CF_Underground San Francisco was held last week at the Adobe headquarters in downtown SF as a pre MAX event. We had a sold out event with lots of great attendees and talented speakers. Liz and I had a great time putting the conference together and meeting everyone.

We wanted to thank all of our speakers... Raymond Camden, Joe Rinehart, Jeff Tapper and Dan Wilson for taking their time to present at CF_Underground. Also big thanks to Josh Adams and Adobe for hosting. Oh and we wouldn't have a conference if it weren't for the attendees, so thanks to everyone who came!

Here are a few pictures from the event.

Dan Wilson, on "Practical Refactoring: How Small Improvements Make a Big Difference"



Dan the detective & Liz



Raymond Camden, on "Stuff I wish I knew 10 years ago"

Check out http://www.flickr.com/photos/nafisa13/sets/72157610039040961/ to see more pictures.

This entry was posted on November 25, 2008 at 3:08 PM and has received 4470 views. There are currently 0 comments. Print this entry.

Some people have been asking questions about day care for CFUnited 2009:

Q: Do you have to be a guest at the Lansdowne Resort?

A: Yes, you must be staying at this hotel to have free Day Care.

Q: What are the hours of day care services?

A: Hours currently are set for out event from 9am-9pm.

Q: How old do the children have to be?

A: They must be potty trained.

Q: How many children are accepted?

A: If you give us advanced notice we will have the appropriate number of day care staff on hand.

I'm glad that we have been able to accommodate this service to attendees this year. Thanks again for all your questions. -Liz

This entry was posted on November 24, 2008 at 1:20 PM and has received 5047 views. There are currently 2 comments. Print this entry.

Experience Day 2 through my eyes and thoughts now...

The day started with a couple cups of coffee... I don't usually drink coffee but for some reason it becomes a necessity at conferences.

I totally planned on recording interviews while I was there. I had no time and no one else really did either. So I'll recap everything instead.

I blogged about Day 1 before attending a CS4 show down. I got lots of ideas for how I could improve designs and create movies in photoshop. Yes... I said Photoshop. I was too excited because I don't like to use Flash if I don't have to. I used to generate simple Fireworks animated GIF images for banner ads but CS3 didn't come with it. Now Photoshop does simple animation and can incorporate video. Its about time!! So keep an eye for Nafisa and I to make some cool stuff to elevate the experience when visiting CFUnited.com.

I made my way up to the third floor to get into the keynote. I got even closer this time (7 rows back from the stage). I thought to myself, this is it. What I've been waiting for. This better be good. OMG, you could sense the CF developers holding their breaths. It was as if Adobe was crossing their fingers that all their hard work for the last 6 months would pay off. It all came down to this.

It wasn't just the content of what they wanted to share with the general session. It was the way they did it. It was fun and entertaining and it was seamless. Started with Design to Video then to Development. The way life was intended. So what stood out? Photoshop new features, Flash made simple, Flex Builder 3, Bolt which is like Eclispe, Centaur's enhancements, and the fact that Adobe really seems to have been listening to the general public. I think everything that has been suggested by the community is being taken seriously. Tim Buntel and Ben Forta looked so snazzy. Reminded me of Men in Black. It was too cute.

I kept wondering why there wasn't as much applause as deserved, but what I think happened is everyone's minds were about to explode and their mouths were hanging open. It was like they shocked us to the point of turning us speechless. Or they were blogging and twittering non-stop.

The evening prior I told Ben Forta that I couldn't wait for Day 2 keynote. He kept giving me a "you'll see" kind of look. At lunch he walked over to me and we hugged then gave a big high five. I told him I was so proud and I couldn't be happier for the CF community.

I was so inspired by the time lunch came around that I kicked into full networking mode. I was like a machine. I should have just had a big billboard around my neck that said "CFUnited.com and Stellr.com"

The Afternoon was reserved for CF and Air topics for me. I know I'm a designer, but I have to stay in the know. Plus I'm someone who has to remind people that CF is doing so well and that no matter what level you are developing, you should learn CF and you can save yourself time and money. I believe in CF and I want to see it evolve just as much as you do.

