As was foretold, we've added advertisements to the forums! If you have questions, or if you encounter any bugs, please visit this thread: https://forums.penny-arcade.com/discussion/240191/forum-advertisement-faq-and-reports-thread/

Gripes aside, what's one specific thing YOU plan to do differently next year?

13

Posts

  • PayneTraynePayneTrayne Canuck Registered User regular
    Getting in on Thursday and leaving on Monday is a great idea. Also, I intend to be 21 next year for the Pokecrawl.

    PAX East 2015:Get on Pokecrawl Team Yellow Silver [ ] Pass [X] Vacation Time [X] Hotel [X] Flights [ ] PAX East 2015 Complete [ X ] Sell Extra Set of Badges because Friend Bailed [ ]
  • XX55XXXX55XX Registered User regular
    I wonder if anyone agrees with me on this one:

    I had intended to bring my laptop (a Thinkpad T420) with me, but ultimately decided that it was too heavy and didn't bring it, leaving it at home. Later, when I met up with some people in the gaming lounge, I realized that I wished I bought a lighter laptop last year.

    For next year, I'm ditching my T420 and bringing a lighter laptop with me. Perhaps the new X230 might be it...

  • jonxpjonxp [E] PC Security Registered User regular
    XX55XX wrote: »
    I wonder if anyone agrees with me on this one:

    I had intended to bring my laptop (a Thinkpad T420) with me, but ultimately decided that it was too heavy and didn't bring it, leaving it at home. Later, when I met up with some people in the gaming lounge, I realized that I wished I bought a lighter laptop last year.

    For next year, I'm ditching my T420 and bringing a lighter laptop with me. Perhaps the new X230 might be it...

    Do BYOC and bring whatever sized laptop you want.

    Every time you write parallel fifths, Bach kills a kitten.
    3DS Friend Code: 2707-1614-5576
    PAX Prime 2014 Buttoneering!
  • XX55XXXX55XX Registered User regular
    jonxp wrote: »
    XX55XX wrote: »
    I wonder if anyone agrees with me on this one:

    I had intended to bring my laptop (a Thinkpad T420) with me, but ultimately decided that it was too heavy and didn't bring it, leaving it at home. Later, when I met up with some people in the gaming lounge, I realized that I wished I bought a lighter laptop last year.

    For next year, I'm ditching my T420 and bringing a lighter laptop with me. Perhaps the new X230 might be it...

    Do BYOC and bring whatever sized laptop you want.

    Meh... I'm a bit paranoid when it comes to leaving personal stuff out of view...

    I think getting an X230 for next year is my best bet. It's more than a pound lighter than my T420 (or will be, at least).

  • ErickaJoErickaJo MassachusettsRegistered User regular
    Things I will do differently next year:
    Get my husband and room mate on the forums. I think this PAX was even more awesome because I started posting here, and I want them in on it.
    Take more pictures.
    Get to the expo floor on Friday instead of Sunday. I don't want to live there, but I think there are a few things I would have gone back for.
    Seek out people I've met on the forums, twitter, g+ instead of hoping that I'll passively run into them.
    Leave my cat with my father instead of home alone. It took me hours to calm him down, and every time I went close to the front door he'd start freaking out again.



  • FrugusFrugus Photographer MontrealRegistered User regular
    1- Definitely going back to the Westin if I can.
    2- Foodler and GrubHub are my new best friends
    3- If possible / realistic / feasible, most of the personal meetups and handshakes would be handled on Mornings down at the lobby. It felts I always had more time to breath during those times.
    4- Ear plugs. There was a wild party next door to me no Saturday.
    5- Unless there's something absolutely critical I would want to attend, I think the morning lines / queue room is going to be a thing of the past for me. By 10:30 you can come in by the side doors. Consider you can wait things out in the hand held lounge by 8 am, or you can have fun at the Westin lobby...
    6- That hotel room safe looks like it can take my 15 inch laptop...

    Frugus Eggbeater
    ufCl1ui.png
  • ZeroHourHeroZeroHourHero Allentown, PARegistered User regular
    edited April 2012
    1) Remember my cameras. I have a Flip HD and 2 Digital Still's, and Promptly forgot all of them, on my honeymoon, to pax, where I was going to a pub crawl. I MISSED SO MANY EPIC PICTURES.

