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When and How do I sign up for the technical sessions?


@cbutcher wrote:

 

Moving on to the topic of this thread, is registering for sessions a requirement? This is the first time I'm attending NI Week and so I'm excited but have no idea what the structure/system will be like. Will there be a booklet/guide to the sessions?


You don't have to register for the session but some of the popular ones will fill up.  At the door to each room someone will scan your badge to let you in.  This keeps the room from over filling.  If you registered it tells NI you intend on going to it, and gives you priority over someone just walking up and deciding to go to that session.  I'm unaware of the specifics but I'm guessing NI will eventually give away a registered seat if you just didn't show up.  There will be booklet for each day showing the sessions, where they are, what the subject is etc.  I usually use a combination of booklet, mobile app, and desktop view to get the best understanding of what sessions are going on and what ones I want to go to.  I see registering as essential, just because there maybe multiple sessions going on that I'm interested in, and having a schedule which tells me where I need to go next helps with organization.

 


@cbutcher wrote:

 

Short of finding a bed to sleep in (done), what should I do before setting off to Austin?


Bring business cards.  Often at sessions, at lunch, a bar, a restaurant, or just sitting around you will meet interesting people who you will connect with.  I have a few small boxes of business cards I've gotten from NI Week and I usually scribble down something about them on the back, like what subject we talked about, or what they do.  Also a rental car really isn't required.  When I first went to NI Week I got one and it was a waste.  Take the bus from the airport to downtown, for $1.25 (bring exact change), and then I usually call a cab to go to the airport because I leave before they are running in the morning, and I don't want to be late. Other than that I'd say not much is required.  

 

I'd also highly recommend the Advanced User Track sessions.  Over the years NI has gotten feedback from people that NI Week isn't technical enough, and sometimes has sessions that focus on what a company can do or has accomplished and less on what they can teach.  One way NI is trying to fix this is by having a set of sessions that are given by respected technical experts in their field and reviewed by others giving presentations in this track.  These sessions are also approved by members of the community and NI is less hands on.  Resulting is useful topics that maybe NI would reject for the normal session tracks, for one reason or another.  

 

And outside of the conference you may want to look into the LAVA BBQ.  Great networking opportunity, the cost of the BBQ supports the community, great food, and usually a set of door prizes you could win.

Message 11 of 23
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I'm glad to see you're excited, we are too. NIWeek is 25 days away.  

 

In terms of registering for sessions, we encourage you to create your personalize schedule ahead of time.  There are so many great sessions and other things going on, it helps to do a little pre-work to make the most of your time. Yes, we'll have a printed Session Schedule you can pick up at Registration, and you can use the mobile app to search for sessions by day, track/summit, etc...

 

This year we've nearly doubled the number of Advanced User sessions, and we are adding a Learning Labs track with advanced technical content in a hands-on environment.  We take attendee input seriously and want to make NIWeek better every year.

 

In addition to the things mentioned here, you can consider:

 

  1. It’s exciting NIWeek is in May this year – high temperatures near 80 degrees and low near 60 degrees. To manage an existing hotel reservation, click here.

 

  1. NIWeek is at the Austin Convention Center, at 500 E Cesar Chavez St, Austin, TX 78701, in the heart of downtown Austin and about 25 minutes for the ABIA.

 

  1. Special events, like Training and Certification kick off on Sunday, May 21 and Academic Forum and Alliance Day are on Monday, May 22. The general conference takes place Tuesday, May 23 – Thursday, May 25.  Check the mobile app for scheduling, go to your mobile store and search for NIWeek 2017 or download the web version here.

 

  1. Check in at Registration which is on the first floor at the corner of Trinity and 4th Street to receive your badge and other materials.

 

  1. Join us for the Lone Start Welcome Reception, Monday in the Exhibit Hall from 5:30 – 7:00 p.m.

 

  1. If you are a speaker, provide the final version of your session presentation at the Speaker Center on the 4th floor (new location) right outside Room 15.

 

  1. Each session room has a projector, large screen, laptop and microphones. Bring your presentation.  Majority of the rooms hold 200 people, some even more.

 

  1. Join us Tuesday, for the Beers with Engineers in the Exhibit Hall 5:45 – 7:00 p.m.

 

  1. You don’t want to miss the After Hours Conference Party Wednesday, from 8:00 – 11:00 p.m. at Moody Hall. Get your wrist band at Reg. from noon to 5:00 p.m. For full conference attendees.

 

  1. Save the date to submit your NIWeek 2018 paper which opens in August.

 See you soon.

Message 12 of 23
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It is still unclear to me how to actually "Register" for a session in order to reserve a seat. From the app, I can bookmark or add to calendar. Does one of these "Register" me?

 

Thanks.

 

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Message 13 of 23
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Although I also don't know, I would guess that the button you're looking for is "Check In". On the android app this is a bit above the bar with 'bookmark' and 'add'. 'Bookmark' seems to add it to the list of bookmarks, which you can separately browse, whilst 'Add' places it on the schedule you can plan out. There doesn't seem to be any restriction on adding multiple events at the same time (at least, I haven't found one). I don't know if the 'Check-in' function checks that - I haven't used it much yet (on account of having multiple events to choose between. Hmm...)


GCentral
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Message 14 of 23
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I really appreciate all the work that goes into organizing NIWeek, and I'm excited to be attending in just a few days!

 

But the prep experience through the app/online site has been torturous.

First of all, there is zero synchronization between the app and a web browser on the PC, at least in my experience. If you build a schedule on one device, logging in on the other device does not keep the schedule; you start again with a blank slate. Also, while you can add custom items to the schedule, there is inexplicably no way to delete or edit them if your plans change. 

Obviously, you can export the schedule and edit to your heart's content in another calendar app, but that kind of defeats the purpose of an NIWeek-specific app.

 

Has anyone else been experiencing these problems? Hope to see this part of the NIWeek experience improve in the future!

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Message 15 of 23
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Yes JLJ, that was my experience as well, no sync between the two.  Actually, I think that the website became obsolete and no longer maintained the moment that the app was released, so I don't even trust that the catalog there is current.  They should probably take that site down and replace it with a simple message "use the app instead of here".  I had bookmarked several sessions and made some notes; all lost with no way to get them into the app other than copy/paste one at a time.

 

I too was unable to delete any custom event that I added to the website, but I can delete custom events created in the app.


~Tim
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Message 16 of 23
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Thanks for the confirmation, Tim. Glad I'm not alone on this.

To clarify, I used to be able to edit/delete custom schedule events in the iOS app, but when I opened it today, the option was gone; now I can only change when reminders will go off. Strange and frustrating.

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Message 17 of 23
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We appreciate your feedback.  We're working with a new vendor and are noting many areas that need to be improved.  The online catalog as it is currently built is meant to search and learn about sessions but to not build a custom schedule.  The app is the best place to create a personalized schedule.  When you find a session you want to put on your schedule, select the session and look for the Add icon in the middle of the screen.  Then to view your schedule, from the app home page, click the hamburger feature in the top left and then My Schedule where you should see a daily view.

 

 

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Message 18 of 23
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HI Nicole,

 

Is there a way in the app. to "Register" for a session in order to ensure a seat?

 

-Brent

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Message 19 of 23
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No, not at this time.  This is something I will put on our list of things to consider.  

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Message 20 of 23
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