FYI: COMMON Open Labs -- MIDRANGE-L

I am not sure if everyone saw this or not, but its a good article about
the Open Labs at COMMON. It is probably one of the best kept secrets of
the organization, and if you are going to COMMON next month in Nashville
I would recommend checking them out. Its a great way to learn about some
new features and functions that you might not be able to "play" with
back in the office.

Pete Massiello

Article reprinted without permission of iSeries Network

New Open Labs Give COMMON-Goers More Flexibility
by Jill R. Aitoro
Industry Reporter

March 19, 2002 -- With COMMON just weeks away, attendees are plotting
minute-by-minute itineraries trying to squeeze in every session and lab
they can. With the recent addition of open labs into the COMMON
curriculum, attendees with crammed schedules can wrap their arms around
the latest technology in whatever minutes they have to spare.
Though often overlooked by newbies and some conference regulars, labs
provide some of the most intensive training COMMON has to offer,
allowing attendees to get their hands on new technology. "If a person
can not only hear, but also see and do, it's far more effective," says
Joe Richard, COMMON's registration volunteer coordinator.
The problem with these hands-on courses is their limited size and
duration. Attendees register for labs on a "first come, first served"
basis, and several of the more popular offerings fill up fast. The labs
generally run about two hours long, and while that may seem to give
attendees ample time to get down and dirty, the lab rooms hold only 20
terminals and no more than three attendees per terminal. "The labs
couldn't be much bigger from a practical standpoint," Richard says. "Any
more people would take away from that one-on-one attention" provided by
the standard three experts that put together and lead the labs.
But even when attendees recognize the benefits of labs and elbow their
way to the registration table early, some with packed agendas still
can't manage to swing a specified time. To accommodate those
individuals, the bigwigs of COMMON added a more flexible alternative.
The first "open lab" was offered at last spring's conference in New Orleans.
The open labs provide more flexibility to help attendees around time
conflicts. People can show up within a lengthy specified time frame and
give any section of the lab a whirl -- rather than showing up at the
start and following a specific agenda. As with as the fixed labs,
experts mill around the room ready to answer questions. And like the
fixed labs, the open labs focus on the technology in greatest demand by
conference-goers.
While unintentionally under wraps, the come-and-go-as-you-please lab
alternatives are slowly gaining momentum, says Paula Hodge, COMMON's
director of education. "[COMMON] is trying to market the open labs, but
they're still a bit of a secret," she says.
The number of open labs offered has inched upward. The New Orleans
conference offered just one open lab, on Lotus Notes/Domino. Last fall's
Minneapolis conference upped that number to three, with additional open
labs on Client Connectivity and DB2. Next month's conference in
Nashville will feature seven open labs, including offerings on Linux and
WebSphere. That's in addition to the dozens of fixed labs scheduled.
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