CFUnited Blog

CFUnited $499 special early bird price ends Sept 25!

We are opening 200 tickets at $499 for the 3 day price. But we also have to cut it off September 25th. So tell your friends who didn't have the opportunity to go this year. It is more affordable than ever. Once you have your ticket, that's half the battle!

2010 will rock and you might just be surprised that we will be able to make it even better.

The event will take place in August and will be in the DC metro area. We will announce the exact location and dates in the upcoming weeks. If you register now and upon announcement the venue and dates do not work for you we will refund your registration, so there is no risk in taking advantage of the early bird price.

There is only one more week left to take advantage of our lowest registration packages, register while the offer is still available! http://register.cfunited.com/

RIA Unleashed : Boston

RIA Unleashed : Boston is a one-day, three-track, event that covers Adobe Flex, Adobe AIR, Adobe ColdFusion and related technologies and disciplines, with 20 sessions designed to allow you to focus on the technologies you are interested in. Get exciting updates on the Adobe Flash Platform, learn the latest tips and tricks from the leading RIA developers, and network with your peers.

The event is being held on November 13th at Bentley College in Waltham, MA. There is already an amazing lineup of speakers including Ray Camden, Adam Lehman, Ryan Stewart, Peter Bell, Jason Delmore, Simon Free and many more! Currently registration is only $50 for individuals and $40 for groups and that includes the full day of sessions, lunch, prizes and an after-party. On top of that, there is a special CFUnited discount of $10 off if you use the code "CFUNITED". Plus, if you register now, you are eligible to win a PlayStation 3 Slim through our referral contest if you refer your friends and coworkers!

So don't wait as space is limited and past events (formerly Flex Camp Boston) have sold out! Register today.

CFUnited 2010 big news!

Hello CFUnited alumni and fans! It's Fall and the leaves aren't the only thing changing this season. Big news everyone, drum roll please... Liz Frederick is joining the Developer Relations team at Adobe to become a Community Manager! APPLAUSE! Liz has helped to build CFUnited into the premiere ColdFusion conference for over the last 8 years and has done an amazing job as manager and director of CFUnited, putting place practices and procedures that have made for an excellent ColdFusion community event each year.

As Liz is joining Adobe she will be missed at the office but we will retain her guidance through the detailed procedures she leaves behind. She will also continue to be an integral part of CFUnited conferences as a member of the Advisory Board, offering guidance to the Stellr team whenever needed. The Stellr team, including myself, Elliott Sprehn, and Cara Beverage, volunteers and its newest list of advisers (Charlie Arehart , Raymond Camden, Sean Corfield, Shlomy Gantz, Adam Lehman, Liz Frederick, Chaz Chumley, Bob Flynn, Simon Free, Brian Kotek, Andy Powell, Dan Wilson, Todd Sharp, Scott Stroz, and Mark Drew) are committed to put together an amazing CFUnited event in 2010. Registration is open for business, were running an incredible deal of $499 for a 3 day package, from now until September 25th! Things went great this year and it's totally gone to our heads! I guess we're just feeling really generous, take advantage and get the BEST DEAL EVER, so far.

Please, feel free to contact any of us if you have any questions or concerns. Remember, Adobe MAX is right around the corner, Cara and I can't wait to see you there!

Round up of CFUnited CFConversations

Here is a round up of the recent CFConversation podcasts that spotlight the CFUnited conference, sessions, and speakers. Big thanks to Brian Meloche for doing such an awesome job of organizing and hosting the podcasts!

Barney Boisvert - this episode in the Speakers of CFUnited series features Barney Boisvert. This is a great episode, which was recorded on Day 2 of CFObjective in May. Barney talks about his session, CFGroovy - Groovy for the CFML Developer, which he's doing Thursday at 4:45pm at CFUnited. Of course, that means he talks about Groovy and why he uses it with CF. We also talk about Hibernate, Grails, Fusebox and his mini Fusebox-inspired framework called FB3Lite.