    I came home to find them on the end table next to where I staged my luggage the night before we left.
    ultimakay wrote: »
    2) Have a panel plan before getting there. I didnt do this either time ive been to pax and i always kick myself for it. Really love the panels and need to have a better idea about what I want to see going into it.

    I always bust out a Google Docs or Excel Spreadsheet the week before pax, and plot out everything I want to do, and color code overlapping things with priorities. It may work for you.

    ZeroHourHero on
  • testsubject23testsubject23 King of No Sleep ZzzzzzzRegistered User regular
    edited April 2012
    I always bust out a Google Docs or Excel Spreadsheet the week before pax, and plot out everything I want to do, and color code overlapping things with priorities. It may work for you.

    I do this every year, myself, but I've come to realize that my *actual* capacity for attending panels is about 2 per day, tops. I always pare my schedule of interest down to the bone prior to PAX, and still end up blowing off a bunch of panels the day-of in order to do other things... otherwise I'd spend all my time in panels and line-ups (which would be somewhat tragic, considering how many other amazing things PAX has to offer).
    I also keep a list of 1 or 2 alternatives, just in case my panels of interest fill up, but this year at least I didn't use it - the one panel that I tried for that was full (RPG Theory) came as a relief - I could eat and use the washroom with the time left over. :)

    testsubject23 on
    camo_sig2.png
    Steam: Chaos Introvert | Twitch.tv: Chaos_Introvert | R*SC: Chaos_Introvert | PSN: testsubject23
  • ChorazinChorazin Lancaster, PARegistered User regular
    Next year I want to pay more attention to the Jamspace, it was a great place to chill and listen to bands.

    Twitter//@chorazin
    Google+//http://gplus.to/chorazin
    FitBit//Profile
    3DS Friend Code: 3823 8527 9997
    Wii U NNID Chorazin
  • AngrypastaAngrypasta Registered User regular
    I'm going to try to be more social next year. I had a great time with the friends I went with, but didn't really put myself out there enough to make new friends. I also want to get in on more board games.

    Hello, potential PAX friends!

  • JobiwanKenobiJobiwanKenobi Registered User regular
    1. Make dinner reservations, and research places that deliver to the Westin
    2. Walk the entire BCEC on Friday. I didn't realize that the classic arcade was there until I was leaving Sat night... Unfortunately I had the PAX plague so I had to walk straight past the coin-op machines and the 80's music... that would of been great, maybe next time... (or maybe I'll just plan a road trip to Portland to visit Ground Kontrol).



    PAX Prime '09 - H1N(erd)1 Survivor - Never Forget (Your Hand Sanitizer)
    PAX Prime '14 Omeganaut - Result: KO in 3rd Round (Damn you, Super Avalanche 2!)
  • jonxpjonxp [E] PC Security Registered User regular
    XX55XX wrote: »
    jonxp wrote: »
    XX55XX wrote: »
    I wonder if anyone agrees with me on this one:

    I had intended to bring my laptop (a Thinkpad T420) with me, but ultimately decided that it was too heavy and didn't bring it, leaving it at home. Later, when I met up with some people in the gaming lounge, I realized that I wished I bought a lighter laptop last year.

    For next year, I'm ditching my T420 and bringing a lighter laptop with me. Perhaps the new X230 might be it...

    Do BYOC and bring whatever sized laptop you want.

    Meh... I'm a bit paranoid when it comes to leaving personal stuff out of view...

    I think getting an X230 for next year is my best bet. It's more than a pound lighter than my T420 (or will be, at least).

    No one can take your laptop without taking the whole table.

    Every time you write parallel fifths, Bach kills a kitten.
    3DS Friend Code: 2707-1614-5576
    PAX Prime 2014 Buttoneering!
  • Brew78Brew78 Registered User regular
    I did end up ordering a copy of "Revolution!" (and the "Palace" expansion), the game that I played in the Steve Jackson area of the tabletop zone and will be bringing it with me. The box should fit in my backpack well enough. Its pretty simple to learn and games last 30-45 minutes, so it'll be great for being social while in lines.