Kristen Schofield did an excellent presentation "Be your own Ben Forta". I didn't know what that meant really but to me it was more like "Why CF?" She explained everything in the Evangelism Kit. If you've never read it before, go to: http://www.adobe.com/go/cfevangelismkit

You have to check out page 5 which tells us the future of CF. Centaur in 2009, Sully in 2010, and Link in 2011. I don't think Adobe has ever released their plans for anything other than the next release so this was a big treat. It kind of sets the tone for how I should prepare for each year.

In the new Evangelism kit she handed out at MAX it shows the cost savings from developing your applications in Java vs ASP.Net vs PHP vs CF. You can see that it saves companies almost HALF the cost if you develop in CF rather than Java (even though Java is free). Why? Kristen explained that it is easier to train in CF and the amount of time developing is also less. Not to mention the amount of mistake that can be made. She can correct me if I'm wrong but I think she said that for every 1,000 lines of code Java developers make 100-150 more mistakes than CF developers. I think the point is though that the less amount of code you have the less mistakes.

After that we had lots of questions. Some said they have trouble selling CF to their employers and this Kit is a great solution. Maybe we need more? I'm going to think about this and see how CFUnited can support the effort as well. Something with testimonials, more statistics, and case studies.

Another question was how to find developers to hire. My mouth dropped because I know if I send an SOS to the CFUnited community we can find just about anybody to pass along the information in a heart beat. And that's the other point I think Kristen was missing in her presentation. The CF community is very strong and there are many URLs and Blogs that can get you information and assistance quickly. We should be publishing this to the world, not just other CF people. I'm going to work on that idea too. That's why I'm doing this Executive Summit during CFUnited, which I'll share more soon with you folks.

My next session was Rakshith's "AIR with ColdFusion" It was good. I couldn't follow everything but I was paying more attention to attendee's reactions. Seeing what were their concerns and were they convinced. I'd say from the reactions now, yes. It looks like they have a few things to iron out but Adobe is on the right track. Their employee AIR app used CF. A great example and simple.

I shifted focus and wandered around the Unconference sessions. Looks like those were really popular. Some of the sessions were like the ones you'd see at CFUnited. Its was good to see something informal and work so well at MAX. I put out some CFUnited discount cards (Don't forget to use them by December 5th!) and CF Tag Posters of course.

I made my way down to the Community Pavilion to hang with the Community lounge folks. Including Rachel Luxemberg and Eddie Sullivan. You could see that we were all ready for a massage or something. The humor and laughter was contagious. I got a chance to talk with Rachel about the community. She really enjoys the UG managers and says she's enjoying it so far. I'm sure you all will keep her busy. Eddie is in a good place right now although he'll always be a legend amongst user groups. I also met Sumi Lim. The International community has always had me a little hestitant and we tried CFUnited Europe once. So I guess in a year or so I'll work with Sumi and figure things out a little better.

Nafisa and I skipped the Sneak Peek and Awards. We needed to go back to the hotel and take a break. It was just too much for one day and yet we still had to make our way to back for the evening event. We carried all the free tshirts, stickers, and CDs in our book bags that we could manage. By the time we got to the room we could have literally fallen asleep. At 7pm we found the buses to take us to the museum event. It was pretty orderly. I fell asleep in the bus because it was a 30 minute ride. But good thing because it was going to be a long night.

We (Nafisa and I) started out with the environment exhibit and things that show how the world is evolving to improve our planet. Got some itty bitty burger and chips and beer (Stella beer was my drink for the night... get it? Stella, Stellr... lol) Anyways, then we hit the African exhibit with music and mexican food, a funny combination I thought. Met up with Joe, Ray, Scott, etc. Then the insect exhibit had some beef and potatoes. I got another Stella. There was a pendulum next which we watched for 15 minutes just to see when it would knock over the next pin (because the world rotates on an axis). Grabbed some sushi. Met up with Todd Sanders. Walked up to the guy with tickets for the planetarium scheduled for later that night. Made our way downstairs to the awesome aquarium with a symphony band. Finished that then saw the albino alligator. Got another Stella near the swing band and contortionists. Decided to go to the other museum across the park. Walked past the oragami lessons after grabbing another Stella because we couldn't go outside with our other beers (what a waist, but its their rules and their waste of money). Then we tookd the elevator up to the 9th floor and saw a 360 view of San Francisco. Very cool. Met up with Rob Rusher and his partner Dan. Looked at the time, and ran back across to the other museum to the planitarium. And there was the HIGHLIGHT of my trip. about 200 attendees had tickets to view the most spectacular 3D show I've ever experienced, all without wear those 3D glasses. I'm definitely bringing the family back to see this someday. By the time the evening was over it was 11pm. Nafisa and I grabbed a drink back at the Marriott, then got a midnight strawberry shortcake a la mode. We reflected on the networking we did and the things we learned. Stellr is going to do very well. We have big ideas and a fresh style. Can't wait for 2009.