CFUnited 2009 Day 2, Part 1 - The new venue for CFUnited this year, Stellr, the day 1 keynotes from Liz Frederick and Adobe, day 1 sessions, birds of a feather and hints at several other things that we dive deeper into in part 2. On the roundtable panel: Brian Meloche, John Mason, Timothy Farrar, John Farrar, Anita Neal, and Jason Dean

CFUnited 2009 Day 2, Part 2 - Covering a lot of stuff, including things both at the conference and other things to think about. Joe Reinhart's inspiring day 2 keynote that prominently featured Todd Sharp's Slide Six site as an example of sites CF developers should aspire to build rather than oldschool CF CRUD-style apps that ColdFusion no longer has the same advantages it historically had over other languages.We discuss some of the interesting day 2 sessions we attended. Janine Driver, Mark Phillips, Charlie Arehart, Mike Brunt, Adam Haskell and Barney Boisvert were singled out as speakers with interesting talks. Lastly, some of the demo derby apps were discussed, as the two Johns and Timothy are each competing in the derby.

Lawrence Cramer - Lawrence is speaking (in one hour! - apologies to all) on Real World eCommerce with ColdFusion, and he talks about his presentation. He also talks about how he got started in Dreamweaver and later ColdFusion, ColdFusion 9/ColdFusion Builder (still code named, at the time) and some other projects.

Post-CFUnited 2009: Wrap-up, Withdrawal & Fallout - a post-CFUnited 2009 "wrap-up fallout" roundtable, where we review the conference as a whole, "post-conference withdrawal and fallout" of things that both happened and what didn't happen during the conference. On this roundtable, we have: Brian Meloche, Adam Haskell, Dan Wilson, John Farrar, and Mark Mandel

The Biggest Thank You Ever

I am so appreciative of all the comments people have given Stellr about the event. I truly enjoyed this event from beginning to end and I am glad everyone felt the experience was worthwhile.

This is a developer's conference. If this was a "What does Liz like to do?" conference it would be purple purses as gift bags and photoshop topics and everyone would be getting pedicures during the evening event. But its about you. I've been studying the developer community for over 8 years. I know what you want and how you want it. I also know everyone deserves to be treated like a rock star. It?s my job to make CF look cool. Geek is cool, and it is about time. Being smart and creating amazing apps that do incredible things is something to be recognized for. It's also about community. People who have a common interest can do more for the world just by sharing ideas and find out short cuts to save time.

You can't build yourself a new rocket ship without knowing how the other guy did it.

And you can't build a new rocket ship without the right tools.

And you can't show off your new rocket ship without an audience.

And you can't take off in your new rocket ship without the experience of others to tell you what happens when you get to outer space.

Hopefully your new rocket ship comes with great food and excellent resort staff so that you can enjoy that success.

Anyways, that is my way of thinking. I put this conference together because I know people will create amazing online applications that will help other people and blow their minds. Information is the essential ingredient towards faster growth.

ColdFusion is just one of those things I want to be apart of. It's been the underdog and the brunt of jokes. I knew in my heart that if I could get people together and unite them with a common interest, that someday CFers all over the world would benefit. ColdFusion is cool. ColdFusion is a bad-ass language that if you are worthy enough to join this club of genius, then you will understand that in the end you have saved your company time, money, and gained free advise for a lifetime. Why do I buy the name brand items from my grocery store? Because I know if I have a complaint or the bag is busted, that company will do anything in its power to help me. If I got my meat for free, it might be a little harder to cook and I would have to do a lot more testing to get it to taste just right.

Not only that, we have welcomed the Flex community as well. There is brilliance to be combined in this great adventure. Technology is fascinating. Being involved with this community is like a roller coaster ride that has the most challenging loops at the fastest speeds.

Stellr was created as a service to this community. CFUnited is our product wrapped in platinum gift paper. What happens next? We want you to create apps with the experience in mind just like CFUnited. It deserves to be fun, desirable, long lasting, and appreciated. Stellr can help you accomplish that. And we just love turning you into a rock star!