  • ChenzillahChenzillah Resident Geek Scarborough, MaineRegistered User regular
    I'm seriously considering bringing a step counter just to see how far I've walked... I swore I accumulated at least 20 miles worth of walking on Saturday!

  • zerzhulzerzhul Registered User, Moderator mod
    Chenzillah wrote: »
    I'm seriously considering bringing a step counter just to see how far I've walked... I swore I accumulated at least 20 miles worth of walking on Saturday!

    Fitbit is your friend.

  • LinkSmashLinkSmash Registered User regular
    Stay at a hotel closer to the venue simply because I ended up crashing at friend's hotel rooms due to the many, many open bar parties around the area haha
    Cosplay as bubbleboy so as not to get infected with PAX Plague....
    Cosplay in general!
    Take more pictures of me with my friends! I'm so horrible at not taking many pictures at all and I get to see these crazy bunch possibly once or twice a year because of cons! Need to have more valid proof that "oh yeah, we were there!"
    Take a picture with Felicia Day instead of just gawking at her with her damn amazing red hair....Ahhh... So pretty......

  • tvethiopiatvethiopia Salem MARegistered User regular
    I always bust out a Google Docs or Excel Spreadsheet the week before pax, and plot out everything I want to do, and color code overlapping things with priorities. It may work for you.

    I do this every year, myself, but I've come to realize that my *actual* capacity for attending panels is about 2 per day, tops. I always pare my schedule of interest down to the bone prior to PAX, and still end up blowing off a bunch of panels the day-of in order to do other things... otherwise I'd spend all my time in panels and line-ups (which would be somewhat tragic, considering how many other amazing things PAX has to offer).
    I also keep a list of 1 or 2 alternatives, just in case my panels of interest fill up, but this year at least I didn't use it - the one panel that I tried for that was full (RPG Theory) came as a relief - I could eat and use the washroom with the time left over. :)

    2 panels per day sounds like a great limit. when i plan too many i tend to get overwhelmed or forgetful and miss everything. i will try to remember that for next year!

    <3 Daintier. Smarter. Better dressed. <3
    7YIpfE5.png
  • testsubject23testsubject23 King of No Sleep ZzzzzzzRegistered User regular
    tvethiopia wrote: »
    2 panels per day sounds like a great limit. when i plan too many i tend to get overwhelmed or forgetful and miss everything. i will try to remember that for next year!

    For some folks it'll be more or less, but 3 years running I've always burned out after panel 2 (counting the combined Keynote/Q&A on Friday as one super-panel). Gotta leave time for expo hall, freeplay, concerts, and random fanstictic awesomeness.

    camo_sig2.png
    Steam: Chaos Introvert | Twitch.tv: Chaos_Introvert | R*SC: Chaos_Introvert | PSN: testsubject23
  • ottoman673ottoman673 Registered User regular
    zerzhul wrote: »
    Chenzillah wrote: »
    I'm seriously considering bringing a step counter just to see how far I've walked... I swore I accumulated at least 20 miles worth of walking on Saturday!

    Fitbit is your friend.

    Also, if you have a 3DS and leave it in your pocket on standby, it's got a pedometer on board. SHOCKED at how much i walked Friday.

    PAX East 2012 Checklist: [x] 3 Day Pass [x] Time off Work [x] Flight [x] Hotel
  • SpectacledBearSpectacledBear Ontario, CanadaRegistered User regular
    Frugus wrote: »
    1- Definitely going back to the Westin if I can.
    2- Foodler and GrubHub are my new best friends
    3- If possible / realistic / feasible, most of the personal meetups and handshakes would be handled on Mornings down at the lobby. It felts I always had more time to breath during those times.
    4- Ear plugs. There was a wild party next door to me no Saturday.
    5- Unless there's something absolutely critical I would want to attend, I think the morning lines / queue room is going to be a thing of the past for me. By 10:30 you can come in by the side doors. Consider you can wait things out in the hand held lounge by 8 am, or you can have fun at the Westin lobby...
    6- That hotel room safe looks like it can take my 15 inch laptop...

    @Frugus, how was Foodler? I wanted to try it but ended up walking down to Metro Cafe instead and still spending $25.

    Currently playing Stardew Valley and I Am Setsuna.

