07 January 2012

RootsTech 2012 - Be sure you check the right schedule to avoid disappointment

Wow. After reviewing the schedule posted by several bloggers yesterday, I just wrote and was about to post a scathing post on what seemed to be the less technical nature of the RootsTech 2012 conference. I was so disappointed I couldn't go to RootsTech in 2011 that I made sure I could attend the 2012 conference. After checking the schedule of presentations linked by one blogger I was disappointed in the 2012 offerings. Then I discovered there are multiple schedules.

The RootsTech 2012 User Schedule shows the sessions of most interest to genealogists who are not developers or programmers.

The RootsTech 2012 Developer Schedule shows the sessions of most interest to developers, programmers, and hard-core techies.

The RootsTech 2012 Schedule shows all of the sessions.

The blog link I clicked on was the user schedule. I take back all of the bad thoughts I was thinking about the dumbing down (or tech-ing down) of RootsTech before I found the Developer Schedule. Be sure you are looking at the full schedule or the link for the topics you are most interested in.

I will say I really prefer the way the schedule pages worked yesterday. I could click on a title and a summary opened up on the same page. Clicking all of the titles got a schedule and summary of each topic all on one Web page. Now clicking any title takes you to a separate Web page just for that session. It gives a lot more information on the session and the speaker. But I liked seeing the summary on the schedule page as opposed just to speakers, titles, and times.

I am excited again and will post more about RootsTech after I attend the conference. I hope I am not disappointed and don't think I will be.

© 2012, Debbie Parker Wayne, All Rights Reserved

4 comments:

  1. Debbie,

    I had the same reaction until I saw the Tabs at the top.

    See you there!!

    Russ

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  2. I may have gotten sidetracked by the developer challenge or maybe I just hit the site at a time when the developer's schedule wasn't there or wasn't obvious. Whichever, I am glad I finally found the developer's schedule. Looking forward to meeting you there.

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  3. Debbie, so glad you posted that. Like you I was thinking this was going to be one disappointing conference! Now I feel better seeing the entire schedule! Thanks!

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  4. Hey, Leslie. It will be great to see you there. I get the feeling the website is being updated on an ongoing basis. The separate schedules weren't as obvious when I first looked at the page several days ago. If I wasn't committed to be at the APG board meeting and PMC, I might have cancelled my trip if the user track was all that was available. Even the user track classes are good, but not at the high tech level I am more interested in.

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