I see a lot of people complaining that the "spirit" of the convention had somehow changed. Please be reminded that it is not the hotel, the staff or the programming who make up the spirit of the convention. It is the attendees themselves. I don't think they changed at all, except for one thing: this year I heard quite a lot of moaning about things that were either comically trivial, or were completely out of the control of the staff.
For a first-year-in-a-new-hotel convention I think that things went remarkably smoothly. Not much happened that could not be attributed to "oh, so THAT'S how it works here" syndrome.
I noticed that elevator etiquette has not really taken shape at EF since this is really the first year that it has been an issue. There are a few things that everyone can do to alleviate the long wait-times:
1) Do not push both elevator buttons, and likewise, do not get onto an up-moving elevator to move down, nor a down-moving elevator to move up. It does not get you there any faster, and all it does is slow the entire process down. If you push the down button and then ride the elevator up, the car is going to stop on your floor anyway on its way down, and that simply delays the trip.
2) Figure out where the stairs are. Yes, there was one set of stairs that could be accessed by key card at all levels (except, mysteriously, the 4th, which I think was an error on the hotel's part). There were also stairs that went between the ground and "C" level, which brings me to another point:
3) Do not get into an elevator to travel fewer than three floors away unless you are (a) elderly, (b) incapacitated, (c) burdened with heavy objects, or (d) American.
There was only one part of the convention that I really did not like. I do not think that I shall be attending the feedback session next year. Not that the staff did anything wrong -- I was instead angered by many of the complaints that I heard.
"The food was too expensive." It was very cheap next door. Take a walk. It's not even raining.
"The hotel staff was rude." Get the name of the staff member and then immediately tell the hotel manager. He's in a much better position to do something about it five minutes after the fact than Cheetah is three days after the fact.
"The water temperature in my room did not work." The last time I checked, Cheetah is not a plumber. Nor is he an elevator repairman, an electrician, or a locksmith. If you have an issue with the hotel, take it to the front desk. Surprisingly enough, they have mechanisms in place to deal with such matters.
"How were we supposed to know about XXXX?" Read the con book. 85% of the questions that begin with these words lie within those pages.
"The art auction was too long." I'm sorry. I tried my best.
"You should provide XXXX for us." Please remember that XXXX does not grow on trees. It must be purchased (or rented, or otherwise obtained) and once obtained, it must be stored, maintained and transported. The return on investment must outweigh the cost of the item plus the cost of those three factors.
Running a convention is unimaginably hard work. I can tell you that from experience. These are people who are spending their own holiday time from work, putting in hundreds of hours of planning, suffering from stress that very often leads to nightmares, ulcers and elevated blood pressure (watch for blood vessels bursting in the sclera of the eyes), working themselves to the point of physical exhaustion and sometimes reduced to tears of frustration, and receiving no pay or substantial reward of any kind for the sole purpose of trying to make sure other people have a good time, who then must sit quietly and listen to "I don't think I'm coming back next year because the pillows here are too lumpy."
So no, I will not be attending the feedback panel again, simply because it is getting too difficult to stop myself from leaping over the chairs and rearranging someone's face.
In my absence, please keep in mind this simple rule: If you have a complaint, it is considered good form that it be followed immediately with suggestions for improvement.