A big shout out to the 5 Taggers. ;-) (I bet you are wondering what and who this is)

Thanks Adobe for everything. Looking forward to working with you on future events. Thanks for the beer, the loud music, the endless tshirts, the food, the snacks, the video games... and, oh yeah, a confidence in my future with this industry!

Peace out.

PS- Left Wednesday morning, sorry to everyone I didn't get a chance to say goodbye. We'll post all the pictures and videos soon.

This entry was posted on November 20, 2008 at 4:02 PM and has received 3487 views. There are currently 0 comments. Print this entry.

Thanks Scott Stroz, a new member of our advisory board, who told me to submit an entry about the travel for CFUnited 2009 TODAY.

Lansdwone Resort is not along the metro. We know this is one of the items attendees wanted, however we've made arrangements to make it as painless as possible.

Some of the reasons we decided to go with the new venue was because the cost of rooms in DC or even near the metro were very expensive and there aren't that many options for a venue that can hold a conference with over 500 attendees comfortably. Attendees have been hoping for lower guest room rates, better services, and perks. So we've arranged for some extremely great benefits for attendees which made the deal hard to pass up.

As far as transportation, here are the benefits: FREE Parking FREE Shuttle to/from the Dulles Airport FREE Shuttle to/from the Vienna Metro Station

The metro station is approximately 20-30 minutes away. And if you are looking at traffic which is undeniable on any given day and time, you are probably wondering how we plan to organize the event around this issue.

Commuters will have their own "Commuters Lounge" filled with breakfast, comfortable chairs, and a place to rest. If you try to beat the traffic and arrive early, we can see to providing early coffee and breakfast. Any favorite magazine requests?

Lets say you are running really late. First of all, I'll have the asprin waiting at the door if you give me a heads up. Also, I've decided to schedule the less popular topics in the AM and start the days later and end later. I think its gives everyone a fair chance. As a commuter myself in the DC metro area (I commute from Baltimore) I understand what its like.

I can honestly say that commuters will have one of the few pains as a result of 2009's event. But I plan to make up for it in many many ways and offer everyone benefits and luxuries.

If you have concerns or you think there is something else I can do to easy your pain, don't hesitate to ask. :-)

Be Safe.

This entry was posted on November 18, 2008 at 11:51 AM and has received 2180 views. There are currently 0 comments. Print this entry.

Hello World.

This is my take on MAX so far. I was extremely pleased with the the over all feeling of MAX today. It was a great experience checking in and finding session rooms. Now granted, I heard some sessions were in another hotel that had some people confused but I didn't experience that problem yet.

Breakfast. It was actually good. I loved the little breakfast sandwiches and fruit. Nice touch. I went to look for a pleace to sit and eat but found out there wasn't any where to sit. I was pleased to find Jason Delmore and Tom Jordahl sitting on the floor in the middle of the room because I was planning to do the same. I realized early on that most developers are used to sitting on the floor for some reason. After about 5 minutes, more Adobe folks came to join us and some community members we recognized. We sat in a big circle and talked about everything we've experienced last night.

