Getting Started at the CalConnect Conference

The CalConnect Conference is the event where technical work in progress is reviewed, new work is proposed, organizational matters are discussed, and consensus obtained on CalConnect-wide or industry-wide issues. A Conference consists mostly of technical sessions, together with occasional Workshops and BOFs, and a Plenary meeting consisting of everyone attending the conference. CalConnect Conferences are almost always held in conjunction with a Test Event/Developers Forum.

As CalConnect conducts almost all of its Technical Committee meetings online and via conference call, the Conferences provide the in-person opportunity for networking and socializing for our member representatives and for "observers" (first-time non-member attendees), located across North America, Europe, and Asia.

CalConnect Conferences are the only regularly occurring conference technical or otherwise for calendaring and scheduling and related technologies.

CalConnect holds three Conferences per year as part of its three CalConnect Events. Each week-long CalConnect event begins with a 2½ day CalConnect Test Event, followed by the CalConnect Conference.

Although a number of factors determine the ultimate location of each CalConnect Event, each year we endeavor to hold one in North American and one in Europe. Our three events are currently our "Winter" (January/February), "Spring" (May/June), and "Autumn" (September/October) events. Should CalConnect develop significant membership in other parts of the world, we will explore events in locations which facilitate participation by those members, as we have recently done for our European members.

CalConnect Events are hosted by CalConnect member organizations, generally on their premises or in nearby public space.

The Conference generally occupies the last two and a half days of the CalConnect event week, beginning Wednesday after lunch and ending mid-afternoon on Friday. The Conference is broken into sessions normally lasting from 1-2 hours. Sessions are allocated to each current or future topic of interest, and to other technical and administrative purposes. Sessions are arranged serially, rather than in parallel, to ensure that participants can attend all sessions in which they are interested.

The Conference opens immediately following lunch on Wednesday with introductions and short presentations from new members about their organizations, followed by a report from the Test Event covering what each participant tested and the results.

The Conferences are open to all member representatives from Members in good standing. All participants must agree to abide by the relevant parts of the CalConnect Member Agreement. Conferences are also conducted on the basis that "what is said in the room stays in the room". Participants are encouraged to become involved in discussions and contribute to decisions. Member representatives who cannot attend a conference may also join one or more sessions remotely, through a combination of audio and screen sharing.

Non-members may also send representatives to a single Conference as Observers, to sample what CalConnect is doing and determine if they wish to join as members.

It may help to review the reports on the most recent Conference at Event Reports to get an idea of what the Technical Committees have been working on and reporting on recently, and other relevant information.

In particular, you should:

If this is your first time at a CalConnect Conference we can arrange for someone who is familiar with our Conferences to act as a mentor, if you wish one. If that hasn’t been arranged prior to your arrival, please check with the Executive Director as soon as you get there. Your mentor can help you get started, introduce you to people, help solve roadblocks, and in general help ensure that you get the greatest possible value from the event.

You should plan on attending the "Introduction to CalConnect Q&A" Session late Wednesday morning. This is a good opportunity to meet other first-time participants, and get questions answered that you will probably still have.

Going forward through the Conference:

If you have questions about attending a CalConnect conference, contact info@calconnect.org.