Vmworld 2013 – Barcelona – My thoughts

We are not far off from the event of the year that is Vmworld 2013 Europe. It is back again at the Fira Barcelona Gran Via. Here’s a rundown on my thoughts for the event and some links that may be of use.

Firstly, the venue is immense and you won’t appreciate this until you end Day 1. Being on your feet most of the day can be tiring for most of us so ensure you have plenty of fluid and also ensure you don’t overcommit yourself. The key takeaway for me was the fact that there are so many sessions and you want to attend as many of them as you can but this is not realistic so aim to attend what you think is relevant to your organisation. The Schedule Builder – https://www.vmworld.com/schedulebuilder-login.jspa – will help with most of your planning but ensure you have some downtime away from the hustle and bustle of the event where possible.

Secondly, do pay a visit to the hangspace and community lounge. You’ll find many of the bloggers here and also the all important vBrownbag tech talks will be happening here so worth a visit as this is where you can gain a lot of information in a controlled and smaller environment and also you may be lucky to have some one to one conversations with some of the vGeeks. I’ll be sure to say Hi to Mike Laverick, Jon Mark Troyer and many other bloggers that I follow. Hoping for some to also say Hi to me….

Third on my list is to head on over to the Social Media & Community area where you will find links to the Vmworld mobile app, blogger lists and also the key hashtags to use during the event. The important part here is to be noticed and be visible amongst fellow virtualisation fans. If you’ve found something of use during your time at Vmworld or want to share your experiences then you will find the key info here – http://www.vmworld.com/community/social

Lastly, be lucky and network !!! I know I am but ensure you spend some time at the booths at the Solutions Exchange. This is your chance to learn directly from some of the big and smaller vendors that are tapping into the virtualisation market and also your chance to win some swag at the same time. I’ll be sure to talk to some of the upcoming disruptive vendors that I have much respect for such as Pernixdata, Pure Storage, Nutanix, Nexsan & Tintri.

As always the organised parties after the shows are an opportunity to network and let your hair down in an informal setting so don’t forget the social element but above all – ENJOY THE EXPERIENCE.

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