    LPr3CtQ.png
  • SpectacledBearSpectacledBear Ontario, CanadaRegistered User regular
    ottoman673 wrote: »
    zerzhul wrote: »
    Chenzillah wrote: »
    I'm seriously considering bringing a step counter just to see how far I've walked... I swore I accumulated at least 20 miles worth of walking on Saturday!

    Fitbit is your friend.

    Also, if you have a 3DS and leave it in your pocket on standby, it's got a pedometer on board. SHOCKED at how much i walked Friday.

    YES. I was clocking 5000+ steps each day, according to my 3DS that I kept in my pocket.

    Currently playing Stardew Valley and I Am Setsuna.

    LPr3CtQ.png
  • ottoman673ottoman673 Registered User regular
    ottoman673 wrote: »
    zerzhul wrote: »
    Chenzillah wrote: »
    I'm seriously considering bringing a step counter just to see how far I've walked... I swore I accumulated at least 20 miles worth of walking on Saturday!

    Fitbit is your friend.

    Also, if you have a 3DS and leave it in your pocket on standby, it's got a pedometer on board. SHOCKED at how much i walked Friday.

    YES. I was clocking 5000+ steps each day, according to my 3DS that I kept in my pocket.

    12,267 on friday alone. O.o

    PAX East 2012 Checklist: [x] 3 Day Pass [x] Time off Work [x] Flight [x] Hotel
  • TraitoriousTraitorious Registered User regular
    edited April 2012
    ottoman673 wrote: »
    ottoman673 wrote: »
    zerzhul wrote: »
    Chenzillah wrote: »
    I'm seriously considering bringing a step counter just to see how far I've walked... I swore I accumulated at least 20 miles worth of walking on Saturday!

    Fitbit is your friend.

    Also, if you have a 3DS and leave it in your pocket on standby, it's got a pedometer on board. SHOCKED at how much i walked Friday.

    YES. I was clocking 5000+ steps each day, according to my 3DS that I kept in my pocket.

    12,267 on friday alone. O.o
    14,959 on Friday myself (30% was padded from getting lost trying to find a subway station to get to the Hawken party, but I digress) according to my 3DS. Damn, neither Saturday nor Sunday even come remotely close to that (6.1k and 4.6k respectively.)

    I actually totally forgot about the Activity Log until these last two posts :lol: I honestly didn't remember what icon it was on the 3DS menu screen.

    Traitorious on
  • ChorazinChorazin Lancaster, PARegistered User regular
    zerzhul wrote: »
    Chenzillah wrote: »
    I'm seriously considering bringing a step counter just to see how far I've walked... I swore I accumulated at least 20 miles worth of walking on Saturday!

    Fitbit is your friend.

    I'm getting one of these things next week, they look awesome. :)

    Twitter//@chorazin
    Google+//http://gplus.to/chorazin
    FitBit//Profile
    3DS Friend Code: 3823 8527 9997
    Wii U NNID Chorazin
  • TriiipledotTriiipledot Registered User regular
    edited April 2012
    I see a trend with the "Meet more people from forums" or "Be more social", there wasnt a big PAX Forums meet and greet for this years PAX East? Im new to the forums so still kind of creeping around the threads but it seems like a formal "Pax Forums Meet and Greet" would be a cool idea for the more shy people. Even something that people can attend that isnt strictly 21+ like a bar crawl would be cool.

    I would have loved to have some kind of social event where people were maybe divided up into groups designated by the region of the USA they are from ie. North East, South West, South East etc etc. so even during a big social gathering you could also swap info with people who live near you.

    Triiipledot on
  • zerzhulzerzhul Registered User, Moderator mod
    edited April 2012
    I see a trend with the "Meet more people from forums" or "Be more social", there wasnt a big PAX Forums meet and greet for this years PAX East? Im new to the forums so still kind of creeping around the threads but it seems like a formal "Pax Forums Meet and Greet" would be a cool idea for the more shy people. Even something that people can attend that isnt strictly 21+ like a bar crawl would be cool.

    I would have loved to have some kind of social event where people were maybe divided up into groups designated by the region of the USA they are from ie. North East, South West, South East etc etc. so even during a big social gathering you could also swap info with people who live near you.