What now? Everyone asks. CFUnited is 75% thinking about Lansdowne next year. Although I would triple the number of shuttles and take more care on travel and timing in the AM. I would make the evening events slightly more random so it's not the same event but having the same impact. I would have 3-4 breakouts but use those small rooms for several Hands-on classes through the event and repeat them during the week. I'd have to limit the event to 800 attendees. Can't fit more than that but I guess a few more than 800 could squeeze in. I would hired more room monitors to help out my speakers and I would let others organize their own activities to add some variety.

As far as express events, I m thinking about it. It is hard to break even for those kinds of things. So I will have to think up some new ideas. I will be at MAX doing CFUnited Express. We plan to help out some other events going on soon. Why, do you ask? Because the CF community is huge (750,000+), there is enough to go around. And the more we can get new members to join the conference going community, the better for all of us.

BIG Thanks to so many people. It's hard to leave anyone out.


Adam Lehman, first, because he came to me just after he got back to the states and he should have been in bed rest, but he said to me some things that were very important and he inspired me to keep things going after last year?s event.
Ben Forta, well he's going to always be at the top of the list for me. He hasn't missed CFUnited yet and I don?t think I've ever thanked him publicly for that.
Terry Ryan, I think you fit in really well with everyone and we really like you too.
Sean Corfield, he is always perfectly honest with me and he?s almost always the first to respond on my advisory list.
Raymond Camden is one of my good friends that I would do anything for and he has done so many unselfish things for everyone, I don't know how to thank him.
Scott Stroz is an insightful person and my favorite funny man.
Simon Free helped me with my Intro Jokes and he helps fill in everywhere he can, I owe him a lot.
Ben Nadel has shown me how in just a few years someone can make such an impact on a community with just an ounce of opportunity.
Joe Rinehart has this amazing way to see everything in a broader perspective and I?m glad he shares that with me.
Shlomy Gantz some how gets it right all the time and has helped me see my potential.
Charlie Arehart is the most detailed man I know and I would probably embarrass myself if it were it not for his watchful eye.
Gertz Franz is just an amazing person with a smile that is contagious and I know he is on to great things in the future that will benefit everyone.
Peter Bell is a great resource and willing participant.
Mark Drew brings the alternative perspective and makes me believe in possibilities.
Doug Hughes is genuine guy and a good business man.
Dee Sadler is a gal on a mission to educate and bring people together.
Jeff Coughlin is so much fun and wasn't scared to challenge me (even in flip cup).
Bob Flynn has been a loyal attendee for as long as its been running and we love his honest feedback.
Josh Adams has an appreciation for people and new experiences.
Andy Powell stepped up to the plate and helped me put together an awesome line up of people I never heard of but made a huge impact on the event.
Chaz Chumley turns a bad day into a good day and knows just what to say.
Nate Nelson keeps it cool and interesting.
Mike Brunt has the experience to make you wonder and appreciate the direction we are headed.
Michael Smith believes in me and recognizes my abilities.
Nafisa Sabu knows when to tell me its time to make a change.
Cara Beverage keeps us sane and takes care of everyone no matter the task.
Tara Kossari was reliable and brought lots of energy.
Elliott Sprehn helps makes it all happen and has a big heart.
Oguz Demirkapi helps document all the greatness and catches every moment.
Eric Stoike is a good friend with a ton of talent.
Brian Meloche is so excited to get the real perspective from each and every person.

All the attendees made it really easy for us. Even with the badge printing hiccup and shuttle confusion, we still managed to keep everyone happy. It's just one more thing I get to improve on and blow everyone's minds next year.

I hope this experience makes you appreciate your career choice. I hope you go into work this week with a twinkle in your eye and an extra skip in your step. I can't wait to see everyone again and please don?t hesitate to share your ideas with the Stellr team.

