The People in Attendance

Outside of Monday evening, my key highlight each year is the opportunity to interact with the many attendees from all over the world. The collection of GIS users and other professionals who gather each year for this event is very impressive. This provides a great opportunity to learn, to be inspired, to see new ways to think about your problems, to view illustrations about how others do it, and to “elevate your game.” I really take advantage of this opportunity to key in on the experience and talent. You can learn so much simply by reaching out and getting to know other users at the conference. This community and knowledge base is the greatest GIS resource you will find anywhere.

It’s not at all about ESRI. It’s all about the users and partners who are present  - that makes my week! Making new friends with really decent people and seeing old friends. Learning from the best and having a special moment with someone from halfway around the world. Having users catch me and give me a piece of their mind so we do our jobs better is also an important and valuable part of that experience.

The Monday Plenary Session

Always very educational, inspirational, and fun - Jack Dangermond, ESRI president, will lead the morning ESRI UC agenda. In the afternoon, we will have special awards, acknowledgements and keynote presentations by world leaders and GIS experts who have made key differences. This year, we have school children from Waterville Elementary School who use GIS. One of my favorite GIS professors of all time, Dr. David Cowen, will receive the lifetime achievement award. He is undoubtedly one of the most inspiring teachers in our field. His students span the industry and always come out of his program with a strong ethic about using GIS for a better world. And finally, Dr. Jane Goodall will provide the keynote presentation during the afternoon session. It’ll be packed so be sure to be early to get a good seat.

The Map Gallery and GIS Exhibition on Monday Evening

Probably the most impressive and inspiring collection of GIS ever assembled is presented each year on Monday evening. Thousands of map displays and exhibits show how GIS is being applied in a myriad of applications and situations. GIS and good California Red Wine go together quite nicely.

Highlighted Tracks from Technical Workshops

From Tuesday through Friday morning, ESRI and other partners will present over 250 technical workshops organized into a dozen or so key tracks. This year, some of the highlights will include –
- Enterprise GIS track
- GIS Case Studies and Best Practices sessions that will illustrate some of the groundbreaking use of GIS.
- ArcGIS Road Ahead track where ESRI Development staff will present our latest development and release plans. These sessions will focus in on various aspects of ArcGIS 9.2.
- Federated GIS – will illustrate how web-based GIS is changing and evolving to a data management and collaboration framework.
- GIS for the Nation – a special day on Tuesday will focus in on how various levels of government (local, sate, and national can work collaboratively to build a digital nervous system for a city, state, or nation. Some visions for how we collaborate in a more effective and formal manner will be presented.

User Presentations

Always, my favorite is to attend more than a few user presentations and to learn how to “just do it”. Real users are the best teachers.

Vendor Area

Lost of free stuff and just plain old cool demos and exhibits. This is an eye-opener and awareness building exercise for anyone who might say that GIS is focused or specialized or not fundamental to our world. You’ll be blown away by what you see and learn.

San Diego Nightlife

If I can manage, I find my way up the GasLamp District and squeeze by way into Patrick’s II on F Street between 4th and 5th. It’s just a little, itty bitty bar with the hottest live blues in town. There’s absolutely no way to even move in the place, but it’s the real deal.

Thursday Night Party

Always a big highlight. GridLock, ESRI’s all employee party band, gets the crowd up and dancing and is always a huge hit.

The View from the Convention Center overlooking San Diego Bay.
Walk out the meeting room level of the SDCC overlooking San Diego Bay any time of the day and sit for a while for one of the best views anywhere in the world. Sunsets are the best times. This year, I’ll be sitting there are thinking about listening to Lyle Lovett and His Large Band concert at Humphrey’s Concerts By the Bay just across the water on July 3. Sorry you missed it.

Watching Planes Fly into the San Diego Airport

The San Diego airport is still a tight fit just north of downtown. Watching the plans fly in is fun once you’ve fried your brain on too many questions about topology and annotation and can you please pass me just one more ...

Thanks to Clint for once again providing this casual look ahead at what we can expect in San Diego this year at the International ESRI User Conference. 

See also
ESRI User

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