Take it away John … ——————–

Hi, my name is John Davey and i am the organiser of FOTB.

I love reading all comments on blogposts, and appreciate the feedback. I take all feedback very seriously. I feel I should make a couple of comments and address a couple of things here. I will write to Rich privately to get a better insight into the who’s and what’s so I can fix them for next time.

First up, ever heard the phrase ‘can’t please all the people all the time’? Well, I try and do exactly that! Inevitably, that’s never gonna happen. I am always getting emails saying, too fast, too slow, too difficult, to easy etc etc. This is always going to be tough to fix. We have tried to address this by indicating on the schedule and session descriptions who the session is aimed at and what skills level it should suit.

Honestly, if people are looking for a training session, then they should book a training course which would cost more than an FOTB ticket. The idea of the conference is to pick up tips and tricks, get inspired, get pumped about what you do and to network. I am amazed at the amount of emails I get thanking me for putting people in a position where they have got work, contacts, projects etc through the networkig opportunities at FOTB. No-one mentions that in their round-ups because they are focused on what they have seen over the 3 days.

The ‘hype’ about FOTB does not come from us. Of course we are proud, but we intentially let others sing our praises (it’s the British way!). Remember, we have not been around as long as FiTC or FlashForward, so the buzz around FOTB has taken us by surprise too! We don’t do ‘hotel based conferences’ we do not do ‘corporate feel’, if people are looking for a quiet classroom type session, then do not come to Flash on the Beach! If they are looking for a creative, inspirational, educational, networking buzz that wants you to be pumped that you are at an event with an exciting vibe, then come to Flash on the Beach.

I hope this has been helpful, and I hope to see many of you at FOTB Miami!

No idea where the C64 emulator is I’m afraid shame, as it looked really neat!

The sessions on decompiling and disassembling sound like they were worthwhile? Were they preventative, or were they like DEFCON sessions? What is the AS3 Disassembler good for if not cracking games?

Also, where can I find that C64 emulator? Any game specific sessions?

Seb Lee-Delisle did an intro session on PV3D which was a good overview (he presents with good passion), but the audience were clapping at the most inane of things – I mean he puts a skybox into the demo and then flies around it. That’s it, just one skybox, and the audience are “oohing” like it’s the second coming (which he was egging on too much imho).

I’m sat there thinking “what the fuck? it’s just a cube guys, calm down”. Then he puts a 3D cow into the scene and the frame rate drops through the floor and I couldn’t help but smirk Don’t get me wrong, I respect the amount of work that has gone into PV3D, but let’s just say I like to keep things in perspective.

My one bit of Flash training was going to a Grant Skinner workshop weekend about Flash8. The guy is just sickening. Cool and talented ( Be one or the other, not both, that’s just pulling the piss )
It’s only when you see someone bang at the top of their game like him does it bring you down to earth and help you realise exactly where you stand in the grand scheme of Flash.