In the Pipes

Vegas regrets

So normally I don’t smoke. At least not much. I never smoked much until about 2 years ago just after Katrina, and that was a stressful time. I know it is a disgusting habit, so when I moved out to San Francisco I resolved to stop smoking. Every year now I resolve not to smoke. Actually, the resolution is more “I’ll only smoke in states that have an E in the name somewhere”. You know, like TExas, DElaware, NEw York -- but the important thing is NOT California where I currently live – no E in California. (FYI, last year it was states that had a S in them – TexaS, LouiSiana, WaShington . . . but again NOT California.)

Some people find this resolution terminally weird, but it works for me.

Anyway, I’m in Las Vegas at Autodesk University. I taught a packed class yesterday for Introduction to P&ID and it went well.  I hope this afternoon’s advanced class goes as well. There is a lot of interest in the P&ID product and the Plant solutions effort here. We are getting a lot of questions and traffic in the booth. All that traffic can't just be for the temporary tattoos we are giving out, can it?  I’ve heard numbers like 9000 attendees at the event this year – and the energy here is phenomenal. I love this conference! I’m sure I’ll blog more about it in upcoming posts.

Last night we had a reception for Plant clients at a swanky club here called Tao. And somehow before the night was up I had smoked 4 cigarettes. (Nevada does have an E in it after all.) Now I’m seriously regretting that decision. Maybe I should eat something.

Well, at least I’m up $80 from the craps table. I think that means I need to go shoe shopping.

Time to learn a new Word

“Pecha Kucha”   Ok, so that is two words. 

The first Pecha Kucha was in Tokyo in 2003 and now it has spread “virally” to “cities worldwide”.  Google it and you get 700,000+ hits.  Chances are there is one soon in a city near you.  All the cool people seem to know what it is.  Personally, I hadn’t even heard of it until last month, despite agreeing to do one at a conference in December.  (I wasn’t actually listening to the details when I was asked to present.)

So, what is Pecha Kucha?

It’s actually very simple – Pecha Kucha is a slide presentation that is constrained to 6 minutes 40 seconds.  Each slide is shown for 20 seconds (6 min 40 sec @ 20sec per slide = 20 slides).   The short duration and strict slide timing forces presenters to be concise and focused.  The idea was to stop designers/architects form nattering on endlessly, and it worked.  Plus, they usually have a bar. 

The Pecha Kucha format worked so well it has bled into other disciplines, so the presentations now aren’t solely showcases for designers, but cover all sorts of topics.  Last night I checked one out here in San Francisco – mostly it was designers presenting designs, but there was also a trip report, a career retrospective and a political-love-activist (this is San Francisco after all -  gotta love the Bay Area vibe).

Heads up for all you AU attendees:  there will be a Pecha Kucha on MONDAY NIGHT.   Doors open at 6PM, show starts at 7PM, location to be announced.  Seating is limited to 400.  I strongly recommend you check out this showcase of cool ideas!  Plus, as tradition dictates, there will be a bar.

BTW: Roughly,  Pecha Kucha means chit-chat or the sound of conversation in Japanese.  Pecha Kucha is said “Pa shah ka cha”.  PA shah KA cha.   Easy, but still a challenge to remember how to say it:  we solved that at work by re-lyricing an old Muppet Show tune.  Instead of Mah-na Mah-na, we had the office singing Pa-shah Ka-cha.  Warning, if you watch this, it will likely get stuck in your head.

Most wonderful time of the year

So, the second most wonderful time of the year has just passed, seeing that Halloween is over. But on its heels comes and even more wonderful event -- Autodesk University 2007.  It is our premier user event, taking place again in Las Vegas this year.  There are over 8000 registered attendees!  And over 600 sessions!  It the most wonderful conference I've ever been to. (And I'm not just saying that because I work here now.  Nor just because I'm presenting two sessions.  I'm serious!)

Plant has a number of process & power focused events and classes.  Here's a list of our sessions:

Code	Session	Date	Time
PD205-1	AutoCAD® P&ID in a Multi-User Environment	Wed, Nov 28	10:30am
PD215-1	Introduction To P&ID	Wed, Nov 28	3:30pm
PD219-1	Preview of AutoCAD Plant 3D	Wed, Nov 28	5:30pm
PD305-1	Customizing AutoCAD P&ID: Tags, Annotations, and Symbols	Thurs, Nov 29	10:30am
PD311-1	Diving Deep into AutoCAD P&ID Data Manager and Reports	Thurs, Nov 29	1:30pm
PD315-1L	Customize AutoCAD® P&ID to Your Needs	Thurs, Nov 29	3:30pm
PD319-1	How to Execute AutoCAD® P&ID Projects Successfully	Thurs, Nov 29	5:30pm

Other plant things to note: 

• Plant Industry Session - Wednesday 8AM - Lando 4302
• Plant Solutions Lounge, 5th floor of the Venetian (I imagine not the entire 5th floor, just up there somewhere).  This is an informal space to meet your peers, play the WII, get on the internet, or just hang out.
• Exhibit Hall - Booth #100.  Meet Autodesk Plant Solutions team and check out the plant software first hand.

Also, for all you Plant clients who will be in attendance - we have a cocktail reception at 8:00 PM on Wednesday.  Come to the booth or a class to get your invite and a tattoo (tattoo optional).  If you want to catch up with me, I'll be at the booth Tuesday evening during the AUGI beer bust and of course at the cocktail reception.  How exciting!  I look forward to meeting everyone!