[pydata-outreach-staff] Email to attendees with logistics and laptop setup

[Vid]

On Fri, Dec 14, 2012 at 1:15 PM, Asheesh Laroia <asheesh at asheesh.org> wrote:
> Hi all,
>
> I wanted to check in on the question of if we've emailed the laptop setup
> instructions to attendees.
>
> If not, I recommend wrapping it in the following logistics email.
>
> Also, vid, if you and I can reach consensus on what the attendee survey
> should contain, I'd love to send it out too. In that thread, I had suggested
> some wording to address your concerns, and I'm hoping you think it's OK. But
> it's now much closer to the event than I hoped, so at this stage the survey
> is a little less essential.
>
> If we can put the survey in, I'd love it if you'd integrate it into the
> logistics email, or ask me to and I can send a new draft of this with the
> survey properly integrated.

Why not put the Logistics page up on the GH wiki, so that I can easily
email the link to attendees.
Also the wiki is easily editable by anyone with a GH account, and even
easier to give folks push access to the repo.

Isnt the survey supposed to be sent _after_ the event?


> This email contains a few logistics notes you'll need to know to make the
> best of the workshop, and help it run as smoothly as possible.
>
> What to bring
> -------------
>
> We expect you to bring yourself and a laptop computer that can join a wifi
> network. It can be running Windows, Mac OS, or a Linux distribution (or if
> it runs something else, that's cool, but you might run into issues with the
> workshop).
>
> It is important that you bring a computer you can program on, rather than
> just a tablet or mobile phone.
>
> Planning for food
> -----------------
>
> We plan to provide lunch, thanks to the Python Software Foundation for
> sponsoring! We'll have vegetarian and meaty options.
>
> If you have dietary restrictions that we should know about, we'd be very
> happy to make sure we accommodate that. Just reply and let us know, and
> we'll email you back.

Asheesh, I've been told, by multiple people who have organized many
events in NY for a few years, to keep this simple and down to the
basics--Apparently, in their experience, there will always be a
dietary option that you (the organizer) didnt provide or accommodate,
which is a hard act if you are on a budget, so you dont want to make
promises you cannot keep.
At one meetup I attended they only kept plain cheese pizzas - when I
asked the organizers told me it solved the problem of people
complaining about toppings, or about not getting the slice they liked
because we ran out. I can go on about the stories I heard but I'll
just stop with these pearls of borrowed wisdom. Since you are handling
the PSF sponsorship, feel free to roll ahead as you deem fit.


> Laptop setup
> ------------
>
> Getting your computer configured to contribute to pandas can be
> time-consuming, so we wrote a guide that you can work through.
>
> You can find it here:
>
> https://github.com/svaksha/PyData-Workshop-Sprint/wiki/laptop-setup
>
> We strongly encourage you to work through it before the event. If you are
> having any trouble, we can help out! Please come 15 minutes early (at
> 9:45am) to the venue and we'll be there to work with you.
>
> Venue
> -----
>
> The location is:
>
> * Pivotal Labs (8th floor), 841 Broadway New York, NY
>
> * Date: Sun 12/16
>
> * Arrive at 9:45 for laptop setup, or 10 AM for general meet&greet.
>
> * Full schedule:
> https://github.com/svaksha/PyData-Workshop-Sprint/wiki/2012-NYC

I've updated it with Chang's topics list and he has git push access,
so he can update it if he wants to add/refine it.


> Other emails
> ------------
>
> After the workshop, we'll send you an exit survey to find out what we can
> improve about the event.

I am writing a list of questions, which I'll put on a googledoc soon.


> If you want to get in touch with us, email:
> pydata-outreach-staff at lists.openhatch.org

I'd suggest you open up the archives of the list. Also allow
non-subscribers to post to the list. When people get a "your post is
pending approval" it may seem stand-offish, hence the suggestion.
Alternatively, you could ask attendees to email you directly if you
want.

-
Regards,
Vid  ॥ http://svaksha.com ॥