Changes

== General Timeline Process ==* Apply to be a host* Consider your action plan** Identify your venues for both the conference and the hotel (if different). This is critical, as you'll want to get some cost estimates from each. When we hosted in Corvallis, the campus provided the conference space at a low cost, and this made running the conference much more affordable. When we hosted the conference in Portland, and held everything in a single hotel, we had to acquire 2x the amount of sponsorship than what appears to be normal.** Speaking of sponsorship, I believe we average around 20k per year in sponsorships to help run the conference and keep the registration low. Factor this into your budget.** Also, when you get cost estimates, don't forget to include food costs.** WIRELESS: Always an issue it seems. If you are proposing to host the conference on a campus, check with your IT folks about any additional costs. If you are looking at a hotel or other venue, make sure you talk to them about bandwidth and costs. IMHO, the two things that really need to be addressed each year are connectivity and food - everything else generally manages itself in terms of facilities.*** make sure VPN is allowed** See if your institution has a conference planning services group or something similar - if it does, then I highly recommend using them. They'll handle registration, budgeting, contracts, etc, and really make life easy.** Also consider using conference planning services from other entities. In 2013, Chicago used DLF services to handle registration. In 2014, NC used CONCENTRA services for all contract negotiation, fiscal activities, registration, and other conference planning and management services.** Regarding conference hotel, you'll want to make sure that there are blocks of rooms available - not usually too bad an issue in larger towns, but in some college or smaller towns, hotel rooms may be limited.*** prepare the hotel for deluge via web when announcement is made about hotel registration available. We overwhelmed the Seattle hotel in 2012** Remember, your institution is taking the risk of covering any costs not covered by registrations and sponsorships. To this point, I believe the conference has always ended up in the black, but there is always a chance it won't in a given year. Drafting a rough budget before submitting a proposal is critical.

* When the call for next year's host goes out, '''prepare a proposal'''** See [[Successful Code4Lib Conference Proposals]] from prior years** '''Identify venues''' for both the conference and the hotel (if different).** '''Prepare cost estimates'''. The primary factors are:*** Lodging (hotels) - see if hotels offer discounted room block quotes*** Venues (conference, workshop, reception, other activities)*** Catering*** Wireless: If you are proposing to host the conference on a campus, check with your IT folks about any additional costs. If you look at a hotel or other venue, make sure you talk to them about bandwidth and costs.*** Do you have organizational relationships which might ensure extra sponsorships? If so, factor in that this might reduce the registration cost. For instance, when we were at the Library of Congress in 2018, they were also [https://2018.code4lib.org/sponsors/ our largest sponsor].*** You can reference data from previous years to estimate minimums and maximums.** '''Use our conference planner (CONCENTRA)'''*** Since 2014 in NC, Code4lib has contracted with [https://www.concentra-cms.com CONCENTRA] to help manage and plan the conference. Their expertise is invaluable. You can ask them questions while preparing your proposal. CONCENTRA knows Code4Lib and our unique structure and well as how to plan various aspects of conferences (hotel room block, catering, bus to reception, etc.). Look for Jennifer Cummings in Slack or use their site's contact link.*** See if your institution has a conference planning services group or something similar - if so, they can also be very helpful and will know more about campus spaces and costs (e.g. if there are free rooms to use for pre-conferences).* Get approved by the communityand start planning** Receive access to the Code4Lib Conference Drive folders with information from prior years** Construct a planning timeline (see templates in Drive)** Find a hotel, negotiate and sign a contract with them. CONCENTRA does this but this [[Sample RFI]]is still a useful reference; '''note the WiFi requirements'''* Invite * Put out a call for committee volunteers (on the community to help with listserv, in Slack)* Have a timeline'''Put on an amazing conference!''' If you get this far, you have survived the worst part.*[[Useful information from 2012]]The final duties of LPC are putting out the call for next year's proposals and writing up reflections.

