(no subject)
Here's the deal! Been going to fan conventions regularly since around 2002, and since around mid 2007 I've attended more than a couple anime conventions. There are a few things fandom could really learn from anime conventions, and a few of this items are referencing process and some are content issues! Registration, please the ole fashioned way of printing out forms mailing them in with membership payments, and then retrieving the information when one retrieves one's membership packet; whatever, it's all so 1980. Example, when I registered for a local anime convention Pacific Media Expo http://pacificmediaexpo.info/2011/ and at a late date when one needs to pay at the door, but still their on-line form took all my relevant information and it will be with the registration department prior to my getting to the venue on Sunday a.m. On-line forms and on-line storing of all the data; however, this may not be coming to fandom anytime soon, because we all know that this whole computer deal is just sum krazy wacky fad the kids do, it's not going to last. Next handling volunteers, and a few friends of mine are fan convention department heads, I've volunteered, IOW gophered, at a few anime convention and more than a few fan conventions and really the way anime conventions handle their volunteers is efficient; example, even after finishing gophering at a few fan conventions I've never really known how many volunteers hours I've accumulated. At the anime conventions I've gophered for every volunteer is always up-to-date on how many volunteer hours they've accumulated. Make a database spreadsheet to handle this, I might be able to do it and I would need to look at the program manual, but I know it's easy. Another thing about volunteers, when gophers show up to the 'gopher hole', the on duty staff should be completely up-to-date about where gophers are needed to go. To many times I've heard at fan cons the staff in gopher hole say, "I don't know, maybe art show (con-suite, green room, etc.) needs someone". And lastly, when an attendee shows up in gopher hole to start their volunteer time, don't send them to three different people to get them started.
Lastly, here's a content issue that I have recently raised in one or two other fan forums. Many anime conventions have a 'manga suite'; naturally, this is a set e room for the reading of manga. If one of the purposes of fandom is to preserve the literature that forms the basic, core, ontological reason for fandom's existence then I think it's essential and critical that fan cons have a reading room for that literature. If this is not done then, IMO, there's a probable scenario that this literature will disappear. When I started going to fancons, copies of books, ARCs with packets, were often included in membership packets, or sometimes the con arranged for mass distributions of said books, but this happens all too seldom. Most likely, such activity would provoke the anger of either the book sellers in the hawkers room, or the authors.or both.
So this is starting to sound like an ole man rant, so this is enuff for now..
Lastly, here's a content issue that I have recently raised in one or two other fan forums. Many anime conventions have a 'manga suite'; naturally, this is a set e room for the reading of manga. If one of the purposes of fandom is to preserve the literature that forms the basic, core, ontological reason for fandom's existence then I think it's essential and critical that fan cons have a reading room for that literature. If this is not done then, IMO, there's a probable scenario that this literature will disappear. When I started going to fancons, copies of books, ARCs with packets, were often included in membership packets, or sometimes the con arranged for mass distributions of said books, but this happens all too seldom. Most likely, such activity would provoke the anger of either the book sellers in the hawkers room, or the authors.or both.
So this is starting to sound like an ole man rant, so this is enuff for now..