    Well, theoretically the "general forum meetups" are handled by the trading card meetups (and buttoneering at prime), since that's the point of the trading cards, getting to know other forumers. There's so many meetups organized on the forums that there's usually no need for one giant overall meetup in addition to that. There's the Magical Mystery Tour, the Pre PAX Dinner, the Barcrawl, pax pokemon league meetups, pre-pax gaming night, during pax gaming in the hotel lobbies, cigar meetups, the girls' brunch, and the food exchange to name a few. Those combined with 3 trading card meetups at this east... that's a LOT of opportunities to find other forumers and hang out. I would be willing to bet that a general "forum meetup" in addition to those would be heavily diluted because people will already be planning on at least one of those other things if not more than one.

    zerzhul on
  • FrugusFrugus Photographer MontrealRegistered User regular
    Frugus wrote: »
    1- Definitely going back to the Westin if I can.
    2- Foodler and GrubHub are my new best friends
    3- If possible / realistic / feasible, most of the personal meetups and handshakes would be handled on Mornings down at the lobby. It felts I always had more time to breath during those times.
    4- Ear plugs. There was a wild party next door to me no Saturday.
    5- Unless there's something absolutely critical I would want to attend, I think the morning lines / queue room is going to be a thing of the past for me. By 10:30 you can come in by the side doors. Consider you can wait things out in the hand held lounge by 8 am, or you can have fun at the Westin lobby...
    6- That hotel room safe looks like it can take my 15 inch laptop...

    @Frugus, how was Foodler? I wanted to try it but ended up walking down to Metro Cafe instead and still spending $25.

    We only tried it once, but it was both fast and effecient. The only gripe we had was with the delivery guy who did not care about how the food was placed in his bag and he ended up spilling a lot of stuff, but we saved almost all of it.

    Lot's of heatlhy food selections too!

    I'll definitely use it again next year!

    Frugus Eggbeater
    ufCl1ui.png
  • TabooPhantasyTabooPhantasy Registered User regular
    PAX Train up, plane back. Tickets are the same price and by the time I checked out of the hotel I was really ready to see my dogs and my own bed without waiting another 9 hours.

    ~Taboo
    BH11Fnk.png
  • BIGmogBIGmog DenverRegistered User regular
    Another change for next time: attend fewer panels. The best thing I can say about some of the panels I went to was that I could sit down for an hour and rest my feet.

    By Sunday I realized I could accomplish this much more comfortably in the portable gaming lounge. Plus I know now that some of the panels were recorded and I could simply watch them online later (and fast forward).

  • macrogeekmacrogeek Registered User regular
    This year our group seemed to revolve around the expo floor all 3 days and I felt a lot of time was wasted. Next year we will try to knock that all out on Sunday because the lines are shorter.
    Fri: Keynote, Q&A, PA Merch, any limited qty merch/swag, free time, concerts.
    Sat: Lots of Tabletop, panels, freeplay areas, concerts.
    Sun: Tabletop, then Expo floor as the crowds start to die down.

  • SchmoeSchmoe CanadaRegistered User regular
    This was my first PAX and there are definitely some things I will do differently next time.

    Get a welcome bag on the way in (we didn't even know that's what they were until Saturday sometime) so we have the the panel schedules with us
    Make a schedule of the panels I want to see and go to more panels! (I went to Nuka Break and it was awesome but that's the only one I went to)
    Go to the concerts
    If I really want something (or want to do something), buy it (do it) right away
    Make sure everyone in the group knows where and when to meet if we (get) split up
    Take pictures of everything (or anything)
    Get our badges mailed to us instead of picking them up

    But, thanks to everyone here in the Forums, we did a lot of things 'right' the first time (snacks, keeping hydrated, enough sleep, hand sanitizer, good shoes, cash, going early, etc).

  • ottoman673ottoman673 Registered User regular
    Last thing i'm strongly considering doing differently:

    BYOC pass next year. In the time since PAX, i have managed to buy the following for my PC, 'cause i wanna get back into the PC games;
    Sidewinder X4 Keyboard
    Vengeance M60 Mouse
    +8GB RAM
    to go along with my AMD Phenom II x6, 4GB already in, and GTX 460. Thinking about getting a SSD too.