Keynote. We all got up and made our way to the keynote. Ok, correction, we litterly rushed to the entrance like a tornado was behind us. It was a race to the front. Nafisa and I sat about 15 rows back from the stage with other community leaders. I even ran up to give Ben Forta a big bear hug. I swooned when I saw Kevin Lynch on stage. (its a harry potter thing) I was well aware that no CF stuff would be talked about yet so I didn't get dissapointed. I did find a few things inspiring but nothing that had me going gaga. I was more occupied with not having Wifi access on my ipod touch. So I resorted to twittering on my cell phone. If you didn't hear about everything at the Keynote go to http://adobe.com/keynote And lastly, I realized as it was ending someone yelled out "Bingo" which was an inside joke I later found out about. (If you guys pull that while I'm on stage I'll clobber you) lol, but it was really funny. I was making my way out and got into a big crowd again so I hopped over the chairs and I got a few hoot and hollers. I'm not dancing on chairs yet guys. At least I was a little graceful (ok, but I didn't fall). My wonderful Mr. Potter was charming as usual and very classy. Although, I'm excited for tomorrow's keynote when I get to see my main squeeze, Mr. Forta. There is so much buzz and wonder about what we will find out next. I'll be twittering constantly under "cfunited" as fast as my fingers can go. (Hopefully the wifi is up then as well @adobemax)

Lunch. Very good. Very organized. I was late in line because I just had to stop by all the booths on the way. But I was pleased to still have plenty to eat. Thanks for the creme brule, it fulfilled my craving.

Sessions. A little weird. You check in with your badge. If you are not on the list, you have to wait... which is understandable. But I was on the list but my badge didn't register on the scanner. It actually said "Sorry, you are not permitted" or something like that. I wanted to tell that machine to fly a kite. I understand how it is though. Not everything works all the time. The few I've attended so far have been pretty ok. I'm actually here to network and do interviews. I've had lots of good luck so far but now my camera is dead again. I've gone through 4 batteries just today. Sorry if I didn't catch you.

Exhibits. I want more free stuff. I feel like Adobe has all the cool stuff this year. Tshirts, stickers, etc. They know what we really want. BTW, the CF tshirt rocks. It has a guy holding a bottle of beer. Awesome.

Other stuff. The game lounge is cool. The snacks rock. The support is excellent. AV is good.

Generally great as expected. Again, I'm looking forward to tomorrow. The night is still young though! See you pals later.

Last note. I had to share this point. Everyone who knows me, the first thing they say is "I love the new venue for CFUnited"! Sweet. Exactly what I was hoping for. Its all for you folks. And if you tell me I'm doing something right I'm encouraged to keep going. Thanks for the support.

Until tomorrow. -Liz

PS- Sorry about putting this under Admin, I forgot my personal password. I'll change it when I get back to the hotel.

This entry was posted on November 17, 2008 at 8:04 PM and has received 4223 views. There are currently 1 comments. Print this entry.

I know this is going to sound funny...

During the last few events, I've heard people complain about chairs of all things. I know when I go to events my back is a wreck because of those awful chairs they use.

On one of the survey forms this past CFUnited someone wrote a detailed suggestion about having more comfortable chairs.

The conference gods have answered your prayers. I couldn't believe it when I walked into Lansdowne Conference Center and saw the room chairs. I asked if this was a joke because all the chairs are Ergonomic! I sat in one of them and thought to myself - this chair is better than the one I have a my home office!

See proof here: http://www.flickr.com/photos/stellr_photos/2961488333/in/set-72157608251436415/

I know to some people this doesn't make a difference. But to others having comfort while away from home is important.

So to whoever made that suggestion, thank you. I'm glad we could make one more attendee happy.

BTW, there are many more wishes we are granting this year. I hope its your wish, too! ;-)

This entry was posted on November 13, 2008 at 12:56 PM and has received 3712 views. There are currently 4 comments. Print this entry.

Dates: August 12th-15th 2009

Pre Conference Classes: August 11th 2009

Location: Lansdowne Resort and Conference Center

If you've attended any CFUnited event in the past you can get the Alumni discount,$100 off the current price. Therefore, now through December 31st, the cost for 3 day registration is only $599!!!

Check out our new registration system. Now you can edit your personal information and even register multiple attendees.

http://register.cfunited.com

Prices are at http://cfunited.com/go/prices

The hotel and location of the event is the Lansdowne Resort. See more details here. http://cfunited.com/go/travel

Stay tuned to the CFUnited.com/blog and check out all the new announcements about CFUnited 2009! We are making some outstanding changes.

also check out photos from flickr! http://www.flickr.com/photos/stellr_photos/sets/72157608251436415/

Also, feel free to ask our Advisory Board what they think.

This entry was posted on November 12, 2008 at 5:02 PM and has received 6811 views. There are currently 5 comments. Print this entry.