Thank you again.

Here are some of my favorite moments.

More photos at http://www.flickr.com/groups/cfunited/

More cancelations - Amazing new topics

Jeremy Kadlec is unable to speak on Saturday.

Hal Helms's sessions have been canceled. He is unfortunately unable to join us this year.

Jacob Munson had to cancel as well.

In their place, the following topics have replaced their speaking slots.

Wednesday

4:15 PM - 5:15 PM Mike Brunt "Clustering ColdFusion - Myths and Legends"

Thursday

8:30 AM - 9:30 AM Raymond Camden "Introduction to jQuery with ColdFusion"

2:00pm - 3:00pm - Adam Haskell "Code Reviews and Team Dynamics"

4:45 PM - 5:45 PM Terry Ryan "Selling Professional Development at the Resistant Shop"

Our DB has been updated, results should show up on the website momentarily.

CFUnited Attendee Packet

Did get your CFUnited Attendee Packet via Email?

Here's the information you need: http://cfunited.com/newsletter/attendee_packet_2009.html

CFUnited Shuttle Schedule Revised

Hello Shuttle Riders!

We had to make minor changes to the Shuttle Schedule. And we've created a document which makes it easy for you to follow shuttle times.

Shuttles run TUESDAY, WEDNESDAY, THURSDAY, FRIDAY, SATURDAY

Download PDF: http://cfunited.com/images/cfunited_shuttle_schedule.pdf

Dulles Airport Shuttle

If you have not done so already, fill out this form and fax back to the resort: http://cfunited.com/images/Dulles_Shuttle_Form.PDF

Monday (or earlier) Arrivals and Commuters

For those of you arriving on Monday via Reagan Airport (DCA), Amtrak, and Metro! We recommend taking the Orange Metro line toward Vienna and get off at the West Falls Church Station, take the Washington Flyer Coach Service to Dulles Airport ($10). Notify the hotel @ (703-729-8400) that you will be arriving at the airport and you'd like the shuttle to pick you up. Let them know you are with CFUnited.

More information about the Washington Flyer Coach: http://www.metwashairports.com/dulles/parking_transportation_3/ground_transportation/metrorail

CFUnited mobile schedule

"What's Next?" App by Raymond Camden

We've all been there... at a conference, probably carrying a huge laptop bag filled with sponsor swag in one hand coffee on the other... trying to rush to figure out what session to attend next when you realize that little printed schedule of the conference sessions you were holding is lost somewhere in the session you were sitting in hours ago... *sigh*

Thanks to Ray's new "What's Next?" app the paper schedule is no more and you wont be late to another session! The app lets you quickly browse the conference schedule right from your mobile phone. It lists session based on the day and time and even has a nice search and "What's Next?" feature so you can quickly see what sessions are coming up. It even lists the speaker name, room name, number of seats, and the description of the session all on one page. If you are attending CFUnited next week be sure to bookmark http://mobile.cfunited.com on your phone.

** For those of you who would prefer the printed schedule, don't fret we will printing the schedule of session like we have in the past.

Ajay Sathurlui - Session Raffle details

A message from Ajay Sathuluri - Speaker

CFUnited is next week!

I'll be presenting on Wednesday on "Dynamic Load Testing with Webserver Stress Tool". I'll be covering Basic, parameterized, and scripted load testing. It's a fairly inexpensive tool, but can do some powerful testing.

This week I also found out I'll be able to raffle 3 software licenses: 2 licenses for Paessler Webserver Stress Tool, and 1 for FusionReactor server monitor! ($1000 worth of software). Licenses sponsored by Paessler and Intergral, respectively.

Topics:

* Test Types

* setting up a set of URLs

* Multiple users

* URLs bound to a dataset (parameterize the tested URLs, merge with a dataset; one set for each user)

* Scripting, instead of list of URLs

* Simulate multiple simultaneous CF sessions

* How to simulate AJAX calls

* Test results and logs; where's the most useful information

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