== Important Public Resources ==* Past calls for host sites: [http://code4lib.org/node/275 2010] - * [http://dewey.library.nd.edu/mailing-lists/code4lib/ Code4Lib listserv]* [http://groupshas been hosted on university campuses and also located purely in hotels.google.com/group/code4libcon Code4LibCon listserv]* Sponsorship info (public)* [http://code4lib.org/logo/ Logos]* [http://code4lib.org/content/template-code4lib-20xx Template for the conference page on the main Code4Lib website] - This page is only visible Campus facilities tend to those who have a code4libbe more affordable, but housing can be scattered and challenging.org account. Once a host has been selected, please copy the template to a new page for that conference yearHotels are more expensive but cohesive.

If your campus or town has a conference center, that is a logical starting point. Large hotels are also an option. In recent years, the conference has been smaller (a little over 200 attendees). If you are unsure how many attendees to plan for, look at [[Conference_Financial_History_At_A_Glance|historical attendance]] figures or ask in the code4libcon channel in Slack. In general, 200-400 attendees is a good range. A couple of isolated rooms for the conference but away from the main space are important for both the Community Support Squad to hold private discussions and to private a place of quiet respite for weary conference-goers. == Important Private Resources = Workshops ===* Code4LibConWorkshops have been held before and after the conference. They are referred to as "pre-conferences" or "post-conferences" in planning and publicity materials. There should be space to facilitate 10-hostsite listserv20 workshops. It is helpful if they can be located in the same building but not necessary.* Budgets from previous These can be class or meeting rooms but should have a projector and ideally a whiteboard. Electricity for attendees is also important. === Reception === A nice reception venue can be appealing to many attendees. In the past, we have gone to museums, libraries, and more fun venues. If Philadelphia, we went to The Mütter Museum. In D.C., we went to the Library of Congress. In Michigan, we went to "fowling" (football bowling). A nice reception at a separate location is not strictly necessary. It might be possible to do catering at the conference venue in the evening, for instance. === Transportation === Consider how folks coming into town will get to their lodging. Is the airport far? Are there free shuttles? Is it possible to get there via a major railway? If lodging and the venue are separate, how will attendees get to the conference venue? Are there shuttles? If we need to purchase a bus, how much will it cost? Most years, we pay for a bus to the reception venue, as it tends to be in a different location.* Sponsorship info === Local Appeal === Successful proposals in the past included local spots that attendees will be interested in: cultural institutions, tourist attractions, book stores, libraries, restaurants, and nightlife. The Social Activities committee plans around these venues. It is nice to have a nighttime location where Game Night can be held (privatewhich can be a workshop room). There is nothing wrong with doing a conference in a location we've been to before, or in a location that is close to last year's location. In the past, Code4Lib tended to bounce between the East Coast, West Coast, and Midwest, but that is not a requirement and should not dissuade any location from submitting a proposal.

== Budgeting==* Each year we copy the prior year's list of committees (see [[Conference_Financial_History_At_A_Glance:Category:Conference Committees]]* private conlist has budget info ) to a new wiki page. If you are looking for information on a committee or new volunteers, prior years can provide some names, but know that not all committees keep their membership on the wiki up to date.

== Hotels ==You will likely have to convince the conference hotel Brief descriptions of the conference size and past room uptake as part of negotiating your contract. They may want to contact past conference hotels to get more info about actual uptake.* 2014 -- Raleigh Downtown Sheratonprimary committees:

TODO: put actual room uptake numbers in * Planning (LPC) - primary committee, should have delegates on most others, makes major decisions* Website - creates and updates the website using a chart here. template and data provided by other committees* Sponsorship - acquires sponsorships to reduce costs* Keynote - solicits suggestions from community and communicates with keynote candidates* Pre-conference - plans workshops* Program - plans posters and conference talks* Scholarship - solicits diversity scholarship applications and selects candidates* Community Support Squad (NB totals are only useful in CSS) - enforces the context [https://github.com/code4lib/code-of how many attendees there were-conduct Code of Conduct]* T-Shirt - solicits T-Shirt designs* Social Activities - plans social events at the conference such as Game Night* Streaming - runs the livestream* Host Voting - solicits proposals for next year* Accessibility - consults on physical and digital accessibility, e.)g. of venues and the conference websites

== Wireless ==TODO: put actual concurrent connections and bandwidth usage data numbers in a chart here. Note when problems were occurring to give context You will also need on whether these numbers were sufficient of insufficient-site volunteers during the conference for tasks like MCing the conference, timing talks, and running microphones for audience questions.

