBMers who designed and wrote the code

Having the knowledge does not make you able to teach it.  Most IBMers 
who design/write code aren't the best speakers.  There are exceptions.


>   d.. Conference presentations from the name speakers in our industry

I'm probably biased.  But this is one of the main draws, IMHO.


>   e.. Conference presentations from other users

These sometimes frustrate me. Often times they say stuff that's not 
accurate, or is out of date. They often are not good speakers, either. 
Again, there are exceptions.

>   f.. Training on nontechnical topics

IMHO, this question is too broad.  It really depends on the topic. 
Personal development I think is valuable, but I wouldn't consider it a 
mainstay.

>   g.. Reduced car rental rates (okay, just kidding)

This is the ONE AND ONLY reason I'm a COMMON member :)

>   h.. Beer at $2/pop (I'm serious about this one)

I don't think I've ever had beer at a COMMON event.  Diet coke/pepsi is 
all I care about.

>   i.. Year-round education in the form of webcasts and  webinars

I haven't tried these at COMMON, though I have at System iNetwork.  I 
keep meaning to give COMMON's a try, though...

>   j.. The Career Center

I've put several job openings in the career center, have gotten very few 
resumes.  There just aren't enough people using the career center.  If 
there were, I honestly believe this would become valuable.  But, as it 
stands, it's not valuable.  Craigslist and careerbuilder are much more 
valuable.

>   k.. The Requirement and Top Concerns processes that provides feedback to IBM

I only use this because they give me a free pin. :)  I can submit the 
requirement directly to IBM and get the same rejection without COMMON. :)