    PAX East 2012 Checklist: [x] 3 Day Pass [x] Time off Work [x] Flight [x] Hotel
  • MASeffectMASeffect Registered User regular
    Forcing my whole party to buy BYOC pass. End of story.

    lloyehipr7341342326762.png
  • ChorazinChorazin Lancaster, PARegistered User regular
    Schmoe wrote: »
    This was my first PAX and there are definitely some things I will do differently next time.

    Get a welcome bag on the way in (we didn't even know that's what they were until Saturday sometime) so we have the the panel schedules with us

    While I certainly do advocate getting a swag bag because it's full of awesome, IMO the smartphone app works the best for schedule info. You can make an itinerary right on it and change as needed. :)

    Twitter//@chorazin
    Google+//http://gplus.to/chorazin
    FitBit//Profile
    3DS Friend Code: 3823 8527 9997
    Wii U NNID Chorazin
  • adias.angeladias.angel Tech-Savvy Wife Kalamazoo, MIRegistered User regular
    Schedule time to do the indie passport. We didn't know about it until Sunday and then we felt a bit rushed trying to fit it in before a panel.

    Prime '12, '13, '14, '15, '19 .. East '12
  • chocojoshchocojosh Registered User regular
    Dedicate a good chunk of time to really get to know more of the indie devs. I spent about 20 minutes just talking about old RPGs and some programming stuff with SRRN Games. Was one of the best parts of the con that I felt so good about after.

  • TdarTURboTdarTURbo Registered User regular
    Bring Beachballs. Many Beachballs.

    Each PAX I get to meet more online friends that I know from twitter.

  • XirycXiryc Middleburg Hts, OHRegistered User regular
    2) NOT at the Westin. Convenience to the convention hall is ALL that place has going for it, and it's not enough for the price.
    1.) THIS. The rooms at the Westin are tiny. Great for one person, but not really for three.
    2.) Meet the people I wanted to meet. This also means spending less time sleeping on PAX Train.
    3.) Less panels. I need to be more choosy with the panels, because they will devour your entire day. Blankety Blank and the LRR panel were great, though.
    4.) More tabletop play. I did get to try out Peasant Dave's upcoming RPG system, which was quite fun.
    5.) Actually show up to the PAX Card meetups. I missed the Sunday meetup because we were starving by the time we left the show.

  • zerzhulzerzhul Registered User, Moderator mod
    Xiryc wrote: »
    2) NOT at the Westin. Convenience to the convention hall is ALL that place has going for it, and it's not enough for the price.
    1.) THIS. The rooms at the Westin are tiny. Great for one person, but not really for three.

    I think their room sizes must vary a bit. I had three people in my room at the Westin last year, two of us very large fellows, and never really felt cramped. This year I had two total in my room but felt that it could have easily fit 3 or maybe 4 (and this was with multiple boxes full of stuff/swag that I brought with me to PAX. I have heard the small room complaint before though, so it leads me to believe that some rooms are just bigger/smaller than others, or people are spending more time in their rooms than others.

    I've been in a whole ton of hotel rooms while travelling for business and conventions and they really seem on-par with almost every chain hotel I've been in, with the exception of suites. I guess if you're trying to sleep 3+ people in a room that are not used to sharing a bed, with one on the floor, it could seem small, but I don't think very many hotels design for that case. I'm only mentioning this because I think it can cause a misconception to say a room is small without qualifying the usage and activities in the room. My guess is that two couples (4 adults) would feel fine in their two bed rooms if all they were doing was sleeping there. If you're trying to have 4 non-attached adults in some floor/bed situation while also trying to have the room act as a game playing room etc, well then yeah they're way too small for that.

  • TrandescentTrandescent Registered User regular
    Panels panels panels.

    The only panel I actually tried to get into that I planned to go to was the Gearbox panel. This was unfortunately cut short by me not realizing how early and fast panel lines for big publishers fill up.

    I didn't go to a single panel. I'm going to fix that next year

    8elUgf9.png

    PAX East 2018 4-Day Pass [X] BYOC Pass [X] Hotel Reservation [X]

    See y'all at PAX East 2018!
This discussion has been closed.