=== Keynotes ===# Contact speakers in advance to get Some committees are small, even a speaker biosingle person. Some years may have some unique committees not present in the list above. For more information on any particular committee, plus to ask if they need anything, arrange airport pickup, etclook in their Drive folder or on the wiki.

=== Email Boilerplates / templates Budgeting ===* [[ConferenceOrientationEmail|Quick orientation email for newer folks]] - Send out at least a week in advance before conference...* [[FreenodeIrcConnection|Freenode IRC connectionConference_Financial_History_At_A_Glance]]** === Wireless === Historically, conference attendees have Code4Lib has had trouble maintaining persistent connections with wifi bandwidth at venues. Hotels will lie about their wifi. Try to receive assurance that every attendee will be able to simultaneously have 1-2 devices connected to the #code4lib IRC channelnetwork. WeIt'd always assumed we were overwhelming s best if you are able to visit the conference facility's Internet connection, but we were actually running into Freenode's IP-based connection limitsvenue to verify its network characteristics. Freenode  It is supportive of good if the IRC-venue allows VPN traffic as-backchannel model, however, and they're happy to many folks use a work with organizers to raise the connection limitVPN.** Contact the conference facility in advance and see It's also nice if you can find out what your ''public IP address range'' will be during the conference. (If it starts with 10.*commonly used ports, 192.168.*like 22 for ssh/git, or 172.16.*, ask again -- those are "private" IP ranges used for connection sharingusable.)** Once you have the IP address or range, send Aspiration Tech (an email to org doing unconference facilitation) has developed a [mailtohttp:ilines@freenode//facilitation.net ilines@freenodeaspirationtech.net] containing a request to raise the connection limitorg/index. Include conference info, IP range(s), and the expected number of connections. For examplephp?title=Logistics:** I received an automated reply with a ticket number almost instantly, but didn't hear back after that. I sent a quick followup early on the morning of the 22nd, Wireless_Best_Practices great list for assessing and received a response (from a human) letting me know that it had been taken care of. (Follow-up, one year later: Same experience. Immediate automated reply, but with a need to follow up with Freenode staff in the #freenode channel to get the ticket resolved.)** Additional support is available from the helpful volunteer Freenode staff in the #freenode channelnegotiating event wifi].

===KeynotesCode of Conduct ===# Water at the podium# Speaker gifts# Dinner plans

LPC may be consulted by the CSS if a Code of Conduct violation occurs. These have sometimes necessitated someone being removed from the conference or an announcement being made from the stage. === Timers Keynotes === * Sit in the front of the roomSpeaker gifts* Have several peopleSmall honorarium* You may want Offer to use an extra machine* Here's what some of the software looks like: http://www.flickr.com/photos/schwartzray/4393891356/ (ask Ed Corrado for details)* Dan Chudnov says the best free timer app for OSX is http://www.apimac.com/timer/make dinner plans

=== Video ===# live stream is awesome# joinCode4Lib uses different colored lanyards to articulate personal photography preferences.me ??# YouTube Live, youtube.com/code4lib

* Green =it's ok to take my picture* Yellow =please ask before taking my picture* Red = Live Blogging don't take my picture === Podium ===Consider doing live blogging for 2014. You will have two people so they can switch off during each section of day# Water at the podium# Provide height adjustable podium, if available.Otherwise:# Provide a stand (apple box?) for presenters who would like to use one === Video ===

=== Ask Anything===* Add to volunteer page to have a moderator or do a general call out* Need mics for people to line up # Videos are streamed at (image: httphttps://www.flickryoutube.com/photos/schwartzray/4393838640/ code4lib# Presenters can opt out of having their likeness recorded and streamed. They may not opt out of having their voice and presentation (i.e. slides, etc.)recorded and streamed.# Presenters must not use unlicensed music in their presentation. Likewise, unlicensed music must not be used between presentations.# Video must be able to work with the house A/V crew and set up the day before the main con begins.# Lighting must be provided for the speakers.

