[Coco] CoCo Fest video and chat

[John Donaldson]

   I would have been there this year as well as last year except last 
year I was out of work and had to
sell the house in WV and move to Dallas, TX. Finially got a new job last 
fall after being out of work
for 14 months, so do not have any vacation time until this Sept. and if 
all goes well and there is a fest
in 2007, I WILL be there. I have very much enjoyed all the fest I have 
attendent over the years.

John Donaldson


Frank Pittel wrote:

>On Mon, May 01, 2006 at 05:57:16PM -0500, Roger Taylor wrote:
>  
>
>>At 01:34 PM 5/1/2006, you wrote:
>>    
>>
>>>There are an endless number of excuses on why one could not make it. Some 
>>>indicate money, schedule conflicts, etc. All valid at some point in time 
>>>but after 25yrs, people that have never attend a fest, that means it is 
>>>not a priority.
>>>
>>>The web cam is OK for people overseas or the ones that don't not attend 
>>>every year. It seems there is emphasis put on this technology so that 
>>>people don't have to attend. Believe me the web cam is nothing like being 
>>>there.
>>>      
>>>
>>
>>Mark,
>>
>>Well, I won't flame you or anything, but there's a flip side to the coin 
>>you tossed onto the table.  Here's my take:  First, I'll comment about 
>>attending the fests and sitting at home watching, then I'll comment on why 
>>the crowd may be reducing, or not.
>>
>>Some people simply cannot attend the fests.  Some people want to go, but 
>>can't produce the money at one time or by saving during a year, etc.  Some 
>>people have demanding jobs.  Some people spend their vacation time from 
>>their jobs going to places that appeal to the whole family.  Some people 
>>cannot justify going to a fest; some people can.
>>
>>You know as well as I that over the years it has become more of a challenge 
>>even for the big names who have attended past fests, let alone the small 
>>guys who dabble with the CoCo.  I'm sure that if a fest came to their 
>>neighborhood or close enough for a simple drive over and not a flight, 
>>things would change.
>>
>>My take on the webcam is that now we have a way to show something to both 
>>those who cannot attend, and those who have wondered what they are missing 
>>and can now see what they can look forward to next year.  I saw comments in 
>>the chat room from people who saw the crowd and said they were going to try 
>>to go next year.  So, a webcam is not a reason to sit at home, but just a 
>>look into the event for anybody interested in 1) going next year, 2) seeing 
>>people they know but couldn't meet this year, 3) just plum 
>>interested.  Everybody can sit and have their own reason for watching, but 
>>I guarantee it's not just one, and all the reasons are positive.
>>
>>Ok, how much advertising is now going into getting the word out about the 
>>CoCo Fest?  A simple message to the mailing list once or twice is Not 
>>Enough.  This isn't going to help draw a significant crowd that we're 
>>expecting.  To whomever is organizing the fests each year, the work may not 
>>be enough in getting the word out with details about what the visitor can 
>>expect.  In the past, I've placed messages at the top of the front page of 
>>CoCo3.com and I still plan to do this since that page alone gets hundreds 
>>of hits a day and is seen by CoCo users from all over the world, even the 
>>lost ones who didn't know we were still doing this stuff.  This is a great 
>>place for notices like this because the Google ranking is excellent and the 
>>site turns up high for most CoCo searches.
>>
>>Ok, that's free advertisement there, but what about efforts to do more than 
>>just post a message to a web site or mailing list.  Members of any club 
>>involved in organizing events like this should all get together and help 
>>boost interest in different ways.  It's sorta like how you buy stock in 
>>your own company you work for.  It sucks to see that money going back to 
>>them from your paychecks but obviously it's for investment reasons.  Invest 
>>more time and money in getting the word out the right way for the CoCo 
>>Fest, and I promise that more people will attend.  This year I've heard 
>>very little about the upcoming fest and any searches on the web usually 
>>turn up old notices about fests 3 or 4 years ago.
>>
>>There's also been suggestions to start holding festivals that attract more 
>>than just CoCo users.  This would create some competition and attract those 
>>who are into more than just the CoCo.  There are many people our age or 
>>abouts who dabbled in it all back in the 80's and would love to walk around 
>>a huge room full of all of that stuff and see what's being done to keep 
>>those computers alive, including the CoCo, ofcourse.
>>
>>I really think in order for the fest crowd to get bigger there has to be 
>>more advertising and more computer models of interest.  That's my take.
>>    
>>
>
>I agree that something needs to be done about the level of advertisment for
>the fests. As mentioned earlier I first learned about the fest last year by
>accident. I did a google search on the Coco and found your site. That was
>where I saw your "ad" for the cocofest. So at least one person found the fest
>from your site! :-)
>
>I think the date and timing of the fest should be well known to subscribers to
>this list should be well known. I would be interested in knowing if anyone on
>this list didn't know about the fest. What we need to do is find a way to reach
>out to people who like myself used a coco and for any of a number of reasons stopped.
>They won't hear about it from your web page because they don't know about it.
>It would be nice if Radio Shack would be willing to put up fliers in their stores
>for the fest. I wouldn't hold my breath waiting though. :-)
>
>I don't agree that the solution is to have more fests around the country. With the
>fest in the Chicago area which is centrally<SP?> located and relatively easy to get
>to drawing somewher in the area of 50 people. What expectation is there of getting even
>that number in San Antonio or other city? I think we need to face the fact that the
>number of people interested in going to a coco fest is shrinking rapidly and that
>the remaining user base isn't large enough to support multiple events.
>
>Frank 
>
>  
>