===Book RaffleCalls for Hosting ===* (image: http://www.flickr.com/photos/schwartzray/4393619144/ with people for context: http://www.flickr.com/photos/schwartzray/4393623802/ and http://www.flickr.com/photos/schwartzray/4384550127/ ), better if there's a table

=== Flipcharts ===Flipcharts can be useful, but it's important ''To do''': This has not been kept up to decide what to put on the wiki/website date. We should use examples from recent years and what to put on a flipchart:images: http://www.flickr.com/photos/schwartzray/4392998501/ http://www.flickrremove older ones.com/photos/47860563@N05/4388430079/

{| class== Suggested Timeline =="wikitable"* See [[C4L2010planning]] ! Year of proposal! Text of call! Call issued! Deadline for an example submission! Weeks to submit! Voting start! Voting end! Weeks to vote! Announcement|-|2010* See |[https://docslistserv.googlend.comedu/acgi-bin/ncsuwa?A2=CODE4LIB;tBeDRg;201002051132430800 Code4Lib 2011 Hosting Proposals Solicited]|5 Feb|5 Mar|4 weeks|||||-|2011|[https://listserv.nd.edu/document/d/1Ci_aeXlUOW_1XZ9isvwXfytcgi-FFyO7zsBxesenbFvCPIbin/edit wa?A2=CODE4LIB;R8d%2FBw;20101210153936%2B0000 Code4Lib 2014 planning schedule] planning schedule2012 Call for Host Proposals] for example|10 Dec, including dates for responsibilities for each volunteer committee. Note that we established schedule at the outset by counting 2010|23 Jan (Sun)|6 weeks backwards from the desired conference dates+ 3 days|25 Jan (Tue)|9 Feb (3rd day of conf)|2 weeks + 2 days|10 Feb (last day of conf)|-|2012|[https://listserv.nd.edu/cgi-bin/wa?A2=CODE4LIB;9k0n8A;20111201184554%2B0000 Code4Lib 2013 Call for Host Proposals]* Ideal to have program set before registration|1 Dec, including pre2011|22 Jan (Sun)|7 weeks + 4 days|25 Jan (Wed)|8 Feb (3rd day of conf)|2 weeks + 1 day|9 Feb (last day of conf)|-|2013||||||||15 April?|-|2014|[https://listserv.nd.edu/cgi-bin/wa?A2=CODE4LIB;f5d2e9cb.1401 Call for proposals to host Code4Lib Conference in 2015]|29 Jan|12 Mar (Wed)|6 weeks + 1 day|14 Mar (Fri)|26 Mar|1 week + 6 days|27 Mar (Thursday; last day of conf)** also allows clarity |-|2015|[https://listserv.nd.edu/cgi-bin/wa?A2=CODE4LIB;1b38757a.1501 Call for how many spots are avail for nonproposals to host Code4Lib Conference in 2016]|8 Jan|20 Feb (Fri)|6 weeks + 2 days|23 Feb (Mon)|6 Mar|1 week + 5 days|9 Mar (Mon)|-presenters|2016||19 Jan (Tue)|1 Mar (Tue)|6 weeks|3 Mar (Thu)|15 Mar (Tue)|1 week + 5 days (note conf is Mar 7-10)|16 Mar (Fri)|}

==Further Readings =Calls for Hosting===No one has claimed responsibility for putting out the call and setting the deadline, so for 2014 planning, consider having this task as the host committee, the voting committee, or perhaps the whatever committee.

== Some Suggested Readings ==* [[Code4Lib Conference Lessons Learned]] (from 2014)* [[2017_Lessons_Learned]]* [https://medium.com/@louisrosenfeld/how-to-organize-a-conference-567fb50ccdbd How To Organize a Conference] - Some excellent thoughts on conferences in general.